<Janggyeongsa in Namhansanseong, Gwangju>

The Sad Story of a Temple in Dongmun

The mountain fortress made with stones does not serve as a stronghold any more but gives a scenic beauty in the nature. Namhansanseong that is stretched in Gwangju, Hanam and Seongnam has the circumference of 12km, providing the ideal walk. It is said that there were nine temples in Namhansanseong, but only Mangweolsa, Janggyeongsa and Gaewonsa remain. Mangweolsa and Janggyeongsa are located near Dongmun where the maple leaves are beautiful.

After visiting Mangweolsa, I drove to Janggyeongsa. The road to get to Janggyeongsa is a great driveway. The autumn view of the driveway is like a scene of a movie. It is the autumn version of the film “One Fine Spring Day.” Instead of scattering cherry blossom overlapped with an old lady in beautiful Hanbok on a fine spring day, leaves were scattered like blossom.

The yard of Janggyeongsa was covered with yellow leaves of gingko, and it was a beautiful day of the late fall. Phrases on four pillars of Janggyeongsa said, “Do not make evil behaviors, do good works, purify your spirit and these are the teachings of Buddha.” There was Gyeongtong (mani wheel) by Daewungjeon, and Gyeongtong houses the Sutras. I turned the wheel. It is said that turning the wheel once is like accumulating virtuous deeds. There were countless tags with wishes at the temple as the college entrance examination approached.

A Friendship of a Boy and a Monk
There is a sad story about Janggyeongsa. The temple was built by Geumdanseonsa to commend a mother and a son who died miserably to god.

Mubyeong is the name of a boy who made a friendship with Geumdanseonsa. As a cheerful boy, Mubyeong was loved by Geumdanseonsa. Mubyeong did not visit him for days, and he went to the village to meet Mubyeong. He heard that Mubyeong’s mother was taken for the worse and Mubyeong had to look for herbs. Mubyeong asked him to take care of his mother, but he said, “I can look for them faster. Take care of mom, and I will meet you after a week.”

Three days later, Mubyeong’s mother died. He returned with the prescribed herbs, but he could not meet Mubyeong. With a sense of foreboding, he went to the village only to hear that Mubyeong also died from grief.

Geumdanseonsa built a shrine at the site where Mubyeong died, and prayed for the repose of their souls every day. One day, a deer came and looked at him with clear eyes like Mubyeong for a long time. He named the shrine as Janggyeongsa. The name of the temple means a long happiness, and he named the temple with a fervent prayer for eternal happiness of Mubyeong and his mother. The Chinese character “Jang” means that the status of sustained happiness. It is said that the wooden statue disappeared when Geumdanseonsa died.

There were many statues of child monks at the stairway of the temple. I guess they symbolized pure smile of Mubyeong.

[Tourist Information]
Namhansanseong was renovated in King Injo Year 2 (1624 A.D.). Monk Gakseong (1575~1660) had monks gather from across the nation and serve for the renovation project. Janggyeongsa was built in King Injo Year 16 (1638 A.D.) for accommodation of the monks. It is the only temple remains among temples built in Namhansanseong at that time.

Janggyeongsa: Cultural Asset No. 15, Gyeonggi-do
Contact: 031-743-6547~8
Website: www.jangkyungsa.org

◆ Location
Keyword for Search: Namhansanseong Janggyeongsa
Address: 22-1 Sanseong-ri, Jungbu-myeon, Gwangju, Gyeonggi-do
By Car: Namhansanseong Rotary → Go straight to the direction of Dongmun → Turn left when Dongmun comes into sight → Go up the hill until the post of Mangwoelsa and Janggyeongsa comes into sight  Take the lane on the right side  Janggyeongsa
Yangjae IC of Gyeongbu Expressway  Heolleungro → Segokdong Sageori → Yakjinro → Sanseong Tunnel → Jungang Parking Lot → Go straight to the direction of Dongmun → Turn left when Dongmun comes into sight  Turn right  Janggyeongsa

Public Transportation: Get off at the final bus stop of Sanseong  Walk to the direction of Dongmun  Post of Janggyeongsa
Bus No. 9: Sanseong Rotary
Bus No. 15-1: Gwangjiwon Jungnu-myeon Office  Sanseong Rotary (intervals of 30 minutes)
Bus No. 52: Sanseong Rotary → Nammun → Sanseong Station → Jonghap Market → Moran → Sangdaewon (intervals of 50 minutes)

◆ Adjacent Tourist Destinations
Namhansanseong, Namhansanseonghaenggung, Chimguaejeong, Jisudang, Hyeonjeolsa, Mangweola, Catholic Site of Namhansanseong, Namhansanseong Historic Museum and Tower Park