April / May 2018
S E O U L I N T E R N AT I O N A L W O M E N ’ S A S S O C I AT I O N Enhancing lives through Friendship, Enrichment and Charity
seoul foreign school I N S PI R I NG E XC E L L E NC E , B U I L D I NG C H A R A C T E R - S I NC E 1 9 1 2
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CONTENTS
Editor: Robin Carney Editorial Team: Anne Choe, Monica Williams Contributors: Kate Choi, Georgia Scott, Shee Yeon Grace Park Gala photos: Youngsang Cho Art Director: Georgia Scott Photographers who donate photos for SIWA’s use retain the rights to their photos. Discovery is published by SIWA, with articles and content written by our members and associations. It is distributed exclusively for SIWA members and sponsors. All opinions expressed in these articles are those of the respective authors and may not reflect the official position of SIWA. All rights reserved SIWA 2018. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without prior written consent of SIWA. About the Cover: From the SIWA archives, a May 2007 photo from a trip to a Buddhist temple as part of a Buddha birthday tour.
Seoul International Women’s Association Seoul Finance Center Level 21, 136 Sejong-daero, Jung-gu, Seoul, Korea 04520 www.siwakorea.com Stay connected:
SIWA News
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Letter from Anne
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A look back
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Letter from Robin
1991
Essay Contest Winners
1992
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1997
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2018 SIWA Charity Gala
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Membership Benefits Cover Stories:
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1999
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2002
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2007
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Reflecting on Discovery and Buddha’s birthday
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Celebrating Buddha’s birthday
2017
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Sponsors Premium Platinum
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Farewell from Anne
I am forever grateful to the following leaders, past and present, with whom I had the privilege to collaborate: Mhyla Borkowski Neelum Sharma Mikyung Park Magda Petra Rozanska Robin Carney Ariane Amiot Linda Lee Sandhya Ramabadran Bockhee Lee Amy Lee Laura Engerman All of you shaped my personal experience with SIWA. I am always impressed by your dedication and enthusiasm for sustaining the integrity of an incredible organization that is SIWA. All of you have inspired me to raise the bar on excellence. I was blessed with a great team!
Dear fellow SIWA members, I am sad and happy to be stepping down after three years of serving as SIWA President. Past three years have been one of the most rewarding and challenging times since my two children successfully entered college of their choice. When I first took on the responsibility as President, I actually had a list of items that I wanted to fulfill to improve SIWA from when I first joined in 2014. That list among many things included a new web site, philanthropy project, proper legal compliance, stronger brand recognition with welfare, history project and above all working for SIWA fun! SIWA is a 100% volunteer-run, non-profit organization; to be honest, in the back of my mind I worried that taking ideas to action could hit major roadblocks and ultimately fail. However, largely due to the level of commitment and enthusiasm of our team, everything on the list was accomplished. While I am extremely satisfied with bringing welfare to the forefront of SIWA and developing our Core Values and Inclusive Statement, I am very proud that our team held each other to a higher standard for diversity, respect, integrity, trust, collabo-
ration, unity, excellence, agility, legacy and creativity. Thank you SIWA members for trusting me to lead and serve with purpose and relevance. I trust you will give Robin Carney, new SIWA President, the support she needs to lead the next team of amazing women who will continue to make SIWA a wonderful place for friendship, enrichment and charity. Sincerely yours, Anne
and a warm hello from Robin
Dear SIWA Friends, For the past 2 years I have had the pleasure of supporting SIWA President Anne Choe in my role as Vice President of Brand Communications. Having reached her term limit, Anne must now step down and I am honored that I have earned your confidence to step into her shoes. I’d like to thank Anne for her tireless service and dedication to SIWA. Her leadership has clearly brought SIWA to a new level of excellence, serving the international community in Seoul while giving back to our host nation of Korea. I look forward to an exciting year of continuing the amazing programs SIWA has brought to the Seoul expat community and looking for new ways to improve SIWA’s impact on our members, supporters and char-
ity beneficiaries. This issue looks back at Discovery since its inception and shows that the women who came to Seoul before us experienced similar journeys to our own in discovering this fascinating city. We are also proud to highlight the inspiring winning essays written by SFS students Kate Choi and Grace Park for our International Women’s Day contest. I’m confident that these young writers will be developing the equivalent Discovery magazines of the future. Thank you for your readership of Discovery as we close this chapter of SIWA. All the best, Robin
It is with sadness that we publish the final issue of Discovery Magazine. I would like to thank all of those who contributed to Discovery and our amazing designer Georgia Scott, but most of all, Discovery Editor Monica Williams who raised the bar on the quality of the magazine. I hope you will continue to enjoy the past issues of Discovery, dating back to 1991, that you can find in the Members Only section of the SIWA website. April - May 2018
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To celebrate International Women’s Day, SIWA invited students from selected international schools in two divisions, Junior and Senior, to submit essays addressing this year’s theme, #PressForProgress. SHEE-YEON
Shee-Yeon Grace Park, an 11th grader from Seoul Foreign School submitted a winning essay in the Senior Division. She was awarded a certificate at SIWA’s March Coffee Morning where she read an excerpt from her essay. In addition, 500,000 KRW was donated to her vetted charity of choice, Soyang Rainbow Children’s Home, in Grace’s name.
