Mireuksa

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Ruin of the western stone pagoda of the former Mireuksa temple
Korean spelling
Korean alphabet : 미륵사
Hanja : 彌勒 寺
Revised Romanization : Mireuksa
McCune-Reischauer : Mirǔksa

Mireuksa ( 미륵사 ) was the largest Buddhist temple in the Baekje ( 백제 ) kingdom , which dates from 57  BC. Chr. To 668  n. Chr. In the southwest of the Korean peninsula existed. The origins of the temple, which is regarded as a so-called imperial temple, go back to King Mu ( 무 ), the 30th ruler of the Baekje kingdom, who had the temple built in 639 AD.

geography

Reconstructed stone pagoda of the temple

The temple complex is located in Mireuksaji-ro ( 미륵사지 로 ), around 10 km northeast of the city of Iksan ( 익산시 ) in the Jeollabuk-do province ( 전라북도 ) in South Korea . The 12.07  hectare area on which the temple was located is oriented to the south-southwest and lies between two southern foothills of the approximately 400  m high Yonghwa-san ( 용화산 ). A protection zone of 53.76 hectares was laid around the temple complex, which measured 134 m in length from the main entrance to the study hall and 172 m in width over the wings.

history

The golden bongangi was found in January 2009 in the western pagoda

As a golden plaque (Bongangi ( 봉강 이 )) discovered in the pagoda in January 2009 was unequivocally clear, the temple was founded in 639 AD by King Mu as an empire temple. Linked to this was the intercession that the kingdom of Baekje should be well. The temple was built because King Mu had a second palace built in Iksan next to the one in Buyeo ( 부여 ) and made the city of Iksan the second capital. According to a legend that can be found in the Samgukyusa collection ( 삼국유사 ), King Mu and his wife are said to have met the Mireuk - Buddha and two Bodhisattvas on a trip to a temple at the pond of Mount Yonghwa-san and left his wife at the request of his wife build the temple at the meeting place.

The temple survived the collapse of the Baekje Empire in 660 AD and was also the center of religious life during the period of the United Silla Empire (676-935). Excavations show that the temple complex also existed over the period of the Goryeo Empire (918–1392). This was to change in the Joseon period (1392-1910). Confucianism , which emerged as the "state religion" at this time , pushed the Buddhist faith somewhat into the background, which was also reflected in the downsizing of the temple complex. Scientists assume, however, that the temple was closed between the 16th and 17th centuries and then slowly fell into disrepair. The wooden structures did not survive the centuries, only the western pagoda remained in ruins until the 20th century, initially as a pagoda collapsed on one side in the middle of rice fields, later as a collapsed pile of stones. This stone pagoda, which was provisionally secured from decay for the first time during the Japanese colonial rule in 1915 and examined for the first time from 1978 to 1989, was dismantled, cataloged and examined in detail from 2001 onwards in a building erected above the pagoda. When the substructure was uncovered on January 14, 2009, the so-called sari chamber was found, which revealed undamaged treasures, including the golden bongangi ( 봉강 이 ). This board, provided with Chinese characters, allowed for the first time a clear chronological classification of the origin of the temple based on the texts written on it.

investment

The temple complex in its current form consists of the ground plan of the buildings uncovered by archaeological excavations, the remains of the western pagoda, around which a building for protection and exploration was built, the reconstructed eastern pagoda built with modern materials and the two stone flagpoles, who used to hold the Buddhist flag symbol.

The temple originally consisted of three pagodas, two of which were made of stone and the larger third made of wood, furthermore of the large prayer house behind the large pagoda and the two small prayer houses behind the stone pagodas, the lecture hall and the buildings surrounding the temple area with sleeping chambers for the monks, utility rooms and many other utility rooms. The building was centered to the south and had the main gate as the main entrance, after which one came upon the large nine-story wooden pagoda. Opposite the western and eastern stone pagodas, there were also two smaller gates on the south side, which flanked the main gate at a suitable distance. This arrangement resulted in four inner courtyards, three of which were arranged side by side and contained the pagodas and the houses of prayer, and a larger, more spacious courtyard was located north behind it, at the end of which was the lecture hall.

Archaeological finds

With the gradual removal of the stones from the western pagoda, which began in January 2001, the archaeologists finally made some spectacular discoveries on January 14, 2009. In addition to the aforementioned golden plaque, the so-called sari chamber on the first floor contained two gold-plated bronze jugs, six silver containers, two daggers, gold tweezers, silver crown jewelery, thin gold plates with the inscriptions of the donors and various types of pearls. A total of around 500 relics were found in the chamber, which have survived there for around 1370 years.

