Seongcheol
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Seongcheol (or Seong Cheol) is the dharma name of a Korean Seon Master. He was a key figure in modern Korean Buddhism, being responsible for significant changes to it from the 1950's to 1990's.
Seongcheol Seon Master was widely recognized in Korea as having been a living Buddha, due to his extremely ascetic lifestyle, the duration and manner of his meditation training, his central role in reforming Korean Buddhism in the post-World War II era, and the quality of his oral and written teachings.
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[edit] Early life
Born in April 10, 1912 in Korea under the name of Lee Young Joo, Seongcheol was the first of seven children of a Confucian scholar in Gyeongsang province. He was rumored to have been an exceptionally bright child who read constantly, having learned to read at the age of three, and being proficient enough to read such Chinese classics as The Romance of the Three Kingdoms and The Journey to the West by age ten. His enthusiasm for reading was such that he once traded a sack of rice for Immanuel Kant's Critique of Pure Reason as a teenager.
Having read numerous books on philosophy and religion, both Western and Eastern, he reportedly felt dissatisfied, being convinced that these could not lead him to truth. One day, a Seon monk gave Seongcheol a copy of The Song of Attainment of the Tao, a Seon text written by Young Ga Hyun Gak (永嘉玄覺) in the Tang dynasty. Seongcheol felt as if "a bright light had suddenly been lit in complete darkness," and that he had finally found the way to the ultimate truth.
Immediately, he started meditating on the "Mu" kong-an (Japanese: koan) and started ignoring all his responsibilities at home. Deciding that his parents' house had too many distractions, he promptly packed his bags and went to Daewonsa (Daewon temple). After obtaining permission to stay in the temple, the young Seongcheol started to meditate intensively. Later in life, he would say that he attained the state of Dong Jung Il Yuh (literally, "moving, not moving, one mind," the state of constant meditation throughout the waking state) at this early point in his life in only forty-two days.
The rumor of a lay person meditating so intensively naturally spread to the main temple of Haeinsa. Under the recommendations of renowned Seon Masters Kim Bup Rin and Choi Bum Sool, the young Seongcheol left for Haeinsa in the winter of 1936. At the time, Seon Master Dongsahn was the spiritual leader of Haeinsa, and recognizing Seongcheol's great potential, he recommended he become a monk. But Seongcheol refused, stating that he had absolutely no intention of becoming a monk and that only intense meditation was important. But Dongsahn master's dharma talk during the following retreat season changed his mind:
- "There is a way. No one will reveal the secret. You must enter the door yourself. But there is no door. In the end, there is not even a way."
In March of 1937, Lee Young Joo received his dharma name of Seongcheol, forsook all relations with the outside world, and became a monk, writing this poem:
- The great achievements of the world are but snowflakes melting on fire,
- Accomplishments that move oceans are but dew disappearing in the glare of the sun,
- Why live a dream in this ethereal life of dreams,
- I forsake all to walk towards the great eternal truth.
[edit] Enlightenment
In the tradition of Korean Buddhist monks, Seongcheol wandered from one temple to the next after each meditation retreat. In the summer of 1940, he went into deep meditation at the Geum Dang Seon Center and attained enlightenment. Having become a monk at the age of 25, he had attained his true nature in only three years. He went on to write his enlightenment poem:
- Having gone to the west of Hwang Ha River,
- Rising to the summit of Gon Ryoon Mountain,
- Sun and moon lose their light and the earth falls away,
- Smiling once and turning around, the blue mountain stands amongst the white clouds as before.
Having attained enlightenment, Seongcheol master began pilgrimages to various temples in order to validate his experience and to examine other monks and their levels of attainment. But he was frequently disappointed, noticing that inka (validation of a monk's attainment by a master) was given too carelessly, thereby falsely recognizing many monks as having fully attained enlightenment. During his retreat at Songgwangsa, he was also dismayed at Jinul's theory of Don Oh Jum Soo (sudden enlightenment, gradual training), and how it was the widespread theory during the time. Later during the 1980's and 1990's, his contribution to the revival of Hui Neng's traditional theory of Don Oh Don Su (sudden enlightenment, sudden training) would have a significant effect on the practice of Seon in Korea, China, Japan, and other countries where Seon/Zen is practiced.
[edit] Growing reputation and recognition
Soon, Seongcheol master's reputation began to spread. Numerous factors contributed to his growing recognition.
One of the more famous anecdotes is Seongcheol's Jang Jwa Bul Wa (Hangul: 장좌불와, Hanja: 長坐不臥). Literally translated as 'long sitting, no lying,' it is a meditation technique that some monks employ to intensify their practice. Sitting meditation is equivalent to most other practices, except that the practitioner does not lie down to sleep, but stays in the lotus position even during sleep, with the intention of minimizing sleep through the position. Seongcheol master was known to have practiced this for eight years after his enlightenment. He reportedly not only sat in this position, but also denied sleeping at all.
Another anecdote recounts how while Seongcheol was staying in Mangwolsa in Dobong mountain, an old monk by the name of Chunseong refused to believe this. He wanted to catch Seongcheol dozing off to sleep, so spied on him secretly throughout one night. But having witnessed the truth of the rumor, Chun Seong was struck with amazement and himself started employing the technique. It is said that the stress of the practice and the old age at which he started the technique caused all of his teeth to fall out later in life.
