Temple dating, dance parties, and MBTI: Buddhism gets a Gen Z makeover

Korean Heritage

Published: 10 May. 2024, 16:31 Updated: 10 May. 2024, 19:14

Temple dating, dance parties, and MBTI: Buddhism gets a Gen Z makeover

A pair of singles in their 30s takes a walk at Jeondeungsa, a temple in Ganghwa County, Incheon, as part of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism's ″I am Jeollo″ matchmaking program. [JOGYE ORDER OF KOREAN BUDDHISM SOCIAL WELFARE FOUNDATION]

Solemn, serious, drab — the current state of Buddhism in Korea is anything but. Try hip, fun and unexpected instead.

Buddha may be pleased to see, ahead of his birthday on May 15, that the religion is undergoing a modern makeover in the country that makes it more approachable to the general public. The efforts are made in mind of the younger generation, marked by a high proportion of the nonreligious and a decreasing birthrate. Key religious functions — empathy, consolation and comfort — are placed on the frontlines to match contemporary trends.

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Looking for a date? Swipe right on Buddhist temples.

Jeondeungsa, Korea’s oldest extant Buddhist temple, is in Incheon's Ganghwa County. Built over 1,600 years ago, the sacred location flung open its doors on Monday with a surprising itinerary on hand: an overnight stay for singles looking for love.

The Venerable Myojang speaks during the third ″I am Jeollo″ matchmaking program [JOGYE ORDER OF KOREAN BUDDHISM SOCIAL WELFARE FOUNDATION]

The matchmaking event — called “I am Jeollo,” a portmanteau of jeol, the Korean word for temple, and ENA's and SBS Plus’s popular dating reality show “I am Solo” (2021-) — is the third of its name, the first event having taken place in November and the second in December. The matchmakers for the 20 men and women in their 30s were none other than Buddhist monks.

The JoongAng Ilbo, an affiliate of the JoongAng Daily, asked the event’s chief organizer, Venerable Myojang, about the program’s purpose and secret to success.

“Buddhism has come forward to help solve the issues of low birthrate and an aging population,” said Venerable Myojang, who also chairs the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism's social welfare foundation.

Through the event, “the men and women who casually meet up could later develop a relationship that goes even beyond dating, to marriage and childbirth,” he added.

The “I am Jeollo” program, in fact, educated participants on the “severity of an ageing society with low birthrates” and receives support from the Ministry of Health and Welfare as part of its population education project.

"I am Jeollo" participants play games to win a temple food dinner with their preferred date. [JOGYE ORDER OF KOREAN BUDDHISM SOCIAL WELFARE FOUNDATION]

There’s a twist. “I am Jeollo” has been running for 11 years since 2012 under the name of “Get-together Templestay.” It was around even before dating reality shows such as Channel A’s “Heart Signal” (2017-), Tving’s “EXchange” (2021-) and Netflix’s “Single’s Inferno” (2021-) became popular. Monday’s event was the 37th of its kind.

But according to Venerable Myojang, the program “wasn’t popular from the start.”

“We would secretly include employees from the foundation after we didn’t have enough participants, despite trying all kinds of promotional tactics.”

The event did, eventually, gain enough traction to find its current success. Much like how commercial companies form brand reinvention equations, “I am Jeollo” changed everything.

The Jogye Order’s social welfare foundation revamped the event in an unconventional manner last year after putting it on hold for the three years following the outbreak of Covid-19. The order changed the event's name to parody “I am Solo” and added entertaining factors to stray from the usual stillness of templestays. Templestays are programs that allow all interested patrons, Buddhist or not, to experience the life of Buddhist practitioners by living alongside monks in temples.

″I am Jeollo″ participants introduce themselves on April 7, the first day of the matchmaking program held at Jeondeungsa, a temple in Ganghwa County, Incheon. [YONHAP]

“I am Jeollo” begins with the bachelors’ introductions. Participants are required to submit verifiable documentation, such as identification cards and proof of employment, along with their self-introductory letters. But they identify themselves by the monikers of popular K-pop idols or actors, rather than their real names, when greeting each other.

The participants then compete in games to earn the opportunity to enjoy a Buddhist evening meal with the date of their choice. Instead of wine and dining over barbecue and alcoholic drinks, the prospective couples share conversations over vegan temple food and tea. Though lights go out at 9 p.m. at most temples, a separate well-lit space remains open to the pairs until 11 p.m.

