jikjisa

one of the four guardians of the jikji temple gates! yikes.
jikjisa...in the pouring rain
chae and i struck up a conversation with a canadian woman who's here in korea visiting her daughter who teaches english (she also has another daughter teaching in china!). she kindly took our picture.
rubbin' big, laughing buddha's belly while making prayers of lovingkindness, abundance and peace.

peering into the temple of 1,000 buddhas
snowy winter temple grounds
kuan yin
bamboo forest

prayers made by pilgrims passing by
because of the rain, we had the temple grounds almost to ourselves. we meandered leisurely under our umbrellas. chae spent some time in the main temple making prayers for noh muhyun (korea's previous president who recently committed suicide), while i found my way to the back side of the temple where i stood mesmerized by a beautiful bamboo forest.
jikjisa is one of the oldest and largest temples in korea. i was surprised by how intimate it felt...similar to how unmunsa (the women's temple) feels to me. deeply feminine and nurturing. as we walked i saw many images of kuan yin, goddess of compassion. she had one entire temple building to herself....a large golden statue of her sitting with one leg extended, an active posture in which she is ready to assist those who are suffering.
when chae and i came upon the temple tea house, without question we went inside. we both ordered chinese date tea, as it is perfect for a cold, blustery day. two small tea cups accompanied our large mugs of date tea, as well as a bowl of popcorn! you just NEVER, EVER know what you're gonna get in korea! there is always some element of surprise. most of the time, i love this. we did not know the extra tea cups contained unbelievably strong alcohol, so we both took big gulps at the same time, which led to loud sputtering and laughter!
after we recovered from the shock of 30 proof plum wine and were sipping our rich, warm date tea, i told chae that i would love to have a tea house someday... he knows my dream of creating a healing center for women, but he didn't know the extent of my passion for tea. then i said, "i would love to volunteer in this tea shop for a bit and learn all about the art of tea - korean style." he got all excited and thought that was the best idea ever. before i knew it, he was asking the owner if my working there would be a possibility. as they were chatting, i was sure she was explaining all the reasons why it would not be possible for me to help out and learn from her, but then he turned to me and said, "she says, 'welcome!'" she immediately called the monk (on the phone) who is in charge of temple stays and volunteer programs. a few minutes later he entered the tea house and sat with us for awhile. he and chae talked about the possibilities of my involvement at the monastery. according to the monk i am over qualified to teach the english camps for kids (thank goodness!), which is their main volunteer opportunity for foreigners, and so he thought the best idea would be for me to come whenever i have a free chunk of time and work one on one with the tea house owner. my eyes grew wide and i felt my heart leap out of my chest. that means i would not have to be part of an official temple stay, which scares the bejesus out of me after that horror or horrors temple stay last fall at musangsa. according to the monk, i could just stay independently at the temple and focus on tea. this appeals to me more than i myself could have even imagined before that moment. i thanked the monk profusely, bowing a million times, and chae and i headed back to gumi for night class.