Kate Choi, a 7th grader also from Seoul Foreign School, had the winning essay in the Junior Division, with her tribute to Charlotte Brontë. Kate donated her prize money, 300,000 KRW, to The House of Ebenezer.
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Kate Choi
On Charlotte Bronte and women in literature Two centuries ago, the world of literature was for men, and men only; women who dared to enter the field were treated with contempt and were rarely taken seriously as true writers. Books were even declared praiseworthy if written by a man, but “odious” if written by a woman. Now compare that to today, when you can walk into a library and find books by just as many women as men. Compare that to today, when our favorite authors include thousands of women—Agatha Christie, Toni Morrison, and of course, J.K. Rowling, to name a few. Today, the right women have to write is rarely challenged. So the question is… what changed? s a young girl and an aspiring author, I wondered about this often. It’s difficult to get a straightforward answer (not even Google can figure it out definitively), so it sat in the back of my mind for a long time. That is, until I read Jane Eyre, a work that I had previously heard of but never read. As I progressed through the book, I found myself becoming unexpectedly engrossed in the story, and by the time I set it down, I had to ask, “Who wrote this?” The answer, I soon learned, was Charlotte Brontë, who had been born in 1816, a time when writing was for men and few women. Charlotte Brontë was a person I quickly came to admire. Throughout her life, she endured many hardships, but she was able to accept her faults and move on. I realized Charlotte Brontë was the answer, for it was she who opened the doors to literature for thousands of women to enter after her. As I learned about Charlotte, her life, and her many trials, I realized how persevering she had been. Although she isn’t a common role model
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Shee-Yeon Grace Park
Progress & the importance of educating girls Women worldwide still face many challenges today. What can we do to press for progress? What part can you play? In early January, I visited my grandmother’s house to celebrate the New Year. It was a festive occasion—all of my cousins, uncles, and aunts gathered for quality food and bonding time. However, as do most family meetings, the event became progressively lackadaisical, with adults dawdling and drinking in the living room and my younger cousins watching cartoons in a separate room. I, as the only adolescent that was present, belonged to neither groups, so I found myself my own space and began to flip through my nine year old cousin’s textbook from a Korean local school, partly out of boredom and partly out of curiosity. hile I didn’t expect to find anything striking in particular, I noticed an interesting trend as I perused the textbook. In general, there were more images and illustrations of boys than those of girls. What’s more, boys were generally dominant, while girls were subordinate; for instance, illustrations would show boys explaining concepts and girls attentively listening to boys speak. Out of all these questionable illustrations, one particular sketch caught my eye: a sketch of kids playing volleyball. While it seemed harmless at first glance, I noticed that all the players were boys, the coach was a man, and even the judge was a man. Girls could not be seen on the court; they were sitting in a corner with pompoms in the air, saying, “We cheer the players on so that they can gain energy and win!” I later confronted my cousin about this and asked her if she had noticed these trends as she
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Kate Choi
Bronte & women in Literature for girls my age, she has become one of mine. Not only did she overcome many obstacles to achieve her dream of becoming a writer, she also prepared the path for countless others to follow her. Before she even turned ten years old, Charlotte lost her mother and her two older sisters, receiving the responsibility of being the eldest child in the family. While many others may have chosen to ignore the responsibility at such a young age, Charlotte accepted it and bore it well, even discovering her desire to become a writer as she co-wrote plays and poetry with her siblings. As an adult, Charlotte became first a teacher, and then a governess; however, her desire to write persisted. At twenty years old, she boldly decided to send a sample of her poetry to the then-poet laureate, Robert Southey. His response, now famous, was a part of Charlotte’s story that amazed me the most. While praising Charlotte for her “faculty of verse”, he fervently dissuaded her from writing.
