More photos and story (and audio) of the lost little Buddha and its Korean temple home in Carmel Valley. | Arts & Culture | montereycountynow.com

According to temple literature, in the late '60s, South Korean developer and philanthropist Hang Sang Lee gave away his $100 million dollar fortune in Korea and moved to the U.S. to pursue his practice of Buddhism more purely. He purchased 7 1/2 acres of land in Carmel's Robinson Canyon and in the early '70s built on it the Carmel Sambosa Buddhist Center and Temple ("sambosa" means "three jewels"), which opened Jan. 28, 1973 (pictured here) as the first Korean Buddhist temple in the U.S. He also built a residential house and guest cabin on the property, which the Carmel River runs through.▲

The front view of the original temple. The long-missing statuette Kwan Yun is thought to have resided inside one of the three statues inside. Today there is a circular walking path where this temple used to be that allows for barefoot walking meditation and contemplation, though the more one walks the path the more physical discomfort the walker will feel. ▲

From the temple literature: "The Great Korean Zen Master Chung Hwa received his ordination under the guidance of preceptor Geumta at Backyang monastery in 1947 at the age of 24...In 1985, at the age of 64, the master finally came out of his long secluded practice and started to give dharma talks to public. Throughout his monastic life, he practiced almost never lying down and having one meal a day." He was the master of the current temple abbott, Venerable Dae Man Sunim. ▲

A Korean newspaper clipping of the mysterious 1988 fire that burned down the temple. ▲

On Labor Day 2014, retired couple Susan Bryan and Frank Adams found this object propped among the roots of a tree in the woodsy Strawberry Hill portion of San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Photo courtesy of Susan Bryan▲

Another view of the found object. Inside were scrolls with Korean, Chinese and English writing, and a pouch with gold and jade earrings. Photo courtesy of Susan Bryan▲

After Bryan and Adams gave the statuette back to the temple, it was sent to Korea for restoration. It had been damaged and worn. Here it is in the restoration facility. ▲

Today, the Carmel Sambosa's temple is housed in the former residential quarters (pictured here) off Carmel Valley's Robinson Canyon Road. ▲

The temple is a pilgrimage site for Korean Buddhists, a place of teaching and meditation. Despite the iconography like statues and offerings, chants and rituals, Buddhists do not consider their practice a religion. ▲

Temple abbott Dae Man Sunim ("sunim" is a designation of respect, not a name) inspects one of the lotus flower pots with his student and English-language interpreter Sooyeon "Sebi" Lee. The philosophy, according to Lee, is that even submerged in murky waters, a beautiful lotus flower can emerge.▲

The original gong under the pagoda still stands. The grassy knoll behind it is where the temple once sat before it burned down. ▲

Inside the residential temple is Thanka art, which tells an allegorical part of the story of the Buddha. ▲

A stone Buddha statue in the garden relents to age and the elements. ▲

Venerable Dae Man Sunim insists on guests enjoying tea before talking. He pours it in a casual but practiced ritualistic way. ▲

The public Eye-Opening Ceremony, or Chun Am Sik, for the Kwon Yun statuette from last Sunday morning. About 80 people sat cross-legged on the temple floor to observe the four monks who traveled from Korea to perform the rarely seen ritual of music, dance, offerings and chants. ▲

The Venerable Beop Woo dancing the achingly slow Hoesimgok ("Song of Repentance") which promotes "filial duty, service and devotion to parents" and ended the Eye-Opening Ceremony. He is considered a national treasure in Korea. ▲

After the Chun Am Sik ceremony, a regular service commenced in which temple-goers were invited to leave offerings at an altar to honor departed family. ▲

Colorful banners created a kind of curtain between the altar and food offerings, devoted to departed family, and the rest of the temple. ▲

The Menlo Park couple, (from right) rocket scientist Frank Adams and food critic Susan Bryan, who found the Kwon Yun statuette while picnicking in Golden Gate Park on Labor Day, stand next to the temple's abbott, Venerable Dae Man Sunim.▲

Susan Bryan and Frank Adams created a picture book from the adventure-mystery story she and her husband stumbled onto (and solved). Pictured here is the page with the gold and jade fish earrings and scrolls that were found inside the Kwon Yun statuette. ▲

The view of the backyard gardens and ponds from inside the temple.▲

Kwon Yun, an embodiment of Buddha, restored and home again.▲

Walter Ryce

Mar 26, 2015

"We want to share our joy in unexpectedly recovering a religious statute that was part of our founding but has been missing for [possibly] forty years."

That was by way of invitation to an Eye-Opening Ceremony for said missing statue, whose name is Kwon Yun and is an embodiment of the Buddha. The story of the Korean Buddhist temple in Carmel Valley and the statue's journey from being lost to finding its way back to its home there, has just been published in the print Weekly today, as well as online here. Start there.

The photos here elaborate on the background, the ceremony, and the special and secluded retreat called the Carmel Sambosa Buddhist Center and Temple.

Here is an audio clip of what part of the ceremony sounded like.

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