A sceptic’s guide to achieving overnight spirituality and enlightenment – Korean Buddhist temple stay explored
The Beomeosa Temple, near Busan, is one of more than 30 monastic retreats in South Korea where visitors can immerse themselves in a temple’s life and routines and get a meta-detox from 21st century life
It’s not just luxury villas that promote the benefits of being able to unplug and unwind – it’s the principal mantra of a Korean Buddhist temple stay too.
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The Beomeosa temple, on a mountain south of Busan, is one of more than 30 monastic retreats in South Korea offering accommodation in an ascetic setting. Other countries have Buddhist B&Bs, but in Korea it’s a chance to immerse yourself in a temple’s life and routines. People can choose to stay for up to a week if they are serious about Buddhism, but many urban dwellers opt for a one-night stay.
These meta-detox experiences are open to all – including meat-eating, Facebook-addicted non-believers like myself.
Our group consists of about 15 people, and once we’ve changed into loose-fitting purple tops and grey sweatpants, our first activity will be simply to get to know each other and discuss Buddhism.
We are urged to sit cross-legged on the floor – something that might come naturally to yoga practitioners but which after about 15 minutes proves challenging for many of us, especially older participants.
We’ll be doing this a lot over the next 24 hours, and it begins to dawn on me that this temple stay might actually feel like work.