A letter lately discovered within the donation field at Jajangam Hermitage in Tongdosa Temple, Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province. Courtesy of Jajangam
Man left handwritten letter and a couple of million gained in money in donation field
By KTimes
A letter and an envelope containing 2 million gained (about $1,500) in money have been discovered on Aug. 20 by a employees member whereas opening the donation field at Jajangam Hermitage, a part of Tongdo Temple in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province.
The nameless letter author confessed to having stolen from the donation field on the hermitage through the Asian monetary disaster in 1997.
“I used to be inconsiderate as a baby,” the letter started. “I bear in mind taking a donation field from Jajangam 27 years in the past, climbing up the mountain and stealing about 30,000 gained ($23) from it.”
The letter continued, “A number of days later, I went again to steal cash once more, however a monk caught me by the shoulder, closed his eyes and silently shook his head. Nothing occurred that day, and I went residence.”
The author expressed deep gratitude, saying, “Since that day, I’ve by no means desired something that wasn’t mine. I’ve labored exhausting and lived life. Trying again now, I believe the monk forged a spell that guided me to be good.”
The letter went on to specific remorse for not returning sooner: “I am sorry I did not come again earlier. I hope you possibly can consider it as a short lived mortgage. I am anticipating a child quickly, and I need to be a proud and honorable father to my little one. Thanks a lot, Monk. I am sorry once more.”
The monk who stopped the younger thief is Venerable Hyeonmun, the previous abbot of Tongdo Temple, who nonetheless resides at Jajangam.
A view of Jajangam Hermitage at Tongdosa Temple in Yangsan, South Gyeongsang Province. Captured from Encyclopedia of Korean Tradition
An official from the Yeongchuk Cultural Basis of Tongdo Temple, who discovered in regards to the story alongside the monk, informed the Hankook Ilbo, “It is such an outdated story that the monk doesn’t bear in mind the boy’s face, however he recollects it was a younger boy, in all probability in elementary or center college. There have been usually individuals lingering across the donation field because of the hardships of the (Asian monetary) disaster.”
Again then, with no CCTVs, it was widespread for individuals to steal small donation bins, break the locks and take solely the cash. The issue was so frequent that typically the bins have been left open, permitting individuals to take simply the money.
Reflecting on these instances, the monk mentioned, “It was such a tough time, and everybody was struggling, so we didn’t attempt to catch the thieves; we simply allow them to go.”
In his response to the letter, the monk conveyed a message: “I imagine you’ll turn into a beautiful father who is not going to really feel ashamed in entrance of your soon-to-be-born little one. I want you a future stuffed with good issues.”
This text from the Hankook Ilbo, a sister publication of The Korea Occasions, is translated by a generative AI and edited by The Korea Occasions.
