It was Baekjae kingdom museum where I saw Buddha statues made in the Choson Dynasty era.
As entering into the museum, the Choson dynasty Buddha statue special exhibition was going on.
The museum was built for the memory of BaekJae Kingdom though, the relics exhibited were those of the Choson dynasty. That’s because there are not so many relics of the BaekJae Kingdom to exhibit.
The Buddha statues were so impressive. In the Choson kingdom, Buddhism was no more national religion. Even Confucianism in Choson dynasty had suppressed Buddhism to reform the kingdom.
Meanwhile, the Buddhist monks had fought against the Japanese invasion for their dynasty.
In this respect, Buddhism had special meaning among ordinary people in the Choson Kingdom.
Confucianism was the ideology for the rulers, but Buddhism was the religion of the suppressed.
So when we look at Buddhist statues made in Choson kingdom, we need to understand this cultural and historical background.
There was an unique characteristics in Buddha statues in the Choson dynasty. The ratio of the head size seemed larger than the size of body.
The Buddha statues of Choson dynasty were not so elegant to those of the BaekJae and Shilla Kingdom which had been existed 500 years before the Choson Kingdom.
Those stautes seemed to be made by the ordinary people. Buddhism in Choson was people's religion.
These statues are really built to last by some very talented people, maybe Monks as well because they are inside the temple and are protected and maintained by devoted monks of Buddhism which are so valiant in their religion that they fight the Japanese in order to protect their spiritual beliefs @slowwalker.
@slowwalker,
Look the craftmen crafted these statues so well! Yeah I also noticed the size of head! Sometimes it might be done purposely to give a great meaning! I think Bodhisathva, Buddha and Arahath, all three categories are in these relics!
Wonderful photography and nice explanation! Thank you very much for sharing this!
Yeah I agree, Buddhism for ordinary people! It has freedom and it contains truth!
Cheers~
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@slowwalker, Thank you so much for letting us know about the Choson Dynasty and in my opinion, every culture have different traditions and Historical aspects that makes our history rich.
And you've shared some aspects of this museum with us and i hope that you've saw more amazing things in that museum, and whenever we visit any Historical places then sometimes we can see some amazing stuff.
While sharing these pictures you've also shared some information and it's really appreciable because, through that we can understand the true Importance these pictures.
And History always holds one or other invasion stories and mostly we see that in Ancient times kingdoms always showcased the power system.
Wishing you an great day and stay blessed. 🙂
Baekje's smile ....
It is interesting to know the history of the choson dynasty.
That is neat to see. There is a budda statue at the Aria Casino in Las Vegas. Not nearly as authentic as this.
Although syncretism as a cultural phenomenon is a widely recognized feature of the transmission of religion from one culture to another, the particular adjustment made by the folk religions to world missionary religions is not widely mentioned as such in the literature of the history of religions. the accommodation made by the folk religion of Korea to Buddhism. In doing so, two different types of syncretism are examined, and the concept of "reverse syncretism" is discussed.
I love the Buddha
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@slowwalker,
Yep...That's various characteristics you found from BaekJae Kingdom Museum.
I don't know why they selected to built Buddha statue like these. Probably had meaning of Choson kingdom. However I learned variation of Buddhism in Korea from this letter. Fantastic photo clicks.
Thank you for another great story. Most of all I liked the lighting, which gave the statue a piece of divinity.
Buddha statue that is still well maintained and maintained its authenticity. very enjoyable your trip. lots of history in Korea and I also follow each of your posts. because I like history, photography and travel. @slowwalker greetings
There sure is much history to learn from
While yes without gettng proper knowledhe commentig on sth is not that wise.
As it seems the Statues are indeed loking very great
They sure are being taken care of very nicely.
Thanks for the tour of today :)
Right, the head of the statue looks big but its shape is very neat ...
Very informative post, @slowwalker. These Buddha statues give a very calm impression.
Thank you for sharing this information about Buddha statues in the Choson dynasty, it looks very well preserved and for me Buddha always transmits calmness, patience and peace. I find that it is hte most peaceful religion, nobody is been forced to follow the religion and none would blame you if you do not like it.
The Statue itself, has so many little details, looks like bronze statue, for me that is the highest level of Art to create such three dimensional Artworks, real national treasure and heritage hopefully will be there for our next generations :)
This is a really interesting article, particularly for those who are new to Buddhist culture.
I didn't know that Buddha statues had different proportions depending on the Dynasty.
Interesting info on the statues. I'm always fascinated by the way so many cultures have molded Buddhism to fit into their culture. I suppose it is no different than Christianity, or any other religion. People would rather worship traditions, ideas and symbols rather than actually understand what the teacher was trying to teach!
But I digress. Nice post!
Do you have pictures of the BaekJae and Shilla Kingdoms Buddha's which you may post? I understand that Confucianism was the philosophy of government and Buddhism the religion, throughout Korean history. Possibly during the Choson period the ruling class became more domineering and payed less concern to matters of the soul. But it is incredible that ordinary people crafted these statuettes. What happened most likely, as this is very common, is that the artistic techniques or style changed.
Nicely written! Thanks for sharing :-)
Those are really nice.