The magical month of may
Trip Start
Oct 23, 2006
1
19
26
Trip End
Oct 25, 2007
Seoul, Korea Rep.
Monday, June 4, 2007
Until recently, my knowledge of Buddhism didn't extebd much beyond the phrase, "all loathing is self loathing". In Korea, Buddhism's main principles are geared towards helping followers understand stuff like "What is the true self" and "What is the truth of life". It also seems to be an altogether more relaxed and flexible religious experience when compared to Christianity in Korea. It aims to liberate follwers of sufferring, rather than their monthly wages. You see, to be a member of a Christian church in Korea means sacrificing at least 10% of your wages - automatically. The church is set up with the ability to just direct-debit the amount from your account every month. How helpful. These days, around 20% of Koreans are practicising Buddhists.
Buddha's birthday is a national holiday here in Korea. This is great for me as it means I get a day off work. Brilliant. The special day was May 24th. On the weekend encompassing May 18-20 was the Lotus Lantern Festival, the highlight being the reportedly 'unmissable' lotus lantern parade. I missed it. But I didn't miss heading into downtown Seoul, and more specifically Jogyesa Temple, to check out the silly amount of lanterns on display. Check out the photos and you'll see what I mean.
Jogyesa was buzzing, so I found a chair in a courtyard just outside the main shrine, and sat. I sat simply to observe. People hanging lanterns, lighting incense candles, bowing, praying, eating, drinking, laughing, playing, relaxing. Sitting in the shade provided by the lanterns above, I mused that the cherry on top of this perfect May afternoon would be a cold Coopers Sparkling Ale. In my time of need, I, a less than devout religious man, turned to Buddha for assistance, but to my dismay, the big man did not answer my prayer. So I just continued to sit and fantasise. Coopers is wicked.
My mind eventually got past beer and switched to appreciating the sheer volume of lanterns on display around me. Between you and me, it was pretty bloody impressive. I'm sure once you seee my photos you'll notice that some lanterns are coloured and some are just plain white. Each coloured lantern represents a wish to the living, whilst a white lantern is hung in remembrance of the dead. Evidently, at this time of year, all Buddhists in Korea come out of the woodwork to hang a lantern or two, and then do what Koreans do best - take a heap of photos. Oh, I also managed to score a free bowl of noodles. Buddhists are a giving bunch.
I wish my birthday was a national holiday, mainly because I hate having to work on my birthday! Sadly, I can't see that happenning in the near future, but I won;t rule it out for the future. I mean really, what has Buddha ever done? Anyway, the rumor going round the temple was that Buddha asked for a Playstation 3 for his birthday - he got underwear.
So, by now I guess you're wondering 'Who won all these Cup finals?'. Well, here are the results:
1.FA Cup - Chelsea bt Man Utd 1-0
2.UEFA Cup - Sevilla bt Espanyol 3-1 on pen's (2-2 after 120 minutes)
3.UEFA Champions League Final - AC Milan bt Liverpool 2-1
It's a lame fact this time around but I'm knackered. Sorry.
