Program to enroll 1,500 applicants on first-come, first-served basis

Participants are seen meditating at a temple stay program at Naksansa, a temple in Yangyang County, Gangwon Province. (Cultural Corps of Korean Buddhism)
Participants are seen meditating at a temple stay program at Naksansa, a temple in Yangyang County, Gangwon Province. (Cultural Corps of Korean Buddhism)

Registration for an English templestay program for foreign nationals wishing to unplug from bustling city life and experience South Korea's Buddhist culture opened Friday.

The first 1,500 applicants will be able to participate in the overnight program priced at 30,000 won ($21.77) that will run from Aug. 1 to Oct. 31, according to the Cultural Corps of Korean Buddhism — an arm of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism, the largest Buddhist sect in Korea.

The special templestay program designed for foreign visitors will be available at 47 temples across the country, with each temple offering a unique cultural experience, allowing participants to engage in traditional Korean Buddhist practices.

They include a leisurely walk on a known for its scenic forest path at Hwagyesa in Seoul, making lotus lanters at Daewonsa in Gapyeong, Gyeonggi Province, doing 108 prostrations and making prayer beads at Haeinsa in Hapcheon, South Gyeongsang Province, practicing seonmudo — a form of Korean Buddhist martial art — at Golgulsa in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province and engaging in meditation at Heungguksa in Goyang, just an hour's drive northwest of central Seoul.

To register, visit the official Templestay website.


junheee@heraldcorp.com