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LEAD ARTICLE | EASTERN HORIZON 7

“March First Movement of 1919,”
an independence movement during
the Japanese occupation. In it, he
contended to make Buddhism
more accessible to the masses, and
thus should be transformed from
“mountain Buddhism” to “urban
Buddhism, and from “seclusion
Buddhism” to “daily life Buddhism.”
Venerable Yongseong (1864—
1940), another of the 33
signatories, established the Great
Enlightenment Society and actively
worked to bring Buddhism closer
to the laity. Under the proactive
leadership of Venerable Yongseong,
Buddhist scriptures were translated Ceiling of the Tongdosa Temple, Korea
into Korean, meditation halls for
women were established, and
Buddhist hymns were composed
and distributed.

For the past 100 years, Korean
Buddhists have put in much effort
to shift the focus of Buddhism from
the mountains to the urban areas.
Various Buddhist centers were
established in cities to bring the
Dharma closer to children and the
youths. The Masan City Center of
Tongdosa Temple, which was the
first official Buddhist city center,
Seven Treasure Pagoda, Hanmaum Seon Center, Anyang
th
celebrated its 108 anniversary
this year.
The typical curriculum requires More recently, modern urban
In addition, lay Buddhist colleges 96 class hours over 32 weeks to temples have emerged in Seoul.
have been established to propagate be completed within one year. Is this a good reflection of how
the Buddha Dharma in a much Mandatory subjects include Buddhism can adapt to the
more simplified manner and in a “Introduction to Buddhism”, modern world without losing its
more convenient environment for “Buddhism for Beginners”, and core identity?
the public. “Life of the Buddha”. Various online
Buddhist universities have also As mentioned, Korean Buddhism
As of April 2020, there are 160 been established so that busy has been resilient and have
lay Buddhist colleges certified people with little free time can acclimatized to modern society
by the Jogye Order across Korea. study Buddhism at home. throughout history without losing
its core identity. The Jogye Order