6. Daeungbojeon Hall of Magoksa Temple

[Man]
Daeungbojeon Hall is the central Dharma hall of Magoksa Temple along with Daegwangbojeon Hall. Daeungbojeon lost much of its original appearance due to repair and reconstruction in 1650 and 1842.

[Woman]
Daeungbojeon Hall is the more formal name of Daeungjeon Hall. In Daeungjeon Hall, enshrined in the center is this statue of the Buddha Sakyamuni, the head of the secular world, and the Manjushri Bodhisattva and Samantabhadra are usually enshrined on either sides of the Buddha Sakyamuni. However, when it is called Daeungbojeon Hall, the more formal version, sometimes the statue of Sakyamuni Buddha is served as the main Buddha, and Amitabha Buddha and Bhaisajyaguru Buddha are each placed on his left and right side, while the respective attendant bodhisattva are enshrined on the left and right sides of each statue of the Buddha.

[Man]
Sakyamuni Buddha, the main Buddha of Daeungbojeon Hall, is the name given to the Buddha of Siddhartha Gautama after his entry into Nirvana. He was born to his father, king Suddhodana, and his mother, Mrs Maya, in the Indian kingdom of Kapila.

[King Suddhodana]
"Has the baby been born?"

[Vassal]
"I offer you my sincerest congratulations. Your Highness." The baby is a prince."

[King Suddhodana]
“A prince! The foundation of the state to lead Kapila in the future has finally come to this world!"

[Woman]
Siddhartha Gautama. Although he was a prince, he did not live an ordinary life as a prince, and he wanted to find a way out of the suffering arising from birth, old age, sickness, and death, which serve as the foundations of our life.

[Sakyamuni Buddha]
"Why do we have to get old, sick, and die in this world? In order to overcome the way and suffering of the world, I must renounce the secular life and join the monastic order!”

[Woman]
On the day he became 29 years of age, he became a monk. At the age of 35, Siddhartha finally had a great awakening and became the Buddha. And for 45 years, he traveled all over India, teaching and reviving the religious body. After that, he entered nirvana at the age of 80. “Sakyamuni Buddha was a man who completely reached the state of nirvana, away from all suffering. And he was a moral perfecter who demonstrated boundless wisdom and infinite mercy to save all living beings from suffering.

[Man]
The Bhaisajyaguru Buddha symbolized the East. The statue of the Bhaisajyaguru Buddha enshrined in Magoksa Temple raises his left hand above his chest and places his right hand on his lap, with his thumb and middle finger put together to represent the heaven of the lower class in the intermediate category of rebirth. The Bhaisajyaguru Buddha is also called Bhaisajya-guru-vaidurya-prabha-raja, or the Medicine Buddha. In the Pure Land of the Paradise of the East, the Buddha cures all diseases of living beings, removes calamities, and allows those who practice the demeanor of no shortcomings to find the fruits of incomparable enlightenment and wisdom. The utilitarian belief that reciting his name and invoking his aid would destroy all misfortune caused by calamities and cure the disease was highly persuasive and appealing to the general public.

[Woman]
Amitabha Buddha is the Buddha who leads living beings to paradise, while remaining in the Pure Land of the West. He has his right hand raised above his chest and his left hand placed against his knee. Amitabha Buddha, one of the five Buddhas, means an infinite lifespan. It was believed that everyone who believes in Amitabha Buddha and recites his name will be born in the pure land and live a blessed life. Inside the Daeungbojeon Hall of Magoksa Temple, there are four pillars made of bush clover, and some interesting tales are told about them.

[Dead Person]
“Who... who are you?”

[King of the Underworld]
“I am the King of the Underworld. "How many times in your life have you circled the bush clover pillars in Daeungbojeon Hall of Magoksa Temple?”

[Dead Person]
“What? I have never done that in my life.”

[King of the Underworld]
“Is that so? So, you have never circled those pillars in your life. "Look here. Send him to hell!”

[Dead Person]
“What?” Why are you doing this to me?”

[King of the Underworld]
“The more a person circles bush clover pillars, the closer he gets to the road that leads to paradise, until he finally gets there, but since you have never done that, you will be set to hell! Do you understand?"

[Dead Person]
"Had I known this, I would have been sure to circle around the bush clover pillars in Daeungbojeon Hall!"