Silleuksa Temple Geungnakbojeon Hall

Geungnakbojeon Hall enshrines Amitabha, the Buddha of the Western Paradise, among the various bodhisattvas and buddhas of Buddhism, and is the central worship hall of Silleuksa Temple. Other names for this type of hall include Muryangsujeon Hall, Bogwangjeon Hall and Amitajeon Hall. At the end of Goryeo, after the Seon master Naong Hyegeun passed away here in 1376, the hall was greatly rebuilt with support from the royal court. In the Joseon period, when Yeongneung, the tomb of King Sejong the Great, was relocated nearby, the temple became a neungchimsachal, a temple charged with guarding the royal tomb and preparing the items needed for its rites, and the hall was extensively repaired in 1472. After the Japanese invasions further major repairs took place, and the present Geungnakbojeon Hall was rebuilt in 1678. It was repaired again from 1797 to 1800, giving it its current form. The platform was made by stacking long-dressed granite blocks in three tiers on level ground, and the foundation stones are roughly-dressed natural stones used as found. The hall uses round pillars, and the roof, seen from the side, is a hip-and-gable roof shaped like the character 八. At the four corners of the roof, four slender pillars were installed to support the long, projecting eaves. Between the roof and the pillars are bracket sets that evenly distribute the roof's weight and transmit it to the pillars; these are densely placed not only above the pillars but also, two at a time, in the spaces between them. The front of the building has doors, while the sides and rear are earthen walls painted with pictures. Inside, the floor is laid with wooden flooring, tall interior pillars rising above the other, outer pillars are erected, and the altar is placed in front of them. Compared with the halls of other temples, Silleuksa Temple's Geungnakbojeon Hall is small in scale but distinctive for its tall, elaborately decorated bracket sets and a correspondingly large roof. This feature reflects the Buddhist architecture of the Joseon period, in which a building's status was elevated in keeping with its role of receiving royal protection and guarding a royal tomb.

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Where it is

Region

Yeoju, Gyeonggi

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산