Jeondeungsa

Situated on Jeongjoksan, like many of South Korea's temples, Jeondeungsa had been burned down and rebuilt a number of times. Located inside the Samrangseong walls, the temple was originally called Jinjongsa. The name was changed when Princess Jeonghwa gave a rare jade lamp as an offering to the Buddha in the eighth year of King Chungnyeol's reign (1282) of the Goryeo Dynasty, giving the temple its current name, which means "inherited lamp." Its last rebuilding in 1621 makes it a relatively old temple and it's heralded as an example of fine architecture from the Goryeo era. You'll notice, in the main Daeungjeon, a sculpture of an ugly naked woman on top of the four pillars that support the eaves of the roof. The story is that the carpenter who was building the temple fell in love with a "hostess" at a bar. He gave her all the money he earned and she ran off with it. The carpenter fell ill, but recovered and created this sculpture as both revenge and a way to cleanse her of her sins. The Yaksajeon houses a more beautiful sculpture, a representation of the healing Buddha.

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