Celebrity Buddhist monk's secular life causes stir

Popular Buddhist monk and author Haemin Sunim / Yonhap

By Park Han-sol

Haemin Sunim, 46, a Korean-born U.S. citizen, has sparked debate online after his upscale home located near Seoul's iconic Mount Nam and room with a scenic view were made public on a TV show last week. His "privately owned" residence and his secular lifestyle have raised eyebrows as they were seen as the opposite of the philosophy he has preached in public over the past years ― non-possession.

An ensuing news report threw oil on the fire by claiming the Buddhist monk sold a building he owned to a temple allegedly under his real name Ju Bong-seok, raking in millions of won in profit.

The School for Broken Hearts, a nonprofit counseling center Haemin founded in 2015, has been under attack for offering programs that do not seem to align with Buddhist doctrine, including past life regression hypnosis, tarot card readings and even arranging blind dates.

Ven. Haemin became a celebrity Buddhist monk after his several books, including "The Things You Can See Only When You Slow Down" (2012) and "Love for Imperfect Things" (2016), made best-seller lists.

Together with his educational background ― he studied at U.C. Berkeley, Harvard and Princeton University Divinity School ― his frequent TV appearances and best-selling books made him a popular mentor for wounded souls. He has actively engaged with his fans through social media with over one million total followers.

With an increase in his media exposure, more of his personal side was revealed. His wealth and business acumen ― he was involved in the launch of meditation mobile app Kokkiri in 2019 ― have made the public suspicious about his integrity as a Buddhist monk.

Criticism mounted on the internet. One social media user wrote, "Religious people are not trustworthy. Pastors, Buddhist monks. They all are corrupt." Another wrote "I knew he would be like that when he appeared on TV too often."

Ven. Haemin's non-traditional teachings of Buddhism pitted him against fellow Buddhist monks.

In a now-deleted Facebook post, another monk Hyon Gak Sunim criticizes Haemin, calling him "a performer and an actor." / Captured from Facebook

Hyon Gak Sunim, a well-known American Buddhist monk and author of the 1999 best-seller "From Harvard to Hwagyesa" who came to Korea in the late 1990s to practice Buddhism but later became disillusioned with the Jogye Order and moved to Europe in 2016, disparaged his fellow practitioner on Facebook.

"He is just an actor. He is a performer," he said, adding that Haemin is simply a "thief" and a "parasite" who does not know Buddha's teachings at all and is simply selling them for his own benefit.

After facing backlash, Haemin Sunim issued an apology on social media, Sunday, announcing he will withdraw from all public activities and return to a monastic life.

"I repent to all those who were hurt and disappointed by this incident. From today, I will stop all current activities and return to the temple to study Buddha's teachings once more, devoting myself to prayer and practice," he said.

Although Ven. Hyon Gak stated a day after Haemin's apology that he had a 70-minute telephone conversation "full of love and mutual respect," public criticism has not ceased regarding Haemin's qualification as a true monk due to his commercial, profit-seeking activities.

"I was baffled to see you as an individual who is vastly different from what I pictured as a Zen monk. People will become more easily angered (seeing your lifestyle), especially in these trying times. You would have at least stayed off of the public radar if you hadn't made that TV appearance," one Internet user wrote.

Another stated, "What you are doing certainly does not deserve criticism if we think of you as a businessman, but the problem is your status as a monk. This matters especially because your words of wisdom became more effective to the public in the first place due to your position."

Park Gwang-seo, founder and representative of the nongovernmental organization Buddhist Solidarity for Reform, echoed this sentiment. "His lifestyle as a monk is problematic," he told The Korea Times. "Many Buddhist monks withdraw from secular activities and focus on self-discipline and practice so that when they reach a certain level of maturity, they can begin to help others and society. But his nontraditional background of coming directly from the States after teaching religion without much monastic experience of practicing self-discipline does not quite align with that."

Park went on to say that a monk living in a luxurious, scenic place without focusing on religious practices amid the current national housing crisis can frustrate people.

"Strictly speaking, monks should not possess their own property, but even when they do, especially in some cases of monks taking an 'unofficial break' in a home owned by them or their close ones, it's a hidden phenomenon away from the public eye. But in Haemin's case, it was blatantly obvious, which won't be viewed favorably."

But some who defended Haemin emphasized he broke down the laymen's prejudice of what a monk should be and brought them a new understanding of Buddhism. "Haemin is the only monk who became famous for writing best-sellers, doing lectures, creating a mobile app and engaging in social media while practicing Buddhism," one social media user wrote.

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