Gameunsa Temple Site, Gyeongju

Gameunsa was a temple of the Unified Silla period on the coast of Donghae; today only the sites of two three-storey stone pagodas, together with the foundations of the main hall, lecture hall and other buildings, survive. After King Munmu of Silla unified the Three Kingdoms, he began building a temple here in the hope of relying on the power of the Buddha to repel Japanese invasions. The king died before the temple was completed, and his son, King Sinmun, carried on his father's wishes and finished it in 682. King Munmu had left instructions that on his death he wished to become a dragon of the sea and protect the nation, and that his body should be cremated and buried in the East Sea. In keeping with this wish he is said to have been laid to rest at Daewangam, a rock near the temple, and the temple was named Gameunsa, "Temple of Gratitude," in thanks for his benevolence. Excavation has shown that the lecture hall, main hall and middle gate were arranged in a single line, with two pagodas standing symmetrically to the east and west in front of the main hall. All these buildings were enclosed by a corridor, an arrangement typical of Unified Silla temple layouts. Beneath the main hall is a drainage facility; according to legend, King Munmu, having become a sea dragon after death, passed in and out of the temple through this facility. The two pagodas in front of the main hall are the largest stone pagodas in Korea and serve as a model for stone pagodas of their kind. Gameunsa, together with Hwangnyongsa Temple and Sacheonwangsa Temple, is known as one of the temples built for the protection of the nation; it is not known when it fell into ruin.

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Where it is

Region

Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk

Designation

Historic Site · 사적