| Seokguram Grotto and Bulguksa Temple* | |
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| UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
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| State Party |  Republic of Korea |
| Type | Cultural |
| Criteria | i, iv |
| Reference | 736 |
| Region† | Asia-Pacific |
| Inscription history | |
| Inscription | 1995 (19th Session) |
| * Name as inscribed on World Heritage List. † Region as classified by UNESCO. |
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| Korean name | ||||||||
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The Seokguram Grotto is a hermitage and part of the Bulguksa temple complex. Bulguksa is a Buddhist temple in the North Gyeongsang province in South Korea. A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex As of 2008 there are a total of 878 World Heritage Sites located in 145 "State Parties" South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea and often referred to as Korea ( Korean: 대한민국 tɛː A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex This is a list of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Asia, Australia and the Pacific ( Australia) A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex Hanja is the Korean name for Chinese characters. More specifically it refers to those Chinese characters borrowed from Chinese and incorporated The Revised Romanization of Korean is the official Korean language Romanization system in South Korea. McCune-Reischauer romanization is one of the two most widely used Korean language Romanization systems along with the Revised Romanization of Korean, which Although today's meaning is usually a place where a Hermit lives in seclusion from the world hermitage was more commonly used to mean a settlement where a person or a group Bulguksa is a Buddhist temple in the North Gyeongsang province in South Korea. It lies four kilometers east of the temple on Mt. Tohamsan, in Gyeongju, South Korea. Toham Mountain, or Toham-san, is a mountain in Gyeongju City in southeastern South Korea. Gyeongju is an administrative division of South Korea and one of the most popular tourist destinations in South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea and often referred to as Korea ( Korean: 대한민국 tɛː The grotto overlooks the Sea of Japan (East Sea) and rests 750 meters above sea level. The Sea of Japan is a Marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, bordered by Japan, Korea, North Korea and Russia In 1962, it was designated the 24th national treasure of Korea. Year 1962 ( MCMLXII) was a Common year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1962 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The National Treasures of Korea are a numbered set of tangible treasures artifacts sites and buildings which are recognized by South Korea as having exceptional artistic In 1995, Seokguram was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List together with the Bulguksa Temple. Year 1995 ( MCMXCV) was a Common year starting on Sunday. Events of 1995 United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization ( UNESCO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations established on November 16 A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site (such as a Forest, Mountain, Lake, Desert, Monument, Building, complex It exemplifies some of the best Buddhist sculptures in the world. [1]
It is said to have been built by Gim Daeseong and originally called Seokbulsa (석불사, Stone Buddha Temple). Kim Daeseong (700&ndash774 was a chief minister of Silla during the reign of King Seongdeok in the Unified Silla period Construction began in 742 when Gim Daeseong resigned his position in the king's court or in 751, the 10th year of the reign of King Gyeongdeok of Silla. Events By Place Asia Chinese poet Li Po is presented before the emperor and given a position in the Imperial court (approximate date Events By Place Europe Pepin the Short is elected as king of the Franks by the Frankish nobility marking the end of the King Gyeongdeok of Silla was the 35th ruler who reigned from 742 to 765 over the kingdom of Silla. This time period was the cultural peak of Unified Silla. Unified Silla ( 668 CE - 935 CE or Later Silla is the name often applied to the kingdom of Silla, one of the Three Kingdoms of The grotto was completed by the Silla court in 774, shortly after Gim's death. Events By Place Europe Charlemagne conquers the kingdom of the Lombards, and takes title King of the Lombards An old legend stated that Gim was reincarnated for his filial acts in his previous life. The legend relates that the Bulguksa Temple was dedicated to Gim’s parents in his present life while the Seokguram Grotto was dedicated to Gim's parents from a previous life. Bulguksa is a Buddhist temple in the North Gyeongsang province in South Korea.
It is now one of the best known cultural destinations in South Korea. A viewing of the sunrise over the sea is especially popular.
