The Taego Order or Taego-jong is the second largest order in

Korean Seon Seon or Sŏn Buddhism (; ) is the Korean name for Chan Buddhism, a branch of Mahāyāna Buddhism commonly known in English as Zen Buddhism. Seon is the Sino-Korean pronunciation of Chan, () an abbreviation of 禪那 (''chánnà''), which is a ...

, the Korean branch of

Chan Buddhism Chan (; of ), from Sanskrit '' dhyāna'' (meaning " meditation" or "meditative state"), is a Chinese school of Mahāyāna Buddhism. It developed in China from the 6th century CE onwards, becoming especially popular during the Tang and Song ...

Characteristics

Seonamsa Seonamsa () is a Korean Buddhist temple on the eastern slope at the west end of Jogyesan Provincial Park, within the northern Seungjumyeon District of the city of Suncheon, South Jeolla Province, South Korea. It belongs to the Taego Order althoug ...

is one of the head monasteries of the Taego Order, which includes over 8,000 monastics and 3,100 temples. What distinguishes the Taego Order from other forms of

Korean Buddhism Korean Buddhism is distinguished from other forms of Buddhism by its attempt to resolve what its early practitioners saw as inconsistencies within the Mahayana Buddhist traditions that they received from foreign countries. To address this, they ...

like the

Jogye Order The Jogye Order, officially known as the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism, (대한불교조계종, 大韓佛敎曹溪宗), is the leading order of traditional Korean Buddhism, with roots dating back 1,200 years to the late Silla period. Around ...

of Seon is that it allows ordained priests to marry, although

nuns A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of Evangelical counsels, poverty, chastity, and obedience in the Enclosed religious orders, enclosure of a monastery or convent.' ...

must remain celibate. This custom of married priests is a remnant of

Korea under Japanese rule From 1910 to 1945, Korea was ruled by the Empire of Japan under the name Chōsen (), the Japanese reading of "Joseon". Japan first took Korea into its sphere of influence during the late 1800s. Both Korea (Joseon) and Japan had been under polic ...

. However, not all Taego priests are married. This order also includes traditional

monks A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

. Monks tend to remain more separate from society and live in mountain temples, whereas the married clerics are more like parish priests, though this is not always the case. According to the Patriarch of the Taego Order Overseas Parish, Venerable Dr. Jongmae Kenneth Park, the Taego and Jogye orders follow the same Prātimokṣa, the

vinaya The Vinaya (Pali and Sanskrit: विनय) refers to numerous monastic rules and ethical precepts for fully ordained monks and nuns of Buddhist Sanghas (community of like-minded ''sramanas''). These sets of ethical rules and guidelines devel ...

of the

Dharmaguptaka The Dharmaguptaka (Sanskrit: धर्मगुप्तक; ; ) are one of the eighteen or twenty early Buddhist schools from the ancient region of Gandhara, now Pakistan. They are said to have originated from another sect, the Mahīśāsakas f ...

also followed in Vietnam and China. There are 250 bhiksu precepts, 348 bhiksuni precepts, and 10

śrāmaṇera A (Pali; ), is a novice male monk in a Buddhist context. A female novice nun is in , and in or . In Tibetan Buddhism, a female novice nun is known by the Tibetan language term , and a male novice monk is a .śrāmaṇerī A (Pali; ), is a novice male monk in a Buddhist context. A female novice nun is in , and in or . In Tibetan Buddhism, a female novice nun is known by the Lhasa Tibetan, Tibetan language term , and a male novice monk is a .''Brahma Net Sutra'', which contain 10

bodhisattva vow Gandharan relief depicting the ascetic Megha ( Shakyamuni in a past life) prostrating before the past Buddha Dīpaṅkara, c. 2nd century CE ( Swat_District.html" ;"title="Gandhara, Swat District">Swat Valley) The Bodhisattva vow is a vow (Sans ...

