Chiljangsa Temple

Chiljangsa Temple is said to have first been built during the Silla period. In the Goryeo period, National Preceptor Hyeso, the monk Jeonghyeon (972–1954), stayed here and carried out a major restoration. In the Joseon period, Queen Inmok (consort of King Seonjo) gave the temple great patronage in order to pray for the souls of her father and son, both of whom had died young. The pass on Chilhyeonsan Mountain, where Chiljangsa Temple stands, was an important route between Jincheon in present-day North Chungcheong Province and Anseong in Gyeonggi Province during the Joseon period. Such a strategic point on a transport route is unusually rich in legends about bandits. The very name Chilhyeonsan ('Mountain of the Seven Sages') derives from a legend in which National Preceptor Hyeso took in seven bandits who had come to rob Chiljangsa Temple, accepted them as disciples and taught them to mend their ways. It is also said that Chiljangsa Temple was where Gatbachi stayed, traditionally said to have been the teacher of Im Kkeok-jeong, the righteous bandit of the mid-Joseon period. The legend that Bak Mun-su (1691–1756), famous as a secret royal inspector, prayed and fell asleep in the Nahanjeon Hall here on his way to the state examination may likewise be explained by the temple's position on the route crossing from Chungcheong-do into Gyeonggi-do. Chiljangsa Temple preserves many cultural heritage items, including the stele of National Preceptor Hyeso, a flagpole support, the Daeungjeon Hall, the Five Buddhas Assembly gwaebul and the Three Buddhas Assembly gwaebul (huge Buddhist paintings hung outdoors for large ceremonies), the wooden seated Buddha triad of Sakyamuni in the Daeungjeon Hall, a Yeongsanhoesangdo (painting of Sakyamuni preaching on Vulture Peak), the wooden Ksitigarbha triad and the Ten Kings of the Myeongbujeon Hall (the hall of the underworld court), a bronze bell, and clay statues of the Four Heavenly Kings. Among its heritage, the 'Seven-character Verse in the Handwriting of Queen Inmok' shows that the temple enjoyed royal patronage.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Anseong, Gyeonggi

Designation

Cultural Heritage Material · 문화유산자료