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iterature cannot be the business of a woman’s life,” Southey declared, adding that female writers could not be taken seriously, because they only wrote to “seek in imagination for excitement.” In fact, he said, women should spend their time attending to their “proper duties”—meaning, no doubt, housekeeping or other domestic tasks – instead of wasting their time writing. In reply to him, Charlotte actually promised that she would “nevermore feel ambitious to see [her] name in print,” no doubt believing that his advice was the best that she could receive. It had
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come, after all, from the highest poet in the land, and one that she greatly admired. Being told that she could not write simply because she was a woman was the first major blow to Charlotte as an author. For nearly ten years after receiving Southey’s letter, Charlotte seems to have meekly obeyed his advice. Then she changed her mind. She had returned home from abroad, meeting her sisters Anne and Emily. There, Charlotte unearthed a bundle of Emily’s poetry. Upon reading it, she became convinced that it should be published – never mind that the author was a woman! —and persuaded her sisters to publish a collection of their poetry together. At their own expense, the three Brontës published their poetry. Here, perhaps, Charlotte remembered Southey’s advice, for she later explained that the sisters had “had a vague impression that authoresses are liable to be looked upon with prejudice” and that their work would be judged not on its quality but on the gender of its authors. Therefore, they published under the male pseudonyms of Currer, Ellis, and Acton Bell. The book of poetry sold only two copies, but Charlotte was not discouraged. She had overcome the obstacle that had stood in her path for so long (the obstacle being Southey’s misguided advice), and she was now flying freely ahead. In June, Charlotte completed her first novel, The Professor.
The end of the same year, Charlotte also began writing the book that millions have read since – the famous Jane Eyre. Charlotte sent the completed manuscript of The Professor to several publishers, only to be rejected repeatedly. Even this did not discourage her, as it might have to many others. But Charlotte – a strong-willed, ambitious person—did not retreat, but instead pushed on. She decided to send in her other novel, Jane Eyre. Jane Eyre was accepted and was published in October under the name of Currer Bell, meeting with instant success. The public speculated over the author’s true identity for three years, until 1850, when it was revealed. Since the moment I realized what she had done for women, Charlotte has become a role model for me. Time and time again, she was let down, but time and time again, she picked herself back up and pressed on. Whenever I am discouraged, I naturally feel like giving up, but remembering Charlotte has given me the courage to stand back up and face my failures with a determination that I did not have before. I remember her story, her trials. I remember how she pressed on to allow so many hopeful women writers to achieve their dreams, including myself. hen I submitted short stories for publication and all were declined, I remembered Charlotte and Southey and I pressed on. Once, twice, three times more I was told that my work wasn’t good enough, wasn’t there yet. I admit that I am not someone who takes criticism well, even when I know, deep down, that my work isn’t good enough. But instead of fighting aimlessly, I remembered Charlotte when The Professor was rejected by publishers, and like her, I accepted defeat. Like her, I received failure when I knew it was just. I drew myself back up and launched myself into writing more than ever. And it worked. Today, I have had a poem and a short story accepted for publication. I’ve written a historical paper that received second place
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in a competition; I’ve written a short story, a poem, and even a novel that have won awards. Throughout this all, I’ve been turned down many times – so many times that I might just have given up. But what good would that do? enturies ago, Charlotte Brontë replied to her prejudiced critics, saying that “I am neither Man nor Woman—I come before you as an Author only—it is the sole standard by which you have a right to judge me—the sole ground on which I accept your judgement.” By becoming famous as a female writer, Charlotte abolished the distinction between male and female. She made them equal and changed the role that women played in literature. No longer were women simply characters—they were writers! They were creators of something other than scarves and dresses: they were creating literature. I truly believe Charlotte was a great person. I don’t mean that she was perfect. She was as fallible as the rest of us, someone who sometimes trusted in the wrong person’s advice, someone who doubted her abilities, someone who made all the mistakes that we make today. But Charlotte was different from the rest of us because she accepted those mistakes. She pulled herself back up onto her feet and strove to correct those mistakes, rather than sink into despair. Today, thanks to Charlotte, both men and women can be writers. However, not all of us have that chance. In many countries, women and girls are uneducated and have no power to express themselves. They are restricted and confined, just as women were two hundred years ago. Well, let them create! Let them know the joys of creating! Write, all you girls who can; write so they can write, create so they can create. Together, we can obliterate boundaries and open doors. Together, we can make the act of creation such a given that those who do not have the opportunity to do so now will be able to in the future without fear. Charlotte Brontë wrote so that we could write. Let us do the same.
