Gaewonsa Temple Site

This is the temple closest to Namongseong, the southern auxiliary fortress of Namhansanseong Fortress. Of the nine temples founded to defend the fortress when Namhansanseong was built, it was the headquarters temple that commanded the entire monk-soldier corps stationed within the fortress walls. The temple flourished for 270 years as a temple defending the nation and protecting the capital Hanyang, until the rotation system of monk-soldiers was abolished under the Gabo Reform of 1894. The Jungjeong Namhanji records that Gaewonsa held a large number of Buddhist scriptures and had as many as four large brass bowls, each weighing some 200 geun, a traditional unit of weight, suggesting that the temple was once very large in scale. The complete Buddhist scriptures had also been kept here since 1637, the fifteenth year of King Injo, but in 1907, when the Japanese colonial authorities destroyed the weapons storehouse and gunpowder magazine within the fortress, the scriptures, along with the Dharma hall, the pavilion and other subsidiary buildings, were all completely burned down. Restoration work has been carried out since 1976, and Daegakjeon Hall, Seungjangjosajeon Hall (a shrine hall for the monk generals), the bell pavilion, the one-pillar gate, the gate of the Four Heavenly Kings and the monks' quarters have been rebuilt. Foundation stones still remain at the original sites of the weapons storehouse, the pavilion and the bell, giving a sense of the temple's former scale and the layout of its buildings. The temple preserves relics used by the monk-soldiers who built Namhansanseong Fortress and defended it — an oil vessel, a monk's staff, earthenware and a wooden tub — allowing a glimpse of the glory of this once-flourishing temple.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Gwangju, Gyeonggi

Designation

Provincial Monument · 시도기념물