″I am Jeollo″ participants get to know each over vegan temple food and tea. [YONHAP]

“We receive feedback from each season’s participants and apply it to the next,” Venerable Myojang said.

“We plan to pass down the practical knowledge so that temples and local government organizations all over Korea can run their own programs.”

DJ NewJeansNim and Kkotsnim: Buddhist “influencers” are in the house

A highlight of this year’s Seoul International Buddhism Expo was a now-viral dance party DJed by NewJeansNim. The fair, which took place at the Seoul Trade Exhibition and Convention Center in southern Seoul from April 4 to 7 this year, is an annual event on Buddhism.

NewJeansNim remixes his track "Rebirth In Paradise" with EDM at the Seoul International Buddhism Expo, which took place at the Seoul Trade Exhibition and Convention Center from April 4 to 7 this year. [SEOUL INTERNATIONAL BUDDHISM EXPO]

The DJ remixed his new track, “Rebirth In Paradise,” with EDM as enthusiastic visitors danced along with their hands high in the air.

NewJeansNim is the alter ego of comedian Yoon Sung-ho. Yoon, a Buddhist practitioner, received the Dharma name “Il Jin” when he was younger and a new Dharma name, “New Jin,” last year. New Jin is combination of the English word “new” and Chinese character that means “going forward.” Though the name is an homage to girl group NewJeans, it also carries the meaning of “moving forward in a new light.”

Buddhist influencer Kkotsnim brought further excitement to the fair with a lecture on “hip Buddhism.” KKotsnim, which translates to “flower monk,” is the nickname of Venerable Beomjeong — a young monk who currently resides at Hwaeomsa, a temple on Mount Jiri, and has a following of more than 30,000 people on his Instagram account where he shares his daily monastic life.

Porcelain statues of young monks are displayed at the Seoul International Buddhism Expo. [YONHAP]

Visitors lined up to buy Buddhism-themed merchandise, such as T-shirts printed with the word “enlightenment,” while a cafe run by monks currently enlisted in the military also buzzed with customers.

The event’s organizers, the Jogye Order, designated “fun Buddhism” as the exposition's theme, an effort to make Buddhism more approachable to the younger generation. Due to their efforts, more than 80 percent of the fair’s visitors were in their 20s or 30s.

“This year’s Buddhism exposition was the 12th of its kind and it was the first time so many young people joined,” said an insider who'd planned the fair.

A promotional post for the Seoul International Buddhism Expo featuring NewJeansNIm and Kkotsnim [SEOUL INTERNATIONAL BUDDHISM EXPO]

The Buddhist lifestyle: Temple eats and monk MBTI

The Buddhist diet is establishing itself as a lifestyle trend. Temple food has been linked with vegan fare to appeal to the younger generation’s appetite for healthy food. Hwaeomsa launched a vegan burger made with a soy patty and plant-based cheese last year.

Korea’s MBTI craze has also made its way into the religion, with a Buddhist MBTI called “Buddha’s mind, my mind” (translated) categorizing the personality types by those of Buddha's 10 disciples.

Templestays are steadily popular. They are especially well received by the younger generation; people in their 20s and 30s make up more than 90 percent of all templestay participants.

A vegan burger made with a soy patty and plant-based cheese is available at the Hwaeomsa, a temple on Mount Jiri. [HWAEOMSA]

The Buddhist community hasn’t been lax in its efforts to communicate with the general public, but its surge in popularity with the younger generation is a recent development.

Culture critic Jung Duk-hyun says the religion's showing off its “unexpected” side has made it fashionable.

“Buddhism, which seems [to the public] the religion most unattached to the mundane world, came out swinging with hip content,” Jung said. “Two clashing keywords coming together makes it all the more interesting.”

The fever for Buddhism will be apparent at the Yeondeunghoe, a lantern lighting festival organized annually by the Jogye Order for Buddha’s birthday. The festival is set to take place in Jung District, central Seoul from Friday to Sunday. On Sunday evening, a public dance party hosted by NewJeansNim will be on blast at the Gongpyeong intersection.

The International Buddhism Expos will also take place in Daegu in August and at Busan in September, the first time the event will take place outside of Seoul.

“Having seen the fair’s popularity, we are attempting to take it nationwide,” a spokesperson for the Jogye Order said.

BY SEO HYE-BIN, KIM JU-YEON [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr]