Tens of hundreds descended on Gwanghwamun Sq. in Seoul for a Buddhist meditation retreat Saturday, because the nation’s largest Buddhist sect seeks to handle real-life challenges.
The second day of the five-day Seon Meditation Summit, attended by 35,000 folks, is the most recent spotlight of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism’s push to advertise its personal type of meditation.
“It’s time for a religious revolution. Regardless of how superior applied sciences or the economic system turns into, the thoughts will all the time be haunted by struggling,” mentioned the Ven. Jinwoo, president of the Jogye Order.
Wars and the quickly warming Earth are indicators of worsening struggling, Jinwoo famous, including that practising seon — staying vigilant towards recurring feelings and ideas — might assist discover actual peace of thoughts.
“This must be carried out proper now, at this second,” Jinwoo mentioned.
The Buddhist chief led eight different seon practitioners, together with 5 from abroad, in a five-minute open demonstration, all of them sitting cross-legged with eyes shut for an train meant to deepen understanding, compassion and acceptance.
The Ven. Tulku Jigme Thrinley Rinpoche — one of many practitioners on the stage in addition to the religious director and co-founder of the US-based Palmo Heart for Peace and Training — has beforehand emphasised this train.
Throughout a press convention in Seoul final week, Rinpoche mentioned, “As I’m certain a lot of you’re already conversant in the instructing of the Buddha, the foundation reason behind struggling is definitely this untrained thoughts.”
Thupten Jinpa, a Tibetan Buddhist scholar additionally current on the press occasion, acknowledged that Buddhist teachings may not outright resolve particular person or world crises. However internalizing Buddhist teachings by seon at the very least prevents people from changing into victims of hatred, mentioned the scholar, who was one in all 9 seon demonstrators Saturday.
Jinwoo promised that the weekend summit can be adopted by concrete measures, comparable to organising seon facilities, creating packages and coaching monks to make seon a every day routine not just for Buddhists, however for each Korean.
Web sites and apps solely coping with seon will make that easy, Jinwoo mentioned of what he forged as a “five-minute journey of the thoughts.”
Herald Corp. Chairman Jung Received-ju, president-elect of a bunch representing Jogye Buddhists together with some 25,000 at Saturday’s rally, mentioned he would again efforts to place seon entrance and middle. Jung formally takes workplace Wednesday.
“I’ve little question that Korean Buddhism would play a giant position in bringing peace of thoughts to the pained Korean folks because it has carried out over the previous centuries,” mentioned Jung, who can also be chairman of Daewoo E&C, through the Saturday summit, including that Buddhists are dedicated to the Jogye initiative.
Via Monday, temples throughout the nation will host seon practitioners and lecturers. The Seon Mediation Summit attracts to a detailed Tuesday, when Jinwoo is to talk on gaining “everlasting knowledge” by seon at a convention of worldwide consultants on the subject.
Jinwoo is to set off on a US tour this week to advance the seon marketing campaign. The Oct. 5-13 journey features a cease on the United Nations, the place the Jogye president is anticipated to suggest the creation of Worldwide Meditation Day.
