The Day Heaven Touched Me: The True Story of a Buddhist Monk’s Daughter

By Dr. Song Caris Sonn

Dr. Song Caris Sonn was born and raised in South Korea, where she went with her parents to a Buddhist Temple and worshipped idols with all her heart. Her father became a shaman and then a Buddhist monk with his own temple, and she became even more devoted to her family’s religion. She always longed to be visited by Buddha, but she never expected to be touched by heaven itself – but that is exactly what happened one day when heaven came down and touched her soul and spirit. In this joyful book of memoirs, the author chronicles her journey from being a Buddhist in her native South Korea to being a Christian living in the United States. In doing so, she reveals how to: • increase your spiritual knowledge; • understand the true condition of this world; • transform your life into a life of power; and • begin a new journey full of peace and joy.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu Publishing Services
• Release date: May 17, 2018
• ISBN: 9781483478616

Book preview

joy

CHAPTER 1

Background of the Korean Culture

Belief Systems

Economics

Age Determination

CHAPTER 1

Background of the Korean Culture

"We become not a melting pot but a beautiful mosaic.

Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings,

different hopes, different dreams."

Jimmy Carter

Abraham Lincoln said, I like to see a man proud of the country in which he lives. If President Lincoln was in front of me right now, I would speak loudly and say to him, You’re looking at one. I am very proud of the USA and of South Korea. I am proud of the USA for being the greatest country of opportunity in the world. I am also proud of my mother country South Korea, for coming such a long way from its past to what it is now.

In this chapter I will explain the past environment of South Korea, about their religious belief system, social norms, economic status, and their infrastructure before they become such a successful country. Understanding the background of their religious and social culture will help you better appreciate some of the contents of this book.

The Korean culture, just like any other culture, is largely affected and influenced by dominant belief systems—a belief in some ultimate reality even if we believe in nothingness. Where do we come from and where do we go when we die? Each one of us has a belief system or paradigm of existence. Even atheists who believe in no deity and ultimate annihilation have a form of religion. Whether someone is an atheist, agnostic, New Age, Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, Jew, Christian, or any one of the many other belief systems, these beliefs influence our thoughts and behaviors to varying degrees. They become a core part of our person and they can lead and/or follow us in our journey in this universe. Self-awareness and belief in some form of a personal ultimate reality separates us from the rest of nature. Also, in this journey, we have a free will to change our belief system.

Belief Systems

Korean Shamanism

Throughout Korean history several religious belief systems were imported, including shamanism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, and Christianity, with shamanism being the oldest and most influential. Shamanism has played a role in the development of Korean civilization from the time of the founding of Korea in 2333 B.C.E. by the legendary Dangun up until the present day. Shamanic practices have influenced the conscious and subconscious Korean psyche and lifestyle. Korean shamanism is also known as the religion of the gods and seeks to solve human problems through invoking the aid of spirits. It’s still widely practiced today.

Korean shamanism held three spirits in especially high regard, Sanshin the mountain god, Toksong the recluse god, and Chilsong the god of the seven stars. The mountain god Sanshin is the central figure in Korean shamanism and is the number one earthly god. He is the guardian of villages, providing security and peace. All of Korea’s imported religions acknowledge the importance of this mountain god, even if only in opposition to it.

The role of the shaman is to act as intermediary between a spirit entity, or gods, and human beings. The shaman has been known as a magician, medicine man, mystic and even a poet. The shaman serves to heal on many levels—physical, psychological, and spiritual. She (shamans were typically women) performs rituals in order to gain good fortune for clients, cure illnesses from evil spirits, or gain favor from the local or village gods. Shamans were usually regarded with low social esteem and were often victims of discrimination. They were considered to be abnormal.

The Blend of Korean Buddhism with Shamanism

When Buddhism was introduced to Korea in 372 C.E., shamanism was already the indigenous religion. The blend of Buddhism and shamanism became known as Korean Buddhism, although the fundamental teachings of the Buddha remained.

Korean Buddhism accepted and absorbed the three shaman spirits and even today special shrines are set aside for them in many temples. To appease the local mountain spirits, the mountain god receives particular recognition in the form of his own temple which still stands today.