s and 48 lesser precepts. Contrary to some misconceptions, the Taego Order does not use bodhisattva vows as the basis of its ordinations. The Taego Order formed in the 1970s from the monks left out of the then Christian-dominated military government's officially recognized group of monks that became the

. This group consisted of 300 celibate Seon practitioners. One result of this split was that the ritual masters all remained with what became the Taego Order. Today, the Taego Order preserves the full ritual tradition of Korean Buddhism, including the Yeongsanjae, which is a reenactment of the Buddha's preaching of the ''

Lotus Sutra The ''Lotus Sūtra'' (Sanskrit: ''Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtram'', ''Sūtra on the White Lotus of the True Dharma'', zh, p=Fǎhuá jīng, l=Dharma Flower Sutra) is one of the most influential and venerated Buddhist Mahāyāna sūtras. ...

'' on

Vulture Peak The Vulture Peak (Pali: गिज्झकूट, Sanskrit: गृध्रकूट), also known as the Holy Eagle Peak or Gridhrakūta (or Gādhrakūta), was, according to Buddhist tradition, the Buddha's favorite retreat in Rajagaha - no ...

. This ritual is held each year at

Bongwonsa Bongwonsa (; also Bongwon Temple) is a South Korean Buddhist temple in Bongwon-dong, Seodaemun District, Seoul, South Korea. Description It is located at the base of the mountain Ansan. It is the head temple of the Taego Order of Korean Buddh ...

on June 6, South Korea's Memorial Day, in part to pray for the dead from the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

History

Before 1945 the majority of Korean Buddhist monastics were descended from

Taego Bou Taego Bou (, 23 October 1301 – 27 January 1383), alternatively romanized as Taego Bowoo or Taego Bowu, was a Korean Seon master who lived in Goryeo, was the cofounder of the Jogye Order with Jinul, and is credited as the founder of the modern ...

, especially within the Jogye Order, which was founded at the end of Goryeo. This unified order continued until 1954, when

Syngman Rhee Syngman Rhee (; 26 March 1875 – 19 July 1965), also known by his art name Unam (), was a South Korean politician who served as the first president of South Korea from 1948 to 1960. Rhee was also the first and last president of the Provisiona ...

and a number of monks ordered a separation of the order into two parts, one composed of 300 celibate monks and the other a combination of celibate monks and priests, the latter of which would become the Taego Order. The group of 300 celibate monks retained the name "Jogye Order" but changed the color of the kasa, the outer monastic robe worn over the left shoulder and under the right arm, to brown despite the fact that the traditional color of a Korean kasa was red. This was done to create a visual distinction between the orders. North Korean Buddhist clergy most often use the most traditional robes – a red kasa and a dark-blue or nearly black ceremonial robe. After the separation of the orders, the monastics in the Jogye Order as well as the government suppressed the group that became the Taego Order, in part by forcing married clergy out of the temples so these disestablished priests had to establish a new order that would carry the characteristics of the original Jogye Order, including the use of the original red kasa, though allowing for marriage. In 1970 a new order was officially founded that was named for Taego Bou. Of particular note in the Taego ritual tradition is the ''Yeongsanjae'' ritual. This is a reenactment of Shakyamuni Buddha's teaching of the

on Vulture Peak. It involves a great deal of chanting and dancing. The full ritual is quite long, but is sometimes performed in an abbreviated fashion lasting just a few hours. This ritual is chiefly preserved in the Taego Order and has been recognized as an intangible cultural asset by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

Training for Clergy

The training for Taego clergy is similar to that of the Jogye Order. Taego novitiates can study at a ''gangwon'', which is a traditional academic institute similar to the Tibetan

shedra Shedra is a Tibetan word () meaning "place of teaching" but specifically refers to the educational program in Tibetan Buddhist monasteries and nunneries. It is usually attended by monks and nuns between their early teen years and early twenties. N ...

