Oseam Hermitage and Manhae Han Yong-un ​​​​

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Oseam(¿À¼¼¾Ï çéá¨äÝ) hermitage ​is erected in 643 CE and was rebuilt in 1643 Yi Dynasty. This hermitage is located on Mangyeongdae(¸¸°æ´ë Ø¿ÌØÓæ ten thousand landscape terrace) at Mt Inner Seorak. Hermitage is about 4km away from Baekdamsa monastery. It takes about two or three hours at a footpace. Why Oseam hermitgae is famouse? The answer is​ simple. It was because of Master Han Yong-un. Han Yong-un wrote <Sibhyundamjuhae ½ÊÇö´ãÁÖÇØ ä¨úÜÓÈñÉú° Ten Philosophical Talk Annotation > on Tongan Changcha 's Sibhyundam<​Unfathomable depths​​ ä¨úÜÓÈ>. is weitten by Tongan Changcha(Dongan Sangchal ÔÒäÌßÈóÌ in Korean pronounciation) in Tang Dynasty. This philosophical essay is on Seon Buddhism. The essay has been an important record of Seon(zen) text in China, Korea and Japan. Therefore the essay was read by many eminent Seon masters in Korea. Now we have two annotations on the Sibhyundam, such as Han Yong-un and Kim Si-seup(±è½Ã½À ÑÑãÁ㧠​1435-1493) who was a Korean scholar and author. He was a buddhist monk once and stayed at Oseam hermitage. He wrote Sibhyundamyohae<½ÊÇö´ã¿äÇØ ä¨úÜÓÈé©ú°> on Tongan Changcha's <ä¨úÜÓÈ> and Cheongguan's(738-839) annotation. Master Cheonhhuan (​ó¥Îº​​)was an important representative of the Huayan school of Chinese Buddhism, under whom the school gained great influence. Chengguan was the master of several emperors. With his special relationship to the political leaders, Chengguan earned the title "the Hua-yen Bodhisattva" and was regarded as the fourth patriarch.​​

The copy had been kept in Oseam when Han Yong-un discovered at Oseam library which had (°í·Á´ëÀå°æ ÍÔÕòÓÞíúÌè> and other books. Master Han Yong-un spent a summer(in 1925) at Oseam hermitage and came across Kim Si-seup's <ä¨úÜÓÈé©ú°> and decided to weite <ä¨úÜÓÈñÉú° >. The motivation was to express what the reality of mind is from buddhist point of view. So he wrote this annotation. Sibhyundamjuhae is consisted of ten chapters.

Master Manhae Han Yong-un(¸¸ÇØ ÇÑ¿ë¿î Ø¿ú­ ùÛ×£ê£ 1879-1944) compiled¡¶ºÒ±³´ëÀü ÝÖÎçÓÞîð Grand Encyclopedia of Buddhism¡·which selected carefully and arranged in themes so neatly among Mahayana tripitakas which was kept at Tongdosa monastery's library.¡¶ºÒ±³´ëÀü ÝÖÎçÓÞîð Grand Encyclopedia of Buddhism¡·is a masterpiece which explained difficult terms and appended footnotes in order to find items easily.

Han Yong-un was born in Hongseong County, Chungnam(southern Chungcheong) Province in 1879. He studied Hanhak(ÇÑÇÐùÓùÊ Chinese literature) at a village school and entered Baekdamsa monastery. He studied Buddhist sutras and became a monk. He stayed in Baekdamsa monastery, Oseam hermitage and Geonbongsa temple(°ÇºÀ»ç ËëÜóÞÑ)where he studied Mahayan sutras and completed advanced curriculum.

-​​​from Baekdamsa monastery's hompage-

​​​​​Manhae Han Yong-un and 3.1st Movement

The March 1st Movement, also known as Sam-il (3¡¤1) Movement was one of the earliest public displays of Korean resistance during the occupation of Korea by Japan. The name refers to an event that occurred on March 1, 1919, hence the movement's name, literally meaning 'Three-One Movement' or 'March First Movement' in Korean. It is also sometimes referred to as the Man-se Demonstrations (¸¸¼¼¿îµ¿;Ø¿á¨ê¡ÔÑ Manse Undong).

At 2 P.M. on March 1, 1919, 33 activists who formed the core of the Samil Movement convened at Taehwagwan Restaurant in Seoul and read the Korean Declaration of Independence that had been drawn up by historian Choe Nam-seon. The activists initially planned to assemble at Tapgol Park in downtown Seoul, but chose a more private location out of fear that the gathering might turn into a riot. The leaders of the movement signed the document and sent a copy to the Governor General.

"We here with proclaim the independence of Korea and the liberty of the Korean people. This we proclaim to all the nations of the world in witness of human equality. This we proclaim to our descendents so that they may enjoy in perpetuity their inherent right to nationhood.

In as much as this proclamation originates from our five-thousand-year history, in as much as it springs from the loyalty of twenty million people, in as much as it affirms our yearning for the advancement of everlasting liberty, in as much as it expresses our desire to take part in the global reform rooted in human conscience, it is the solemn will of heaven, the great tide of our age, and a just act necessary for the co-existence of all humankind. Therefore, no power in this world can obstruct or suppress it!"

Master Han Yong-un was one of 33 activits who made signature with Master Jinjong Baek Yong-seong(ÁøÁ¾ ¹é¿ë¼º òèñ£ ÛÜ×£àò​ 1864-1940) who was an important Korean Buddhist master who helped propagate Buddhism in Korea. Primarily grounded in the Seon tradition, he also set about teaching others of Pure Land Buddhism and undertook massive studies and translation efforts of the Buddhist Tripitaka. He was also one of thirty-three national representatives present at the March 1 Movement of 1919, the representative of the Korean Buddhist community. The March 1 Movement is said to have marked the first significant beginning of the Korean Independence Movement. which sought to reach autonomy from Japanese occupation.

Grand Seon Master Manhae Han Yong-un's Stone Monument at Tapgol Park.

​<¸¸ÇØ ÇÑ¿ë¿î´ë¼±»çºñØ¿ú­ ùÛ×£ê£ ÓÞàÉÞÔ Ýø>

The Samil Movement came as a result of the repressive nature of colonial occupation under the military rule of the Japanese Empire following 1905, and the 'Fourteen Points' outlining the right of national 'self-determination' proclaimed by President Woodrow Wilson at the Paris Peace Conference in January 1919. After hearing news of Wilson¡¯s speech, Korean students studying in Tokyo published a statement demanding freedom from colonial rule.

Adding to this was the death of former Emperor Kojong on January 21, 1919. There was widespread suspicion that he had been poisoned, credible since previous attempts (the 'coffee plot') were well-known.

Writer:Dr. Lee Chi-Ran