Eun-su Cho
Department of Philosophy, Seoul National University
In this paper, I would like to show how Korean Buddhist nun (bhiksuni) leaders were able to cope with the drastic growth in material wealth and social changes that took off in 1970s Korea, and what strategies they employed in order to adapt to a fast changing world. The main center of analysis is Unmun-sa Monastery, currently the largest educational institution for Buddhist nuns in Korea. In particular, I focus on the reformation of the educational system at the monastery and the cadre of leaders that were birthed in this process. Although Unmun-sa has had a long history dating back over a thousand years, it remained an insignificant temple until the ravages of the Korean War in 1950 reduced it to its foundations. Rebuilding the temple from rubble, its spatial expansion provided an opportunity for people to come together and create a vessel that forged and tempered budding leaders. Ven. Myeongseong Sunim (1930- ) was at the head of such leadership for more than thirty years, from 1977 to present as the abbess and the Dean of the Unmun-sa Bhiksuni Seminary; her efforts have been aided by a few equally charismatic strategists-cum-disciples. I examine how these leaders managed the business of the monastery, both inside the monastic compound and out, and how they found success in garnering support from not only pious lay Buddhists, but also businessmen and politicians.
(Presented in the 2013 Chulalongkorn Asian Heritage Forum: The Emergence and Heritage of Asian Women Intellectuals, 10-11 September 2013, Imperial Queen’s Park Hotel, Bangkok, organized by Institute of Thai Studies, Institute of Asian Studies, Faculty of Arts and Indian Studies Center, Chulalongkorn University)