. They can also attend the Central Sangha College run by the Jogye Order. Another option in both orders is to pursue a modern education, generally in Buddhist Studies. For novice monastics who study at a gangwon or modern academic institution to fulfill their basic education requirement, four years of study/training are required. After this, they may be ordained a bhikkhu or bhikkhuni if they pass an examination and then either work at a temple in a capacity similar to that of a "parish priest," or continue their training and education. For students at a gangwon, they would then have the option to study for four years at a ''yulwon'', which is a

Vinaya The Vinaya (Pali and Sanskrit: विनय) refers to numerous monastic rules and ethical precepts for fully ordained monks and nuns of Buddhist Sanghas (community of like-minded ''sramanas''). These sets of ethical rules and guidelines devel ...

school. Upon graduation they would be known as Vinaya masters. For this reason, yulwon students must be celibate. Taego monastics may also study at a ''yeombulwon'', which is a ritual training school focusing on traditional chanting, ritual, music, and dance after taking full ordination. These students may request private tutoring for further training in ritual after graduation from the full four-year program, though some programs offer two- and three-year options as well. Fully ordained monastics may train at a Seonwon in meditation as well. This consists of two roughly 3-month retreats each year. In between retreats, these monastics would travel from temple to temple until the next retreat starts. Students in this system do not study under one master at one temple, but participate in retreats at different temples under different masters for many years. For training in Seon, there is no "graduation" after a specific number of years. In rare cases, a student may receive

dharma transmission In Chan and Zen Buddhism, dharma transmission is a custom in which a person is established as a "successor in an unbroken lineage of teachers and disciples, a spiritual 'bloodline' ('' kechimyaku'') theoretically traced back to the Buddha him ...

or ''inka'' from a master of Seon after 20 or 30 years of practice. However, Dharma transmission in the Seon tradition is extremely rare.

America-Europe Parish

As for foreign clergy, there are a growing number of Taego Order clergy in the U.S., Canada and Europe. According to the Taego Order website (listed below), international clergy (that is, those who are not Korean) can study for ordination from home in a two-year program through the Institute for Buddhist Studies. This is a two-year program leading to ordination as a samanera (though not necessarily with vows of celibacy) or samaneri (requiring a vow of celibacy). The ordinations are carried out in South Korea. Dharma teachers can also be ordained after completing this program. These ordinations are conducted in the West. (Graduation from the seminary does not itself guarantee ordination. In addition, the seminary itself does not conduct ordinations - the Korean Taego Order conducts the ordinations.) The website does not clarify the difference between regular clergy and Dharma teachers, however the primary difference is that Dharma Teachers have fewer obligations and cannot be abbots of temples. Dharma Teachers also do not perform ordinations, memorial chanting, the " eye-opening ceremony" (consecrating religious images), nor do they perform the Dharma transmission rite ( Inka). In both the Taego and Jogye orders, only monastics are eligible to receive Inka. The website currently lists more than 56 clergy in the America-Europe Parish (covering the U.S., Canada, and Europe) though a few are Koreans living overseas. There are also temples in New Jersey (Bogota and Warren), New York (Staten Island), Georgia (Hampton), Virginia (Annandale),Texas (Austin), Michigan (Royal Oak and Grand Rapids), Canada (Brampton, ON), California (Anaheim, Los Angeles, Seal Beach, and Pinion Hills), Idaho (Mountain Home), Missouri (St. Louis), the Washington, D.C. area, Hong Kong, Poland (Opole), Austria (Vienna), Hungary and Germany in Solingen, Nuremberg and Munich). The first Westerner ordained as a Taego monk is Dae Il Sunim (Dr. David Zuniga). Dae Il Sunim is also the first board-certified Buddhist chaplain. He currently works as a psychologist in Texas. However, the majority of Taego clergy in the West are disciples or grand-disciples of Dr. Jongmae Park. Dr. Park retired from the faculty at Loyola Marymount University in the Los Angeles area as of 2014.

Characteristics

History

Training for Clergy

America-Europe Parish

References

External links