Why Wandering Scholar Kim Si-seup Turned to Donghaksa Temple
Creatrip Team
3 months ago
In midwinter, the reporter visits Donghaksa Temple on Mt. Gyeryong to trace the life of wandering scholar Kim Si-seup (1435–1493), known as Maewoldang. After King Sejo’s usurpation destroyed the Confucian moral order, Kim burned his study books, refused official life, and tended the bodies of the murdered Sayuksin (사육신, six loyal ministers) near Noryangjin — an act that put him at risk. Around 1458 he came to Donghaksa and built a small altar beside Sam-eunggak (삼은각, shrine to three loyal ministers) to hold a ritual for the Sayuksin, which later became the origin of Sukmojeon (숙모전). At Donghaksa today — a historic temple with roots in the 8th century and now a nunnery for bhikkhunis (비구니, Buddhist nuns) — the writer notes quiet, cold winter scenes, closed shrine doors, and modern posters encouraging “hip” young women to ordain, reflecting the temple’s continuing role as a place of spiritual retreat and vows. The article connects Kim’s wandering, loyalty, and ritual acts to the temple’s atmosphere and small stone towers left as people’s prayers.
