Participants in a national rally of monks at Jogye Temple, the headquarters of Korea’s largest Buddhist sect, the Jogye Order, march on the streets calling for sweeping reform of the order following the ouster of its disgraced executive chief Rev. Seoljeong over a series of corruption allegations. (Yonhap)
The American monk believed that as a foreigner he was just a decoration for the Jogye order:
A well-known monk from the United States said Friday that he will cut ties with Korean Buddhism which he said is dominated by “bad monks” who pursue money and discriminate against foreign monks.
On his Facebook account, Monk Hyun Gak wrote, “I am deeply disappointed with Korean Buddhism. August will be my last visit to Korea.”
Hyun Gak currently serves as chief monk at Hyeongjeong Temple in Yeongju, North Gyeongsang Province. He is now staying in Germany.
Born in New Jersey, the monk became a member of the Jogye Order in 1992. He became a Korean citizen in 2008.
He was inspired by Seungsahn, the master of the Jogye Order and a founder of the International Kwan Um School of Zen. The two met at a lecture in the U.S. Seongsahn died in 2004, and Hyun Gak took over the Zen school as director.
The monk cited the authoritarian culture, hierarchical system, discrimination against nationality and gender, and the pursuit of money within the Jogye Order as reasons for his departure. [Korea Times]
You can read more at the link, but to be fair the Jogye order isn’t much different than many other religious sects that seem to prioritize raising money over teaching their religious beliefs.
