Jungbong Seongpa, daejongsa

Supreme Patriarch of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism

 Chanbulgeub Hwuebulgeub (讚不及毁不及)

 Yakyoil Mansapil (若了一萬事畢)

 Muheummuyeo Yaktaeheo (無欠無餘若太虛)

 Weigunjejak baramil (爲君題作波羅密)

 Neither praise nor criticism can touch it. 

 Completing one, you complete everything.

 There is neither deficiency nor excess, just like empty space.

 But, for your sake, I will label it paramita.

 Monastic practitioners who are leaving the mountain gate after completing the three-month summer retreat!

 The retreat was successful, and your self-discipline was superb. Since you all have earned enough Dharma sustenance to share with people you have a karmic connection to, this year's summer retreat is worthy of joy and praise from the Buddha. 

This supreme practice of Ganhwa Seon has been widely practiced and transmitted through the Jogye Order lineage. Ganhwa Seon is a singularly skillful method that leads its practitioners directly to the status of Tathagata; therefore, every one of you should rely on it. We are celebrating the end of a retreat, because it is a truly sacred and auspicious occasion made possible by the monastery staff’s sincere support and the ardent sponsorship and donations by lay Buddhists.  

Practitioners who have completed the three-month retreat are about to leave the mountain gate!  

What is in the bags you are carrying?

Do you have warm hands to offer to your neighbors who are suffering from floods? Do you have a heart big enough to embrace and comfort those who are suffering from conflicts?

 With every step you take, Dharma will sprout, and your smile will bloom into hope.

 If someone asks you about the news from Mt. Yeongchuksan, how will you respond?

 This summer, the pink zinnia flowers by the Guryongji pond are blooming even more vividly in the heat, and the aroma of tea from the stone pot is stronger than ever. 

Chaeyak holmiro (採藥忽迷路)

Cheonbong Unmui (千峰雲霧裏)

Sanseung geubsugui (山僧汲水歸)

Immal dayeongi (林末茶烟起)

I got lost while gathering herbs,   

With a thousand peaks blanketed in thick clouds.  

The monk goes back with water,  

Smoke rises from the tea brewing at the edge of the forest.