World Heritage

The entire site of the former temple complex was registered as historical site number 150 in June 1966. The western stone pagoda was made a national shrine in December 1962 and was given the registration number 11. The flagpole was registered with the number 236 in January 1963. On July 4, 2015, the Mireuksa temple complex, along with other historical sites from the time of the Baekje Kingdom, was included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites under the title: " Baekje Historic Areas " .

museum

The Mireuksaji Relics Exhibition Museum is located directly to the west of the site of the former temple complex . Opened in May 1997, it is home to over 19,300 relics found in excavations in the temple area and from different eras from the temple's founding in the 7th century to the 17th century when it was closed. In the summer, the museum also offers lessons for children from elementary to middle school in special culture classes and seminars for teachers on the subjects of culture and history. Citizens of the city can educate themselves on Saturdays.

literature

  • Republic of Korea (Ed.): Nomination of Baekje Historic Areas . For Inscription on the World Heritage List . Seoul 2015, ISBN 978-89-299-0345-9 (English, online [PDF; 323 kB ; accessed on October 17, 2015]).
  • Kim Bong Gon : The Mireuk-sa Temple and the Stone Pagoda of the Mireuk-sa Temple . In: The Korea Foundation (Ed.): Koreana - Korean Art and Culture . Volume 4, No. 3, autumn. Seoul 2009, p. 6-15 .
  • Lee Kwang Pyo : Buddhist sari relics from the stone pagoda of the Mireuk-sa temple . In: The Korea Foundation (Ed.): Koreana - Korean Art and Culture . Volume 4, No. 3, autumn. Seoul 2009, p. 16-25 .
  • Cho Heung Wook : Mireuk-sa and the saga of Seodong . In: The Korea Foundation (Ed.): Koreana - Korean Art and Culture . Volume 4, No. 3, autumn. Seoul 2009, p. 26-31 .

Web links

Commons : Mireuksa  - collection of images, videos and audio files
  • Homepage . 미륵사지 유물 전시관,Retrieved October 17, 2015(Korean).
  • Homepage . Mireuksaji Relics Exhibition Museum,accessed October 17, 2015.
  • Mireuksa Temple Site . Baekje Historic Areas Conservation and Management Foundation,accessed October 17, 2015.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Kim : The temple Mireuk-sa and the stone pagoda of the temple Mireuk-sa . In: Koreana . 2009, p.  9 .
  2. ↑ a b Nomination of Baekje Historic Areas . Seoul 2015, p.  38 .
  3. ↑ a b c Kim : The temple Mireuk-sa and the stone pagoda of the temple Mireuk-sa . In: Koreana . 2009, p.  10 .
  4. ↑ Nomination of Baekje Historic Areas . Seoul 2015, p.  76 .
  5. ↑ Nomination of Baekje Historic Areas . Seoul 2015, p.  68 .
  6. ↑ Cho : Mireuk-sa and the saga of Seodong . In: Koreana . 2009, p.  27 .
  7. ↑ Jeollabuk-do - Iksan-si - Mireuksaji ( Mireuksa Temple Site ) (UNESCO World Heritage) ( 익산 미륵사지 (유네스코 세계 문화 유산) ). In: Visit Korea . Korea Tourism Organization , accessed October 17, 2015 .
  8. ↑ Nomination of Baekje Historic Areas . Seoul 2015, p.  77 .
  9. ↑ Kim : The Temple of Mireuk-sa and the stone pagoda of the Temple of Mireuk-sa . In: Koreana . 2009, p.  14 .
  10. ↑ a b c homepage . Mireuksaji Relics Exhibition Museum , archived from the original on February 1, 2016 ; accessed on May 2, 2019 (English, original website no longer available).
  11. ↑ Nomination of Baekje Historic Areas . Seoul 2015, p.  155 .
  12. ↑ Nomination of Baekje Historic Areas . Seoul 2015, p.  75-78 .
  13. ↑ Lee : Buddhist sari relics from the stone pagoda of the Mireuk-sa temple . In: Koreana . 2009, p.  19 .
  14. ↑ Lee : Buddhist sari relics from the stone pagoda of the Mireuk-sa temple . In: Koreana . 2009, p.  20 .
  15. ↑ Nomination of Baekje Historic Areas . Seoul 2015, p.  134 .
  16. ↑ Korea - Baekje historic areas to be listed on UNESCO World Heritage list . In: Visit Korea . Korea Tourism Organization , July 7, 2015, accessed October 17, 2015 .

Coordinates: 36 ° 0 '44 "  N , 127 ° 1' 51"  E