When Monk Seongcheol left home: Alone, I am heading towards the eternal truth.
Preface: Where Are We Going?

Chapter 1: Fate: Where and in What Form Will We Meet Again?
My hometown, Mukgok-ri
Meeting Father Seongcheol for the first time
The experience of war that made me feel the transience of life

Chapter 2: Leaving Home: Eternal Happiness and Temporary Happiness
“What is eternal happiness?”
The night before leaving home
Grandmother's sacred maternal love
A mother's dream buried in my heart

Chapter 3 Handwritten Dharma Talk Notes: I am originally a Buddha, but I do not know it.
A practitioner must learn from poverty.
A textbook for practitioners written by the great monk
The Eight Precepts of the Capital: From Sacrifice to Asceticism

Chapter 4: The Practitioner's Day: The Beginnings of the Short-Haired Practitioners
There is no tomorrow
I remember
“Aman is a strong offering maker!”
When Emperor Shunzhi left home in Togulga
Even in dreams, if the topic is clear
Song of Enlightenment
Beware of reason

Chapter 5: Seoknamsa Temple: Serving the Tiger of Gajisan Mountain as a Teacher
Of all things, it's unavoidable
Go to Jeongjindo
The great monks' dharma talk surprised the entire public.
Balwoo offering ceremony for 100 people
Healing a friend's incurable illness through 3,000 repetitions
The secret to not falling asleep at the mortarboard
The monk who saved my life through three days of prayer
Mother, become a monk

Chapter 6: Practice: Finding the Path to Eternal Freedom
Breaking a 10-year silence, he speaks out.
The three-year struggle of the Simgeomdang, which gave its all
Bravery and diligence, don't even lean on a chair
A mission for harmony
The innocent heart of adult monks
Intoxicated by the summer flowers of Gajisan Mountain

Chapter 7 Haeinsa Temple: A Temple of Wisdom and Compassion
The first and last letter I received from the great monk
Buddhist scenery
No one dies from bowing down
Family practice

Chapter 8 Eternal Times
The bell of nirvana
My power will not move
A place beyond time and space, a place of fear
A spring day in March of the lunar calendar in 1997
From eternity to eternity
Here we erect a monument to the great monk.

“I walk alone toward the eternal truth!”
100th anniversary of the birth of Monk Seongcheol, the story of the great monk revealed for the first time by his daughter and disciple, Monk Bulpil!

From the family history of Monk Seongcheol, revealed for the first time, to the practices of Zen masters who transcended human limitations, from Monk Inhong, who warmly embraced his disciples, to the sermons of great monks who inspired the public, this book subtly reflects the history of Korean Buddhism in every page, and the beautiful fragrance of monks is deeply engraved in the book.

In this book, Monk Bulpil, the only blood relative of Monk Seongcheol, weaves together the heartbreaking family history of his grandparents and mother, the saintly lives of Zen masters such as Monk Hyanggok, Monk Beopjeon, and Monk Inhong, and the history of Korean Buddhism from the three-year retreat at Bongam Temple to the present.
In addition, it includes Buddhist sermons, letters, and photographic materials of Monk Seongcheol that were privately owned and unknown to the world, as well as Monk Seongcheol's handwritten Buddhist sermon notes that were previously published in an edited form, in their original form.
And it is also a good guidebook for beginners studying Buddhism, as it contains various materials such as “Jeungdoga,” “Shinsimmyeong,” and “Togulga,” which can serve as guides for Buddhist practitioners.

Monk Bulpil wrote this book over the past few years, his fingers growing calluses as he worked on it.
At first, I declined several publishing offers because I was not sure if it was right for a Zen monk who had lived in the mountains to publish a book. However, to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of my father, Monk Seongcheol, I could not refuse the request to share with others what I had truly practiced with the public at Seoknamsa Temple, following the great monk's teachings.
Monk Bulpil expressed his thoughts on the publication, saying, “If even one person can live a life of eternal truth by receiving the great monk’s teachings through this book, I would be grateful.”

From heartbreaking family stories to the lives of our time's prophets.