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Architecture
India began a tradition of carving the image of Buddha in stone, holy images, and stupas into the cliff walls and natural caves. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country This practice was transferred to China and then Korea. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Korea is a geographic area composed of two sovereign countries a civilization and a former state situated on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia. The geology of the Korean Peninsula, which contains an abundance of hard granite, is not conducive to carving stone images into cliff walls. Physical geography See also Geography of North Korea, Geography of South Korea Mountains cover 70 percent of the Korean Peninsula and arable plains are Seokguram is an artificial grotto made from granite and is unique in design. The small size of the grotto indicates that it was probably used exclusively by the Silla royalty.
The grotto is symbolic of a spiritual journey into Nirvana. Pilgrims were to start at Bulguksa or at the foot Mt. Tohamsan, a holy mountain to the Silla. Toham Mountain, or Toham-san, is a mountain in Gyeongju City in southeastern South Korea. There was a fountain at the entrance of the shrine where pilgrims could refresh themselves. Inside the grotto, the antechamber and corridor represented the earth while the rotunda represented heaven.
The basic layout of the grotto includes an arched entrance which leads into a rectangular antechamber and then a narrow corridor, which is lined with bas-reliefs, and then finally leads into the main rotunda. The centerpiece of the granite sanctuary is a Buddha statue seated in the main chamber. Buddharūpa (बुद्धरूप literally 'Form of the Awakened One' is the Sanskrit and Pali term used in Buddhism for statues or models of the The identity of the Buddha is still debated. The Buddha is seated on a lotus throne with legs crossed. The Buddha has a serene expression of meditation. The Buddha is surrounded by fifteen panels of bodhisattvas, arhats and ancient Indian gods in the rotunda and is accompanied by ten statues in niches along the rotunda wall. The main hall of Seokguram houses a Bojon statue Bodhisattva and his disciples. Forty different figures representing Buddhist principles and teachings are in the grotto. The grotto was built around these statues in order to protect them from weathering. The ceiling of the Seokguram grotto is decorated with half moons, the top is decorated with a lotus flower. Silla architects used symmetry and apparently employed the concept of the golden rectangle. A golden rectangle is a Rectangle whose side lengths are in the Golden ratio, 1\varphi (one-to- phi) that is approximately 11
The grotto is shaped by hundreds of different granite stones. There was no mortar used and the structure was held together by stone rivets. The construction of the grotto also utilized natural ventilation. The dome of the rotunda is 6. 84 meters to 6. 58 meters in diameter.
Sculpture within the grotto
The main Buddha is a highly regarded piece of Buddhist art. Buddhist art originated on the Indian subcontinent following the historical life of Gautama Buddha, 6th to 5th century BCE and thereafter evolved by contact with It is 3. 5 meters in height and sits on a 1. 34 meter tall lotus pedestal. The Buddha is realistic in form and probably represents the Seokgamoni Buddha, the historic Buddha at the moment of enlightenment. The position of the Buddha's hands symbolizes witnessing the enlightenment. The Buddha has an usnisa, a symbol of the wisdom of the Buddha. The drapery on the Buddha, such as the fan-shaped folds at the crossed-legs of the Buddha, exemplifies Korean interpretations of Indian prototypes. Unlike other Buddhas that have a halo attached to the back of the head, the Buddha at Seokguram creates the illusion of a halo by placing a granite roundel carved with lotus petals at the back wall of the rotunda. The pedestal is made of three parts; the top and bottom are carved with lotus petals while the central shaft consists of eight pillars.
