Trailer | Lotus Lantern Festival 2023 | Yeon Deung Hoe |
The 2023 Seoul Lotus Lantern Festival in celebration of Buddha’s birthday is back! This spring festival takes place over a few days with events around downtown Seoul from morning into the evening. Colorful lanterns have been strung up around the city in anticipation of the event and then over 100,000 more lanterns will be lit and paraded down the main streets of the capital. The excitement, hope, and love is palpable at this event and all are welcome to attend whether Buddhist or not. This is one of the most beautiful events to see each spring in Korea.
This year, 2023, the Lotus Lantern Festival in Seoul will take place from May 11 to May 28, 2023.
Buddhism was first introduced to Korea in 372, a time when the main religion was Shamanism. Seeing no conflict between Buddhism and the nature worshipping of Shamanism, a special kind of Buddhism emerged. The fundamental teachings of Buddha combined with the three highly regarded spirits of Shamanism to produce Korean Buddhism. Still today, shrines worshipping the Shamanistic spirits Sanshin, the Mountain Spirit, Toksong, the Recluse, and Chilsong, the Spirit of the Seven Stars or the Big Dipper, can be seen in many Buddhist temples around the country. Korean Buddhism was at its height during the Goryeo Dynasty, which reigned from 918 to 1392, but suffered a long repression during the Joseon Dynasty that would last some 500 years and it wouldn’t gain importance again until after WWII. Today, some 25% of the Korean population practices Buddhism.
The lotus lantern goes back to the Three Kingdoms Period when it was recorded that royals admired the lotus lantern shape of the colorful lanterns they saw. King Kyeongmun and Queen Jinseong visited Hwangryongsa Temple just to admire the beautiful lotus lanterns there. During the Goryeo Period when Buddhism became the state religion, the royals were patrons to lotus lantern events and by the Joseon Dynasty, the last dynasty in Korean history, the lotus lantern event was transformed into a New Year’s tradition that has survived until today.
Actually, during the first half of the Joseon Dynasty, Buddhism was repressed in the country and many monks that were residing in city temples escaped to the mountains to seek refuge which is why today, you’ll still find many temples are mountainside. During this dynasty, in 1431, there was a royal decree to prohibit the lotus lantern event but it continued as a folk custom and residents still hung the lanterns around their villages and outside of their homes with the number hung equal to the number of children they had. Though the Joseon Dynasty tried to squash Buddhism in the country, the traditions of the lotus lantern festival in celebration of Buddha’s birth continued. While the event is in celebration of Buddha’s birthday, it is very much a cultural event here in Korea as it has changed throughout the years and various political circumstances.
Join this channel to get access to perks:
/ @walkwithruru
Please connect and support my members
Mark Alvin Bernal Official: / @markalvinbernalofficial491
Dara’s Adventures : / @darasadventures
Alma Andong : / @almaandongofficial1502
Jeffrey Marzan Vlog: / @jeffreymarzan755
Meet MacLife' : / maclife%e2%80%99sjourney
Mileskeptsmile : / @miles1982smile
Call Me Xander : / zxander316
Song Offering : / @songoffering
JojoTwins : / @jojotwins
Ate Fe vlog : / @atefesvlog
Thank you so much for the trust..