Magoksa Temple麻谷寺

Magoksa Temple in Gongju is a temple founded by Jajang in the 9th year of Queen Seondeok of Silla (640 AD). The name Magoksa is said to have been given when the Silla monk Botcheol Hwasang was preaching, and the assembled followers resembled stalks of hemp in a hemp field. At the time of its founding, it was a large temple with over 30 bays, but currently, structures such as Daeungbojeon, Daegwangbojeon, Yeongsanjeon, Sacheonwangmun, and Haetalmun remain. In addition, there is a five-story stone pagoda, one large hanging Buddhist painting (Gwaebul), a wooden tablet, a palanquin ridden by King Sejo of Joseon, a bronze incense burner, and ancient books. Several handwritten Buddhist scriptures, copied with gold and silver ink, are also preserved as representative legacies of Buddhist culture from the late Goryeo period. The area around Magoksa Temple is known as one of the Sibseungji (Ten Propitious Sites) of the Joseon Dynasty, meaning it is one of the special regions where one could avoid danger during wartime. According to Yi Jung-hwan's "Taengniji," Magoksa Temple avoided the ravages of the Imjin War and survived the Korean War without being damaged by warfare. Recognizing these values, it was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site, one of the "Sansa, Buddhist Mountain Monasteries in Korea," and several cultural assets within the temple have been designated as Tangible Cultural Heritage and Cultural Heritage Materials of Chungcheongnam-do Province.