Accompanying the main Buddha, in relief, are three bodhisattvas, ten disciples, and two Hindu gods along the wall of the rotunda. A Hindu ( Devanagari: हिन्दू is an adherent of the philosophies and scriptures of Hinduism, a set of religious, Philosophical Ten statues of bodhisattvas, saints, and the faithful are located in niches above the bas-reliefs. The ten disciples were disciples of Seokgamoni and are lined five on each side of the Avalokitesvara. Their features suggest a Greek influence. The two bodhisattvas are of Manjusri and Samantabhadra. The two Hindu gods are Brahma and Indra. Brahma is the Hindu god ( deva) of creation and one of the Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva. Indra ( Sanskrit: इन्द्र or इंद्र Indra, Malay: Indera, Thai: พระอินทร์ Phra-Intra
The Four Heavenly Kings guard the corridor. In the Buddhist faith, the Four Heavenly Kings are four guardian gods each of whom watches over one Cardinal direction of the world There are also images of Vajrapanis, which are guardian figures and they are on the walls of the entrance to the corridor, in the antechamber. Eight Guardian Deities adorn the antechamber.
Another notable figure is the Eleven-faced Avalokitesvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion. It is on the back wall of the rotunda and stands 2. 18 meters in height. This figure is the only one of the bas-reliefs facing forward, the others face the side. The Avalokitesvara wears a crown, is dressed in robes and jewelry and holds a vase containing a lotus blossom.
Two statutes from the niches and a marble pagoda that was believed to have stood in front of the Avalokitesvara are missing from the grotto and are believed to have been looted by the Japanese.
Reconstruction
Because of the long periods of abandonment and numerous renovations, many details are disputed amongst scholars, such as the exact layout of the original grotto, the buildings in Bulguksa or the shape of the watercourse, which no longer exists, in front of the temple.
Repair and improvements were undertaken in 1703 and 1758, during the Joseon dynasty, however the Confucian-oriented rulers tended to suppress Buddhism and the remote mountain grotto was seriously damaged by the turn of the 20th century. Confucianism ( is a Chinese ethical and philosophical system originally developed from the teachings of the fifth century B The Government-General of Chosen conducted restoration works three times, but faced humidity and other problems. Korea under Japanese rule refers to the period between 1910 and 1945 when Korea was forcibly annexed by the Japanese Empire.
The first round of repairs from 1913 to 1915 was conducted without sufficient study of the structure of the grotto, which was almost completely dismantled and reassembled. The major mistake committed was an attempt to stabilize the structure by encasement in concrete. Concrete is a construction material composed of Cement (commonly Portland cement) as well as other cementitious materials such as Fly ash and Slag This resulted in humidity buildup and in water leaks, causing erosion of the sculptures, because the grotto could no longer "breathe. " In 1917, drainage pipes were buried above the dome to channel rainwater away from the grotto. However, as leaks continued in spite of the pipes, another round of repairs were conducted from 1920-1923. Waterproof asphalt was applied to the surface of the concrete, which only worsening the problem. Asphalt ( is a sticky black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude Petroleums and in some natural deposits sometimes termed asphaltum Moss and mold formed, and in 1927 the now unthinkable method of spraying hot steam was used to clean the sculptures.
After World War II, in the 1960s, President Park Chung Hee ordered a major restoration project. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Park Chung-hee ( November 14, 1917 – October 26, 1979) was a former ROK Army general and the autocratic dictator of the Republic The problem of temperature and humidity control was resolved to an extent by using mechanical systems. The wooden superstructure built over the antechamber remains a subject for debate for many historians who believe Seokguram originally did not have such a structure blocking the sunrise over the East Sea, and cutting off the air flow into the grotto.
The interior of the grotto can now only be viewed through a glass wall, installed to protect it from the large number of tourists it attracts.
Gallery
 The entrance to the grotto. The rotunda is covered by a grassy hill in the background. |
 The sea can be seen on a clear day from the grotto and it is hypothesized that the Buddha was made to protect the Silla kingdom from Wa attacks. Silla (57 BC – 935 AD was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. Japanese, is the oldest recorded name of Japan. Chinese Korean and Japanese scribes regularly wrote Wa or Yamato "Japan" with the |
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See also
- List of Buddhist topics
- Korean Buddhist temples
- Tourism in Gyeongju
- List of Korea-related topics
- National treasures of Korea
References
- National Heritage: Seokguram
- Cultural Heritage: Seokguram
- Asian Historical Architecture profile of Seokguram
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