In Korea, the followers of shamanism, Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism all worshipped Korea’s mythical founder Dangun as the mountain god Sanshin before all other gods.

Ancestor Memorial Ritual

Many cultures believe in an afterlife and revere their deceased ancestors. In the predominant religions of Korea, Buddhists believe in reincarnation and Confucian teaching on the afterlife is uncertain but implicit.

Most families in Korea observe the Confucian practice of honoring their ancestors on the anniversaries of their death in a ceremony called Jesa. The memorial is to show appreciation and respect for their ancestors, reaffirm the blood kinship between the living and the dead, and strengthen the ties between the living family members. These memorial rituals also reinforce the need for the shaman for communication with the afterlife, and during the ritual the descendants also pray for a good new year.

Economics

In the 1960s when I was growing up in South Korea, the country seemed to be filled with homeless people. People were living under bridges and anywhere else they could find shelter. Every day homeless people, wounded soldiers, Buddhist monks, and many others went begging for food and money. The poor were prevalent all over South Korea.

South Korea was one of the poorest countries in the world in the1950s and 60s after the Korean War (1950–1953). South Korean GDP (gross domestic product) was only 2.36 billion USD in 1961. In 2015 South Korean GDP was 1,378 Billion USD and ranked number 11 in the world economy. In comparison North Korea in 2015 had a GDP of 17 billion USD and ranked number 113 out of 211 countries (United Nations statistics December 2016).

Deep Darkness Covered South Korea

After the Korean War a substantial number of South Korean homes had no electricity. The country was very dark at night, similar to how North Korea looks now at night from satellite images.

Most people used wood for cooking. Only people in the city were rich enough to use charcoal. The mountainsides in South Korea were stripped of trees and looked brown and empty, very different from today’s green tree-filled mountains.

Diseases Prevalent

In addition to the Korean people suffering from hunger and emotional wounds after the Korean War, sickness was also prevalent due to the harsh living conditions and a shortage of skilled physicians and medications. I saw many people suffering and dying from tuberculosis.

People were also dying from other diseases and life expectancy was below sixty years of age. For these reasons Koreans had a special celebration called Hwangap on their sixty-first birthday. The two most celebrated birthdays in a Korean’s lifetime is at one year old and sixty-one years old—celebrations of survival and longevity.

Age Determination

A Korean’s age is determined differently than in Western cultures. When Koreans give their ages, they typically use their age as determined by the Korean lunar calendar. The Korean new year usually comes in late January to late February.

Note: It is important to determine the age of a person you meet so you can address them with the proper courtesy. This becomes difficult when you meet someone close to your own age and therefore you need to exchange age counts. (For example, if you meet a girl on the street and she is slightly older than you, you would address her as older sister as an act of obedience.)

The Korean zodiac is based on a twelve-year lunar calendar cycle, with each year represented by an animal, namely: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep or goat, monkey, rooster, dog, and pig. Each animal symbolizes a characteristic, and being born under any of these signs supposedly brings with it some of its characteristics—some better than others.

Koreans do not add a year on their actual birthday, but rather when the zodiac year changes. On New Year’s Day, Seol Nal, all Koreans add one more year to their ages and celebrate by eating rice cake soup known as deokgook.

Also, Koreans count the nine months in the womb as one year of age. Therefore, if a baby was born on the last day of the zodiac year, it would be one-year old and then on the next day with the new zodiac year the baby would add one more year and be two years old on its second day out of the womb.

As an example, I was born on December 2, 1954 in Korean lunar month. The Korean lunar new year was 29 days later. Therefore, only after 29 days I was already two years old.

The point is that even outside of the Korean and Asian formal religious belief systems, ancient astrological and shamanistic practices are deeply imbedded into the culture through everyday practices, even for something as commonplace as figuring out one’s age.

CHAPTER 2

Family History

Family Experiences

Hundred Days Mountain Prayer

Father Becomes a Shaman

Father Becomes a Buddhist Monk

Duk Yoo Sa Buddhist Temple

CHAPTER 2

Family History

You don’t choose your family. They are God’s gift to you, as you are to them.

Desmond Tutu

Family Experiences

I was born into a family that believed everything from Buddhism to shamanism to whatever was