인곡당 법장 대종사의 출가와 수행 - 보살행 실천자로서의 삶 -

초록

This paper examines the life and practice of Venerable Beopjang (1941- 2005), the 31st Supreme Patriarch of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism, focusing on his monastic ordination, training, and consistent embodiment of the Bodhisattva path. Beopjang was ordained at Sudeoksa Monastery in 1958 and cultivated his practice in a traditional Seon monastic environment. In his early years, he balanced meditation and temple duties, laying the foundations for his life as a practitioner. After expanding his activities to the institutional sphere of the Jogye Order in 1981, he pursued the ideal of benefiting both the self and others as the core of his spiritual life and actively engaged in various altruistic endeavors. His major undertakings included the reform of prison chaplaincy, Buddhist education for children, the organ donation movement, and the establishment of welfare systems for elderly monastics, reflecting his dedication to socially marginalized groups and the neglected within the monastic community. In particular, his lifetime organ donation pledge and actions are seen as a contemporary realization of the Buddhist tradition of self-sacrificial giving. His Bodhisattva practice was not mere charity, but rather a form of engaged cultivation grounded in the Mahāyāna principles of same-body compassion and nonduality. This study highlights how Beopjang's practices and engagement were not abstract ideals, but rather lived expressions of the Bodhisattva path. It also offers insights into the model of spiritual leadership and community orientation that Korean Buddhism should aspire to in the contemporary era.

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