Little Buddhas: The Child Monks of Haein Temple

The holiday season tends to conjure up thoughts of home and comfort for those who celebrate. These thoughts manifest in different ways for everyone, but family is a common theme.

The child monks of Haein Temple in Jangseong are an unusual family. For a variety of reasons, the parents of these children have given them to the head monk at Haein Temple for safekeeping. Though predominantly male, there are three girls living amongst the group of 20. The head monk, Venerable Muhak, is their sole caregiver, and receives no money from the government for his work, because he has adopted these children as his own. He is their father as well as their mother, and the children are each other’s brothers and sisters. The temple is not an orphanage and you may not go there to adopt a child; it is a permanent home.

The young monks range in age from 3 to 18. They attend a normal public school nearby and live together on the temple grounds. In winter, they stay warm by sleeping in the temple, but they also have a two-story dormitory where they eat and study. Together they wake up every morning before 5a.m. to meditate and read teachings from the Diamond Sutra. They also are visited once a month by Kim Young-im, founder of the Korean Organization of Natural Approach (KONA) Storybook Center in Gwangju. She brings with her a small team of volunteers who help the monks improve their English skills as part of the Extensive Reading (ER) program. When they are old enough, the monks may continue with their education by going to university or seeking employment at a secular job.

When Kim first visited the temple 10 years ago, the head monk and children were living in a tent. Through generous donations and other forms of compassion, the facilities have since expanded dramatically, so that the child monks live a life with many similarities to their public school peers. They play with each other during free time, which may entailplaying with a basketball or a “dog pile” of boys being boys. The older kids generally keep to themselves, but they still look after and care fortheir younger siblings. The young children cry, the adolescents make trouble and the older ones brood; they are a very large but very normal family.

This time of year offers a period of reflection, so the temple gives thanks to the people who have found their way into their lives and for everything they have received. Family, no matter its shape, size, make-up or functionality, is the most beautiful gift we have been given. While Haein Temple may not have a non-traditional family arrangement, they offer each other the love and support we each receive from our own.

Donations of money or food can be sent to the monk directly at 농협 645025-51-013693  or 우체국 502245-01-000216 예금주해인사. Clothes, especially warm socks, gloves, mittens and hats, can be taken by Kim when she visits the temple. Contact her at konacenter@gmail.com.