Seongcheol's reputation for intensive practice was not limited only to his meditation per se. He was also known to be completely indifferent to the outside world, focused intently only on meditation and guiding fellow monks to enlightenment. His indifference was so thorough that he even refused to see his mother when she visited him at Mahayunsa in Kumgangsan mountain. "No need to see her" was reportedly his reply to her visit, to which his fellow monks burst out in anger, stating that although they were monks devoted to asceticism and meditation, refusing to see his own mother was too extreme an action. Afterwards, Seongcheol accompanied his mother, showing her the sites of Kumgangsan mountain.
[edit] Reformation of Korean Buddhism
On August 15, 1945, Japan surrendered unconditionally, thereby ending World War II and the occupation of Korea. The events offered an invaluable opportunity for the reformation of Korean Buddhism, which had been severely oppressed during the Japanese occupation. As an emerging leader of Korean Buddhism, Seongcheol joined the nascent discussions on the emerging plans to reform the religion. Forming a partnership with such luminaries as the venerable Jawoon, Chungdam, and Hyanggok, the future leaders of Korean Buddhism chose Bong Am Sa temple of Heui Yang mountain. There, they formed a pact to live strictly according to the Vinaya, the Buddhist code of ethics. The members agreed upon rules of conduct (Hangul: 공주규약, Hanja: 共住規約) and required strict adherence to it amongst themselves:
- To follow the Vinaya and practice the teachings of the patriarchs in order to attain the great enlightenment.
- With the exception of the Buddhist teachings, no personal opinions or philosophies will be tolerated.
- The necessary items for daily living should be obtained on his own, without dependence on lay people, including daily chores of field work, firewood, etc.
- Absolutely no assistance from the lay people in terms of cooking, clothing, alms, or gifts.
- To eat only gruel in the morning, and to not eat at all after noon.
- The monks' sitting order follows the dates of ordination.
- To only meditate and be silent in the rooms.
The reformation movement started around a small group of monks centered on Seongcheol, but quickly grew by reputation, attracting monks all over the country who were also intent on bringing back the Korean tradition of intense meditation, strict celibacy, and study of sutras. Among these younger generations were Weolsan, Woobong, Bomoon, Seongsu, Dowoo, Hyeam, Beopjun, etc. Not only did this group become the future leaders of Korean Buddhism, but produced two Supreme Patriarchs (Hyeam, Beopjun) and three chief administrators of the Jogye order.
Some of the reforms that occurred during this period were:
- unification of robes, including the color (mostly grey), cut, and seasonal variants
- rectification of the Jogye order's bylaws
- unification of Buddhist services
- instatement of the monastic educational curriculum
Unfortunately, the Bong Am Sa experiment ended prematurely in 1950 when the Korean War broke out on the peninsula. With constant bombing raids and the presence of soldiers of both sides around the temple, it was impossible to continue the strict monastic life of Bong Am Sa.
After the war, the reformation gained momentum and significant changes were set in motion, although it would be years until they were solidified. Central to the reformation was the issue of celibacy. While all the Buddhist canons emphasized the celibacy of monks, Japanese Buddhism had undergone significant changes during the Meiji Restoration, most notably the end of monastic celibacy. During the Japanese occupation, Korean Buddhism was severely oppressed and the Japanese style was advocated, thereby converting most Korean monks into little more than monastic residents officiating over ceremonies, married, with a business and income. Seongcheol and the new leaders were very critical of the Japanese style of Buddhism, maintaining that the tradition of celibacy, hermitage, poverty, and intense meditation were not only central to Korean Buddhism but to the true spirit of Buddhism as a whole. Korean post-war sentiments towards Japan could not have been worse at this time, and with the help of the populace and president Seungman Rhee, the traditional Korean style began to take hold and became the dominant form of Buddhism by the 1970's.
[edit] Emergence of a Leader
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[edit] Death
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[edit] Teachings
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[edit] Legacy
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[edit] Controversy/Idiosyncracy
After the war, Seongcheol master built a small cave-hermitage near Anjungsa temple and named it Cheonjegul. Around this time, many people came to pay their respects to him, and to further guide the pilgrims in their practice, Seongcheol first started using his famous 3000 prostrations. Nobody could visit with him unless the person completed 3000 prostrations in front of the statue of the Buddha in the main hall. Later, some lay people would accuse Seongcheol of arrogance, but this practice was used to help guide the pilgrims in their own practice by helping them destroy their ego and more easily attain one-mindedness (N.B.: the 3000 full prostrations are actually a mainstay of the Korean Buddhist training regimen, performed at most temples in Korea on a monthly basis. It would take approximately eight to twelve hours, depending on the experience of the practitioner, and the technique is used frequently to "clear the mind," instill a sense of humility, and increase the awareness and focusing power of the practitioner). But what was unique was that Seongcheol used this technique as a requirement for pilgrims to visit him, thereby actually assisting them with their practice, and that this requirement was uniform, i.e., he would never make any exceptions regardless of the person's wealth, fame, or power. A famous anecdote serves to illustrate the daunting task of the 3000 prostrations and Seongcheol's strict adherence to his own rules. When Park Jung Hee, the president of Korea, was opening up the new highway between Seoul and Pusan, he happened to visit Haeinsa, which was Seongcheol's abode during most of the latter part of his life. Hearing that the president was visiting, the head administrative monk quickly sent word to Seongcheol to come down from his hermitage to greet the president. But true to form, Seongcheol demanded the president go to the main Buddha hall and perform the 3000 prostrations before meeting with him. Park refused and the two never met. To be edited...