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Shee-Yeon Grace Park
on the importance of educating girls Continued from page 7 was reading her textbook. She replied that she hadn’t really noticed. When I tried to explain to her how sexist such illustrations could be under a certain light, she tilted her head and frowned, as if she couldn’t grasp the gravity of what I was saying. She simply responded, “But boys are good at sports and girls aren’t!” I was rendered speechless—there were so many things that I yearned to correct from her response, yet I didn’t know where to start. It appeared as though her school was inadvertently preaching sexism and the kids were soaking it all in without a second thought. After that day, I did some research and discovered that some people took my findings a step further; in 2015, it was disclosed that out of the 6,380 kids present in 16 textbooks, there were 350 more boys than girls. ccording to Hankook Ilbo, a fourth grade social studies textbook used only women figures to display housework in images. What’s more, in 2015, a booklet for sex-ed distributed by Ministry of Education claimed that “crop tops and short skirts are not safe.” The more I researched, the more I felt disgusted at the nonchalance of society at these ridiculous textbooks that taught nothing but sexist stereotypes and encouraged narrow mindedness. Eventually, a cold realisation dawned on me: the root of sexism and plights faced by women lie in the education system. In order to press for progress and put an end to all the hardships that women face in this world, the current education system must change; rath-
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er than implanting sexist ideals in the children’s head, it must encourage kids to break stereotypes and walls between men and women and challenge conventions that women are inferior. Though I only looked at Korean textbooks, I know for a fact that Korea isn’t the only country with an inherent problem in the education system. The currency of sexism in Hollywood, the frequency of derogatory slang about women in society, pre-existing notions of gender roles in high school, and the general sentiment of negativity towards feminism… The trigger to all these problems that pervade this world is the education system. Education is the foundation of this world. It teaches more than just science, English, or maths— it delivers crucial virtues and morals that anyone entering society has to know. Don’t steal. Don’t cheat. Respect your elders. Love your friends and neighbors. Love yourself. Yet, having sexist tenets taught alongside such invaluable lessons automatically places “don’t cheat” and “crop tops and
short skirts are dangerous” at equal significance. It renders sexism as the norm and induces kids to accept it as a fact without resistance. We need to start with elementary school. According to psychologist Martyn Long, “elementary education can be compared to the first stride that a person takes in life; it is impossible for people to run without first learning how they can walk.” We need to ensure that this first stride heads in the direction of justice for women. At a young age, kids are more malleable; their minds change quickly and their temperaments are volatile, but this also means that their mistakes are easily corrected. We need to constantly remind kids that men and women are equal and continuously correct them when they unknowingly make sexist remarks. It will be too late to start at high school; at that point, adolescents are no longer shaped so easily; they formulate and fixate their own thoughts, views, and ideas. If such ideas hold that women were inferior to men, then society as a whole will shift to a dismal future. f course, this is easier said than done—this problem that has persisted for decades and across centuries cannot be amended in a day. That’s why I know that every effort for feminism counts and that I have a huge role to play in this world’s transition to a place void of unjust struggles for women. I am a woman. I’m a proud woman, yet I always shied away from announcing myself to be a feminist or an activist to others because people tend to regard feminism with a tinge of distaste or negativity. In seventh grade, I told my friend I was a feminist, and he looked at me with both amusement and perturbation, continuing to ask with a cynical tone, “You’re a feminist?” As if being a feminist entailed controversial values and disagreeable character. Indeed, feminists are often regarded as stubborn, argumentative, and generally unpleasant. In Korea, some call feminists “femi-choong” which literally means that feminists are insects. However, I have realized that
