New Perspectives on Modern Korean Buddhism by Hwansoo Ilmee Kim and Jin Y. Park (review)

Abstract

In the introduction, editor Hwansoo Kim states that this book is a sequel to Makers of Modern Korean Buddhism, published in 2010. That book has served as a foundational work for many scholars, like me, who began their academic study of modern Korean Buddhism in the last decade. I believe this new work can serve the same purpose for the next generation of scholars, while also being a must-read for senior scholars in the field. Wonderfully detailed but still accessible, it covers a broad range of topics, importantly building off, and occasionally overcoming, the themes of “colonialism, nationalism, and modernity” that have dominated scholarship on modern Korean Buddhism. Turning their focus to “contemporary religious practice, gender issues, ethical concerns about clerical marriage and scandals, and engagement with secular society,” the authors’ works reflect the changing dynamics of the field. Indeed, many of the authors have also published their own seminal books in the field in recent years. In Part I, Jin Y. Park and Mark A. Nathan look at two important figures in modern Korean Buddhism: Hyeam Sŏnggwan [Hyeam Seonggwan] (1920– 2001) and Paek Yongsŏng [Baek Yongseong] (1864–1940). Hyeam is a “relatively unknown figure in English-language scholarship,” but his life and teachings reflect both the institutional and philosophical changes in Korean Buddhism during the twentieth century. Park attempts to relate Hyeam’s core Zen Buddhist beliefs, such as “freedom” and “doubt,” as well as his steadfast hwadu meditation practice, to the lives of ordinary laypeople. Although Park’s Book Notes