In this book, Monk Seongcheol reveals his true self, which was both most thorough and most compassionate, through the eyes of Monk Bulpil, who was the closest to him and yet the most distant.
One day, a young Bodhisattva came to visit Haeinsa Temple, where Monk Seongcheol was staying.
When I heard the story, I realized that his son, who had fought in the Vietnam War, was worried that he might not return alive.
Monk Seongcheol first told the Bodhisattva to bring rice, cook it, and offer it to the Buddha.
And when he finished his work, he ordered him to pray three thousand times at once and then leave.
At first, they were given tasks that they could do on their own, and when they were finished, they were given bigger tasks to help them build their faith.
After completing the three thousand prostrations, the Bodhisattva came out as if waiting, but later he came to Baekryeonam on his own to pray.
It is said that Bodhisattva wanted to recite the Neung-eom-ju that everyone else did, but he was worried because he couldn't read Korean. So, he called the neighborhood children to his country house and bought them candy while having them recite the Neung-eom-ju and memorized it line by line.

The confession of Monk Bulpil, who has never once called Monk Seongcheol “father,” is also heartbreaking.
Even after Monk Bulpil passed away, Monk Seongcheol was unable to attend the funeral or cremation ceremony.
This is because there was a lot of talk in the newspaper about the meaning of the name of the monk Bulpil, which means 'no need [不必]', being interpreted as having a similar meaning to that of Rahula (必), the son of Shakyamuni.
On the late afternoon of the cremation day, Monk Bulpil bowed while watching the dying flames at the crematorium above Geumganggul Cave.
It was a nine-fold bow, a promise to meet again in the past, present, and future.
Monk Bulpil pledges, “I will open my mind’s eye in the sea of ​​life and death and meet Monk Seongcheol again as an eternally free person.”

This book contains the saintly lives of great monks such as Inhong, Beopjeon, Hyanggok, Myoeom, and Beopjeong.
For example, Venerable Beopjeon, the 11th head of the Jogye Order, was called the “monk with a mortarboard” because he sat motionless in the meditation room at Haeinsa Temple.
Even during the traditional Yongmaeng Jeongjin of Haeinsa Temple, where one does not sleep for a week, the only person who did not sleep was Monk Beopjeon.
It is said that when his disciples asked him the secret to not falling asleep, Monk Beopjeon said this.
“If you think that you will die if you fall asleep, can you sleep?” This kind of thorough mental and practice made Venerable Beopjeon a great monk of our time.

The heartbreaking family history of Monk Seongcheol and Monk Bulpil is a precious story that can only be found in this book.
When Monk Bulpil decided to become a monk, his mother went to see her husband, Monk Seongcheol, to prevent her daughter from becoming a monk.
The mother, who had been waiting all day for Monk Seongcheol, who was meditating behind a barbed wire fence, breaks down the door and barges in while the monk is in the study.
Monk Seongcheol was furious and shouted at his disciples to kick him out immediately, and his mother shouted at her husband, Monk Seongcheol, “Monk, I have something to tell you!”
However, the mother was dragged out by the servants and eventually had to turn back without saying anything.
The mother, whose husband and daughter had left her, could not help but become a monk at the age of fifty-seven, perhaps because she had no choice but to live a life of Buddhahood.

To those who have lost their humanity in their hearts

Our society today may seem to be materially rich, but it is deeply mentally ill.
It is a tragedy of people who have lost their humanity in their hearts.
At the end of the book, Venerable Bulpil delivers a true message to readers by quoting Venerable Seongcheol’s dharma talk, “Let us look at ourselves properly.”
Man is originally a saved being and is already a Buddha.
However, we live our lives mistaking ourselves for scrap metal, because we cannot see ourselves as pure gold.
If you can let go of greed and use all your strength to help others, you will be able to see yourself clearly and become an enlightened Buddha.
This year is a significant year as it marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of the Venerable Seongcheol, the Buddha who came to us.
Let us reflect on the life and legacy of the great monk by listening to the vivid and trembling voice of his daughter and disciple, Monk Bulpil.