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evading discussion about feminism with others out of fears that I will get judged or be addressed as one that is not even worthy of being called a person is contributing to the challenges that women worldwide face today. Feminism is not embarrassing. Feminism tackles issues that women face and galvanises people to confront parochial viewpoints. As a woman, I will play a role in pressing for progress by becoming a feminist. will challenge injustice towards women; I will encourage other women to step up and join this movement; I will spread feminist ideals to my immediate community, social media, and my family. Though such effort may seem futile in the face of the astronomical problems women face, I believe that slowly but surely, my actions, alongside those of other feminists, will make a difference in my community’s perception of feminism and spread this movement until fundamental change can take place. With the combined effort of feminists, I believe I will be able to create a synergy that can instigate people to rethink their outlook on women’s lives and the struggles they go through in our world. Many argue that the problems women go through are myths; women’s rights advanced immensely throughout the years. True—women have gained the right to vote, work, and have political standing. But this is not enough. Women are still subject to stereotypes and social norms regarding gender roles that obstruct their dreams, hopes, and aspirations. Only a combined effort by various societies across numerous countries will change this unfortunate state of affairs. By reforming the education system and how it portrays women, our world can start a transition to the world that transcends walls that oppress women. A world where “mansplaining” doesn’t persist, where women don’t have to go outside at night and worry about getting raped, where women aren’t told that fostering a family and taking care of kids is their duty. We need to press for progress now, and this initiative starts with me: a feminist.
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SIWA NEWS
THE SIWA CHARITY GALA:
The Gala raised 24,420,000 KRW for three worthy charities: Asia Community School, Soyang Rainbow Children’s Home and Seongnam Shelter for Adolescents.
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SIWA NEWS Member Benefits
Membership Privileges A growing number of businesses in Seoul offer discounts to SIWA members. Do you have your membership sticker? Attach it to the back of your credit card and show it at participating merchants for a discount. For more information, email membership@siwakorea.com or see our website at https://www.siwakorea.com/discount-program/.
Brera Jung-gu, Seoul 10% Discount on food and beverages.
Dr. Sung’s Clinic Hannam-dong, Seou 10% Discount on skin care, OB/GYN and other selected services. Excludes skin care products and dietary supplements.
Eden Pottery Itaewon 10% Discount on everything. Chakraa Hannam-dong, Seoul 10% Discount on food. Excludes buffet and lunch special menu.
Create Wellness Itaewon, Seoul 10% Discount on massage treatments.
DDP i-Play Kids Cafe Jung-gu, Seoul 20% Discount on admission for children ages 1-7 years old and adults. Free coffee or tea for each adult.
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The Halal Guys, Itaewon 10% off all food items Grevin KRW 3,000 discount when admission is purchased on-site..
X NEW
Hus-hu Dermatology Clinic Apgujeong station, Seoul 10% discount on any dermatological procedures.
JP Hair Haebangchon, Seoul 20% Discount off any service except for hair cuts.
L’Empreinte Bistro Hongdae, Seoul 10% Discount on food and retail items. Excludes special menu items.
Marley Coffee Itaewon, Seoul 20% Discount for all beverages and dessert menu. Excludes drip coffee and alcoholic drinks. New York Wholistic Care Itaewon, Seoul 10% Discount for any treatment, including 1-month Group Pilates classes. Free consultation for SIWA Members who register with NYWC at SIWA Coffee Mornings.
