Jinul

Jinul (1158–1210) was a Korean Buddhist monk and teacher who reshaped Goryeo Seon through study, meditation, and monastic reform. He founded the community at Suseonsa, later known as Songgwangsa.

Seon Buddhism: The Korean tradition of Chan Buddhism, emphasizing meditation and direct insight alongside Buddhist study. Jinul’s teaching became a defining force in this Korean Buddhist tradition.
Sudden enlightenment and gradual cultivation: A Buddhist approach in which awakening is sudden, while the habits and conduct shaped by delusion require gradual cultivation. Jinul used this pairing to reconcile direct insight with continued practice.
Goryeo: A Korean dynasty that ruled from 918 to 1392 and supported a powerful Buddhist establishment. Jinul’s life and institutional reforms unfolded under Goryeo rule.
The Complete and Sudden Attainment of Buddhahood: A Buddhist treatise by Jinul presenting a path that joins sudden awakening with subsequent cultivation. This work gives a concise account of the framework that shaped his teaching.
Chan Buddhism: A Chinese Buddhist tradition centered on meditation and direct realization, transmitted to Korea as Seon. Its teachings supplied the broader tradition that Jinul adapted in Korea.
Ganhwa Seon: A Korean Seon method that concentrates on a hwadu, often the unresolved question associated with a phrase. Jinul later made hwadu inquiry a central method for practice.
Suseonsa: The monastic community founded by Jinul at Mount Jogye, later associated with Songgwangsa Temple. Jinul gathered a disciplined community here to pursue collective reform and practice.
Secrets on Cultivating the Mind: A treatise by Jinul explaining the mind’s nature and the practice of awakening and cultivation. Its guidance helped transmit Jinul’s approach beyond the Suseonsa community.
Korean Buddhism: The forms of Buddhism that developed in Korea through interaction with Chinese traditions and local institutions. Jinul’s reforms addressed divisions within this broader religious landscape.
Hwadu meditation: A meditation practice that sustains inquiry into a short phrase or question rather than seeking a discursive answer. This practice gives concrete form to Jinul’s later emphasis on investigating a hwadu.

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Buddhism in KoreaRelated: His reforms remain central to Korean Seon’s identity and training.