Probably the most common cliché you’ll read in any travel guide about Seoul is that it’s a city of contrasts, a city of old and new. One of the spots where this is most apparent is up the small hill behind Bongeunsa, just behind the standing Mireuk Buddha.
Wake Up and Laugh! 
Below the giant Mireuk statue are a few of the temple’s structures contrasted in the distance by Seoul’s financial district, including the World Trade Center and COEX, Korea’s largest mall. When the temple was first founded, still a far distance from the city’s gates traveling by foot or ox-drawn cart, I imagine there was little more than trees surrounding the grounds. But, as the Buddha taught, the nature of all phenomena is transitory.
Aside from the fact that I just really like this picture (and spent 3 hours Photoshop-ping it this morning^^), it holds a special significance for my Dharma Brothers and myself, as we usually gathered here after the Saturday afternoon Dharma talks, and forged the links that bonded our Sangha. It’s also where, a few weeks after this picture was taken, I first saw my wife (but that’s another story…). After evening chants and bows, I usually climbed the path leading up to this spot to sit for a while, take some photos as the clouds passed, the sunset faded, or, in this case, as the moon rose along the horizon.
You Photoshop your pictures!!??? I’m … I’m… well!… I’m thrilled and relieved! 😀
haha, I’ll tell you what, moons just don’t come out that nicely with a wide angle lens, no matter how good you are! ^^
The way I see it is, there’s hardly a single aspect of making a photo that doesn’t require some processing, usually I just tweak the contrast, this one I went fully into…
Thank you so much Joseph for this beautiful picture of a very special place.
PS, for anyone that missed it, much more from me on Bongeunsa here:
https://wakeupandlaugh.wordpress.com/2010/06/17/bongeunsa-and-a-thousand-days-of-prayer/
Marcus _/\_
Thank you for putting the time into this, Joseph!
I really enjoy it!
The hardest part is usually just deciding which photo to use! ^^
Yet another great Sunday photo! ॐ
Thank you! 佛