Daeungjeon Hall of Gaeamsa Temple, Buan

The history of Gaeamsa Temple is not entirely certain, but the Buan Hyangto Munhwaji (Buan Local Cultural Gazetteer) and other sources record that in 634, the thirty-fifth year of King Mu of Baekje, the royal preceptor Myoryeon converted a palace of Byeonhan into a temple. According to the Gaeamsa Junggeon Sajeok (Record of the Reconstruction of Gaeamsa), during the reign of King Sukjong of Goryeo the National Preceptor Wongam carried out a major reconstruction of the temple. At that time Gaeamsa was centred on Hwanggeumjeon Hall, with Cheongyeongak Pavilion to the east, Baegokgyo Bridge to the west, and Cheongheoru Pavilion to the south, and within the grounds there was a pond in which flowers and bamboo were reflected, so that the whole scene was said to resemble a paradise. However, the present layout of Gaeamsa does not correspond at all to that described in the records. Today the main hall, the Daeungjeon, stands at the centre, with Eunghyanggak to the west and Eungjinjeon Hall to the east, while below the temple courtyard, Wolseongdae and the monks' quarters stand off to one side of the yard. The Daeungjeon faces south, set on high ground with its back to Ulgeumbawi Rock. The platform is in two tiers: the upper tier, neatly built up in five courses of long dressed stones, is original, while the lower tier, of natural stones laid in a random, uncoursed pattern, was made in recent times when the courtyard was lowered. The building measures three kan across the front and three kan on the side, a dapo-style hip-and-gable structure, with corner support posts propping up the ends of the hip rafters. It was rebuilt in 1636, the fourteenth year of King Injo, by the Great Seon Master Gyeho, and repairs were carried out in 1783, the seventh year of King Jeongjo, and again in 1913. The foundation stones are natural, unhewn cornerstones, and the columns are round. Between the columns, architrave beams are joined, and above them a horizontal member is fitted to carry the bracket sets between columns; unusually, instead of a single continuous timber, two members were butted together and joined with a dowel so as to function as one piece. This is more effective than a single timber at resisting warping, and the same technique can be seen at Bogwangmyeongjeon Hall of Wibongsa Temple and Daeungbojeon Hall of Naesosa Temple. The most striking feature of the building is the assembly of its bracket sets and the elaborate carving on their members. All the bracket sets project in three tiers both inside and out, and on the front they are carved realistically in the form of lotus flowers. The capital blocks are carved with lotus-leaf designs in three different forms. At the central bay, two intricate forms of lotus-leaf capital are used alternately at the columns and between them, while at the bracket sets next to the corner sets a simpler lotus-leaf form is used, connecting naturally with the plainly cut corner capitals of the conventional type. Lotus-leaf capitals can also be seen at Bogwangjeon Hall of Sungnimsa Temple and Geungnakjeon Hall of Hwaamsa Temple, but not in as varied a form as here. Above these capitals, inclined and horizontal bracket arms are assembled in overlapping tiers. The outer ends of the bracket arms are upturned up to the third tier, while the fourth tier, beneath the beam, is carved in relief with an arabesque design. The bracket arm beneath the purlin is carved with a phoenix head on the front, and with an arabesque design on the rear and sides, a form typical of the period. The projecting bracket arms, however, are highly original and rarely seen elsewhere: the overlapping arrangement of arms carved with stems and lotus-flower designs, together with their small block members, resembles lotus flowers blooming in tiers as they rise. Bracket sets as ornate as these can also be found at Bogwangjeon Hall of Sungnimsa Temple and the main hall of Jeongsusa Temple; in particular, the overall technique of Bogwangjeon Hall of Sungnimsa, including the detailed treatment of the bracket sets and the composition of the ceiling, is almost identical to that of this building, and as the two temples are not far apart geographically, they may be the work of the same carpenter or the same lineage of craftsmen. Unlike the front, the bracket sets on the sides and rear are finished with the plain form typical of the period, reflecting the traditional architectural emphasis on the front facade. Likewise, only the front is elaborately decorated with flower-lattice doors, though these were originally plain grid-lattice doors; as at the nearby Daeungbojeon Hall of Naesosa Temple, buildings rebuilt in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries frequently used flower-lattice windows, and the doors here were replaced accordingly in recent times. Buildings rebuilt in the seventeenth century, while grounded in traditional building techniques handed down from earlier times, began to show a trend toward increased ornamentation reflecting new demands within Buddhist circles, a trend that developed even more actively in their interiors, and the Daeungjeon of Gaeamsa is no exception. Inside, two tall interior columns are erected to form the wall behind the Buddha altar; as is conventional, these are set further back than the side eave columns, and a linking beam is made to span across to the main beam. Above this, a tiered ceiling of three stepped levels makes the interior space feel higher than it actually is, and this space is filled with dragons and phoenixes. In particular, nine dragon heads extending from the bracket sets between the front columns, the corner bracket sets, and the two linking beams create a striking, solemn effect around the Buddha altar, and phoenixes with wings spread wide are placed among the bracket sets alongside the dragon heads. The altar enshrines a triad of Sakyamuni Buddha images, and above it is installed a canopy in the form of a pavilion, an unusual type with a gable face above the front eaves. Inside it, three coiled writhing dragons hang suspended, and clouds and a magic jewel are arranged in the air around them. In this way, both the exterior and interior of the building are filled with Buddhist symbols such as lotus flowers, dragons and phoenixes, symbolising the Buddha-land presided over by the Buddha.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Buan, Jeonbuk

Designation

Treasure · 보물