Sarah BalletFit & Pilates Seoul 10% Discount for any treatment, including 1-month Group Pilates classes. Free consultation for SIWA Members who register with NYWC at SIWA Coffee Mornings. Sprout Seoul 10% off vegan dishes for weekly or one-time delivery or scheduled pickup. Mention SIWA in the referral section of the online order form. Suji’s Deli Coex Gangnam, Seoul 10% Discount on food and beverage during weekdays. Excludes new menu items, lunch specials and weekend brunch.
Trick Eye Museum / Love Museum Mapo-gu, Seoul 35% off Trick Eye + Love Museum entry or 25% off admission to the Love Museum. (Maximum of 4 people, adults only.) Bring a screen capture of the SIWA discount page along with your membership card or sticker.
It’s fitting that the final issue of Discovery coincides with the Korean national holiday for Buddha’s birthday, which celebrates three most important stages in life. expats. As I joined SIWA events, I was repeatedly engulfed in friendly light. Women who knew nothCelebrating the Buddha’s birthday provides an ing about me except that I was another SIWA memoccasion to reflect on the significance of the birth, ber, greeted me warmly. Being a part of SIWA was enlightenment and death of Siddhartha Gantana, enough. I will miss this connection, but also treathe founder of Buddhism. It is an auspicious coin- sure it as I discover new ways to contribute. cidence then that Discovery is ending now, inspiring Fortunately, I’m not alone. us to also reflect on the magazine’s own stages of For 27 years, the fun, work, sweat and meaningexistence, and what it has meant to each of us. fulness of SIWA has been featured throughout the For me, this marks my one-year anniversary as pages of Discovery. Members have submitted arits art director. Back in February, I was surprised ticles, photographs, ideas, and expertise; we have to hear that it would end, and now that the day is been spotlighted, quoted, appreciated and shown here, I’m so sad to see it go. But also, I’m thrilled to with friends and family, participating in countless have been a part of it. charities, galas, auctions, tours, and events. Joining Team-Discovery, and becoming a memDiscovery pulled us in, made us smile, and inber of SIWA gave birth to new friendships—most spired us to do more. Its demise gives us the opnotably, with the editor, Monica Williams—and portunity to celebrate its existence, our personal opportunities, particularly to be a part of a vibrant connection to it, and for most of us, our own incommunity of strong, and strong-minded women volvement with it. By Georgia Scott
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A day at the temple or at home
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elebrating
uddha’s birthday
To celebrate like Koreans, should you go to a temple, or is it ok to just stay at home? Actually, both are pretty common. By Georgia Scott
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asked two middle school boys in my neighborhood why Buddha’s birthday is so special. “It’s like Christmas,” they explained. “What, you get presents?” I teased. “No. They’re both religious. We don’t get presents, but we also don’t have to go to school.” Buddha’s birthday—known in Korean as Seokga tansinil (birthday of the Shakyamuni Buddha) or Bucheonim osin nal (the day when Buddha came)—is one of Korea’s most colorful holidays, and one of only a few that’s commonly celebrated outside the home, as millions of Koreans make their way to the country’s more than 20,000 Buddhist temples. Millions, but not all. Only 20 percent of Korea’s population is Buddhist. That leaves the majority of young and old with little interest in temples, but who still appreciate a day off from work and school. For them, Seokga tansinil is a welcome day of rest. For foreigners, it is one of the few holidays that we can actively enjoy alongside Koreans.
Buddhism in Korea
Korean Buddhism is a dinstinct form of Mahayana Buddhism, developed by early Korean monks to be a more holistic approach. The celebrations— which fall on the eighth day of the fourth month of the lunar calendar—vary widely, from Seoul to Busan to Jeju; and from temple to temple across the country, particularly at the 900 more traditional temples. One thing they have in common, however, is that they are full of symbols and symbolic gestures that can evoke a range of emotions.
watermelon, fish, and ducks. But most are small, simple, round paper lanterns that blow quietly in the wind and symbolically convey the wisdom and compassion of Siddhartha Gantana, the founder of Buddhism. Privately, some families suspend decorative lanterns in front of their homes—one lantern for each family member, with their names and prayers written on narrow sheets of white paper.
