Inwangsan Mountain

In a desperate plea to escape the pell-mell of Seoul, I took an evening trip a few days ago to the Bongwonsa Buddhist temple and Guksadsang Shamanist shrine. The two religions have coexisted here for centuries, with Shamanist practices surviving every attempt by the powers that be to quash them since the belief's inception tens of thousands of years ago.







Evening Gong

The Shamanist temple itself isn't much to look at, given that the real religious center here are all the rocks, trees and streams along the winding path through the hillside. Some men, but mostly women burn incense and candles, wave flags, sound rhythmic chimes, meditate and chant, each in their own way to their own deity. Naturally this area felt too sacred for me to go around taking pictures, although this woman politely agreed to let me record.