The Story of Tongdosa Temple and Vinaya Master Jajang
“Tongdosa is protected bya guardian dragon deity.”
Baek Won-gi | Chaired Professor at Dongbang Culture University
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| Illustration by Han Saeng-gon |
Located on Mt. Yeongchuksan in Yangsan, Gyeongnam Province, the Great Hero Hall (the main buddha hall) at Tongdosa Temple does not enshrine any buddhas. This is because behind the hall lies the Diamond Precepts Altar (Geumgang Gyedan) in which genuine relics of Shakyamuni Buddha are enshrined. The name “Tongdosa” also embodies the meaning that the Way is attained through the Diamond Precepts Altar, and that one can save the world through the mastery of truth. In addition, according to temple records, the name Tongdosa originated from the fact that “the mountain on which the temple sits resonates with the resemblance of Vulture Peak where the Buddha taught.”
The founder of Tongdosa Temple was Vinaya Master Jajang (590-658) who valued observing the precepts more than life. Bereaved by his parents’ death at a young age, he later donated his farmland and house to establish Wonnyeongsa Temple. He also went deep into the mountains alone and practiced the contemplation of a skeleton (a practice to observe the process of a corpse turning into a skeleton) in order to realize the impermanence of life. In 636, under orders from Queen Seondeok, he went to Tang China with ten of his disciples and practiced for three years at Yunji Temple on Mt. Zhongnan. He then further immersed himself in prayer and practice to meet Manjushri Bodhisattva who resided on Mt. Qingliang. At this time, a strange monk appeared in his dream one day and recited a verse to him. When he awoke, he realized it was a Sanskrit verse that he didn’t know how to interpret. Another monk then appeared in his dream to interpret it, and this monk turned out to be Manjushri Bodhisattva. From him Master Jajang received a monastic robe, authentic relics of Shakyamuni Buddha, prayer beads and sutras, after which he returned to Silla, having been in Tang China seven years.
Upon arriving in Silla, Master Jajang wanted to establish a temple to enshrine the relics he had received. While offering prayers he asked Manjushri Bodhisattva to guide him to a proper place to establish a temple. One day in a dream a well-dressed boy appeared and told him to enshrine the relics in the “Eastern Country.” Master Jajang was sure that “Eastern Country” referred to Silla, but didn’t know where in Silla was suitable. He crafted a duck from wood and let it fly toward the east, and the duck returned holding a kudzu flower in its beak. Master Jajang was surprised to see the duck bring a kudzu flower in the middle of winter. However, he realized that the Buddha meant for him to establish a temple where kudzu flowers bloomed and went to look for this place. He searched for several days until he arrived at Mt. Yeongchuksan. There, he found a large pond, and as if by magic, two kudzu flowers bloomed beside it, the same kind the duck had brought back. Originally there had been three kudzu flowers, but the duck had brought back one, leaving these two.
Overwhelmed, Master Jajang decided to establish the temple on the site of the pond in the foothills of the mountain. However, there were nine dragons living in the pond. In order to build a temple, the pond had to be filled in. Master Jajang summoned the dragons and tried to persuade them to leave, but they refused. Master Jajang then caused the pond to boil with his power of Dharma, and the dragons left. Of the nine dragons, five escaped over the mountain to the southwest, after which the area was called Five-Dragon Valley.
Three dragons fled east but died when they collided with a large rock on a low mountain near a pine grove. Their blood flowed profusely over the rock, which people later called Dragon Blood Rock. It is located near the temple gate. The last dragon vowed to obey the rules and guard the temple, so Master Jajang created a small pond and let it live there. Today it is called Nine-Dragon Pond and is located next to Great Hero Hall. It is a small oval-shaped pond occupying only 15m2 and is less than 30 cm deep. Master Jajang then filled in the large pond, built the Diamond Precepts Altar, and established Tongdosa Temple in 646.
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| Nine-Dragon Pond located next to Great Hero Hall at Tongdosa Temple. It is said that Vinaya Master Jajang established a small pond and let a dragon live there. |
Jajangam Hermitage is a hut where Master Jajang cultivated the Way before establishing Tongdosa Temple. Behind the Dharma Hall at Jajangam is a rock cliff in which two golden frogs are said to have lived for the last 1,400 years. It is said that even now the frogs can be seen by those who offer sincere prayers. The golden frogs first appeared when Master Jajang built a hut under the cliff and practiced there before establishing Tongdosa. One evening he went to wash rice in a spring that flowed from between rocks under the cliff. He was about to scoop up some water with a gourd, but saw two frogs and stopped. He said to them, “I don’t believe it. Out of all the places to play, why on earth have you come here to muddy up the temple spring where buddhas reside?” He scooped them up in his hands and moved them to a nearby forest. Next morning, he found they had returned to play in the water. “My goodness, you are really naughty,” he said. He moved the frogs again, this time farther so that they wouldn’t return, but they were back the next day. “This is strange,” he thought. When he examined them carefully, he noticed they had distinct golden stripes around their eyes unlike ordinary frogs, and had a turtle-shell pattern on their backs. “These frogs have karmic ties with Buddhism,” he concluded, and let them stay.
Winter soon arrived. Master Jajang saw the frogs frolicking in the spring without hibernating even as the snow fell and the ice froze. “This won’t do. I have to prepare a place for them to live,” he thought. Behind the hermitage, he poked a hole in the cliff big enough for the frogs and put them in it, saying “Please stay here forever and guard Jajangam Hermitage!” After this mysterious prayer, he always referred to them as “the golden frogs.”
Later monks of Tongdosa Temple called the frogs Geumwa Bosal (Golden Frog Bodhisattvas), and the hole they lived in Geumwa Seokgul (Golden Frog Cave). The cave is actually a small hole in the rock about 1.5-2 cm in diameter and 10 cm deep. Green moss grows inside it and creatures that look like frogs (or maybe large bees) are said to live in it. Having lived so long under the divine protection of Master Jajang, the frogs are said to appear when auspicious signs appear at Tongdosa Temple.
Tongdosa is a major Korean Buddhist temple that passes on Jajang’s ethical spirit, expressed by his desire “to live just one day observing the precepts instead of living 100 years breaking them,” and by the parable of the golden frogs that teaches respect for life and the practice of compassion. The temple also attracts non-Buddhists because it is registered on the World Heritage list as one of the seven temples that belong to the “Sansa, Buddhist Mountain Monasteries in Korea.”
Baek Won-gi graduated from the Dept. of English Literature, Dongguk University, and received a doctorate from Dongguk University Graduate School. Currently he is a chaired professor at Dongbang Culture University, and director of its Lifelong Education Center. His writings in Korean include Buddhist Legends and Mind Healing.
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