Lantern Festivals
Korean Lotus Lantern Festivals, or Yeon Deung Hoe, originated in Korea’s Silla period more than 1,200 years ago. Today, Buddhist monks walk beside visitors in lantern parades, and mingle jovially on the temple grounds. In the evening, festivals usually end with participants making a wish and lighting their own paper lanterns, which can be as tall as a small child. It is said that by lighting lanterns, participants light up their hearts and, by letting the lanterns soar, they light the world as well.
What else to expect
Bowing The meditative art of bowing encourages
reflection and concentration. It’s common to bow three times, but many dedicated followers practice the significant and difficult 108 bows, calculated For weeks, the streets of Seoul and other cities based on three symbolic tenets of suffering. Interhave been lined with colorful paper lanterns. At pretations differ, but it roughly stands for: temples, lanterns line pathways, decorate sides • six pathways that lead to suffering: eyes, ears, of all the structures, and hang from tree branches skin, nose, tongue, mind. throughout the property. Some are eight-sided, • six objects that lead to suffering: something you with Buddhist symbols of longevity and good for- see, hear, feel, smell, taste, think about. tune. Some are constructed in various shapes and • three periods in which you suffer: the past, the sizes based on themes of birth—including turtles, present, and the future. Hence, 6x6x3 = 108.
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Bring cash. Some temples charge an entrance fee, while others temples also ask for donations, or charge a small fee for the lantern. Temples also sell small gifts, souvenirs and prayer items, such as jade bracelets and bags of rice.
Temples in Seoul
If you haven’t made plans to visit a temple in the countryside, there are plenty in Seoul that can provide wonderfully healing experiences. Here are eight of the most popular Buddhist temples in Seoul. All of which are centuries old, and well worth visiting any time of the year. Gyeongguksa (경국사), in Jongno; founded in 1325 Gwaneumsa (관음사), in Gwanak, founded in 895 Doseonsa (도선사), in Gangbuk; founded in 862
Chanting The temple will have a meditative
soundtrack or possibly monks chanting prayers. Eating Temples offer a free lunch and tea to all
visitors. Commonly referred to as “temple food,” it consists of rice and simple, vegetaraian dishes. Festivities Depending on the temple, the day often
includes traditional games, rope jumping, mask dances, acrobatic shows and tightrope walkers.
In addition to the the lantern festival, some temples allow you to hang a lantern tagged with your name and a wish “that you carry in your heart” in the temple complex for a small donation.
What to do
Arrive before dawn to witness the monks hoist the Buddhist flag and sing hymns in praise of the Buddha, his teachings and his disciples. If you decide to bow (either three times or 108 times), ask someone to teach you the correct way. There’s a lot of symbolism in how the hands and feet are positioned, as well as how you should get down and come back up. As you’re bowing, focus on things you want to change, give thanks for, care about, or recognize. After you finish eating, wash your own dishes.
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Bongeunsa (봉은사), in Gangnam; founded 794
Bongwonsa (봉원사), in Seodaemun; founded in 889.
The Bongwonsa Temple is the headquarters of Taego Order of Korean Buddhism, and is where Yeongsanjae, the event for world peace and uniting Korea, is held. Yeonghwasa (영화사), located at the foothills of Achasan Mountain, near Achasan Station; founded 672. Jogyesa (조계사), near Anguk and Jonggak stations; founded in 1395 (re-established 1910). Jogyesa is the headquarters to the Korean Jo-Gye order which has a long, 1,700-year history. Jingwansa (진관사), near Yeongcheon Market. Built by high monk Jingwan Daesa during the period of King HyeonJong of Goryeo dynasty, it is considered one of the four best temples in the Seoul area.
Staying Home
If you don’t have the energy or interest to visit a temple, you can do like millions of Koreans and just stay home. Two Korean television networks— OCN and CGV-TV—have a great lineup of English-language movies. Kung Fu Panda (1, 2 and 3) 9:10am - 2:30pm; OCN Men in Black 3 10am; CGV Avatar 2:20pm; CGV
Independence Day: Resurgence 5:20pm; OCN Edge of Tomorrow 7:40pm; OCN War Craft 8pm; CGV
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol 10:30pm; CGV
1991
1992
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2012
2017
Thank you for reading Discovery over its 27 year history!
Members will find all issues of Discovery on www.siwakorea.com.