Kim Woo-young Gwanggyo Column Could This Tree Be the Walking Staff of Venerable Master Jingak from Goryeo?

At 33 Gwanggyo-san-ro 518-gil, Jang-an District, Suwon City (cadastral address: 130 Sanggwanggyo-dong). In the courtyard of a private residence in Jungganmal, Sanggwanggyo-dong, stands an ancient zelkova tree estimated to be approximately 540 years old.

Designated as Suwon City Protected Tree No. 3 in 1982, this tree reaches a height of 12 meters and a circumference of 4.5 meters. As will be discussed later, unlike the zelkova tree by the road in Hagyeongkyo-dong, which is well-known among citizens and hikers of Gwanggyo-san, few Suwon residents are aware of this tree's existence. This is despite being a remarkable 130 years older than the Hagyeongkyo-dong zelkova tree, which is 410 years old. The reason is that it stands in a small village removed from main roads with relatively few visitors.

Shamans regard this zelkova tree as their village guardian tree, and old legends are associated with it. According to the story, long ago, a Buddhist monk on the way to Changseong Temple on Gwanggyo-san mountain briefly rested here and left behind his walking staff. After a considerable time passed, when he returned, the staff had sprouted. Upon witnessing this, the monk planted the staff in that location.

The tree grew vigorously and became the village guardian tree, the legend says. Interestingly, if one follows the path through Jungganmal alongside this tree up the mountain toward Gwanggyo-san, the site of Changseong Temple appears. Given that monks likely traveled this route to visit Changseong Temple, this narrative carries considerable credibility.

However, according to another account, the monk in question was Venerable Master Jingak, Cheonhui (眞覺國師 千熙: 1307~1385) from the late Goryeo period.

Venerable Master Jingak Cheonhui was an eminent Buddhist scholar of the Goryeo era who reformed Buddhist policy centered on the Avatamsaka School. Above Banghwa Suryudae Pavilion in Suwon City stands Stele for Venerable Master Jingak at Suwon Changseong Temple Site, designated as Treasure No. 14. This stele records his life and accomplishments, with its inscription composed by Yi Saek, a great literary figure of that era. However, Changseong Temple has long since been ruined, leaving only its archaeological site today. The stele that was abandoned at the Changseong Temple site has been relocated to its current location at Maehyang-dong next to Banghwa Suryudae Pavilion within Suwon Hwaseong Fortress.

Venerable Master Jingak traveled to the Yuan dynasty at age 57, where he studied Seon Buddhism for two years before returning to Goryeo to become a National Master. The title National Master means "teacher of the nation," a position conferred only upon monks of high prestige, profound spiritual practice, and moral virtue. Venerable Master Jingak attained nirvana at Changseong Temple on Gwanggyo-san.

Changseong Temple was an Avatamsaka School temple during the Goryeo period, but the dates of its founding and closure remain unknown. However, in the "Augmented Survey of the Geography of the Eastern Nations—Suwon Prefecture, Temples Section," there is a record stating: "Changseong Temple exists on Gwanggyo-san mountain. There is a stele inscription for the Goryeo monk Cheonhui (千熙) composed by Yi Saek." Additionally, in "Beomugao" produced in 1799, there is mention that "what was previously in ruins has now been repaired" (故廢今修).

Regarding this, Han Jeong-gyou, Director of the Hwaseong Research Society, estimates based on the "Map of Suwon Prefecture" created in 1872 and records from "Gijeon Yeongji" Volume 1 "Suwon City Gazetteer" compiled around 1894 that "Changseong Temple likely closed in the late 19th century."

The temple site still retains stone platforms, foundation stones, stone steps, stone walls, and roof tile fragments. From 2014 to 2016, Suwon City commissioned Han Shin University Museum to conduct three years of academic excavation at the Changseong Temple site. The excavation results showed the site to be a significant cultural property with considerable architectural research value as a Goryeo-era temple. Consequently, in 2017, it was designated as Gyeonggi-do Historic Site No. 225. In its designation notice, Gyeonggi-do stated: "Changseong Temple was the place where Venerable Master Jingak Cheonhui of the late Goryeo period attained nirvana and was selected as a Jabok Temple (a temple dedicated to praying for the welfare of the royal family), suggesting its substantial scale and high status. As a Goryeo-era temple, it possesses considerable cultural heritage value with architectural research significance."

Skepticism exists regarding the connection between the Sanggwanggyo-dong zelkova tree and Venerable Master Jingak. The argument is that the time period of Venerable Master Jingak's activities and the age of this tree do not align. Given this tree's age of approximately 540 years, even calculated from when Venerable Master Jingak attained nirvana (1392), that would be over 620 years ago.

However, this is merely legend. Therefore, verifying the facts holds little significance. Moreover, while 80 years may seem long in human terms, from the perspective of a tree that has lived for over 500 years, such a span is not particularly extended.

In any case, the Sanggwanggyo zelkova tree receives such care from residents that legends of this sort have become attached to it. Shamans regard this tree as the village guardian of Gwanggyo-san.

As time passes, many people today dismiss such practices as superstition and avoid or disapprove of them. Yet reverence for these ancient guardian trees has not disappeared. The residents of Sanggwanggyo-dong, who have lived alongside this tree, still hold such feelings.