Mahayon Hermitage

Coordinates: 38°38′25″N 128°05′07″E﻿ / ﻿38.6403°N 128.0854°E﻿ / 38.6403; 128.0854

Mahayeon Hermitage (마하연터, 摩訶衍址) was a Korean Buddhist hermitage, located at Naegeumgang-ri, Kumgang-gun, Kangwon-do, North Korea. This structure was located at an altitude of 846m, the highest point of the Manpok-dong Valley of Mount Geumgang and was a branch hermitage of the Yujomsa temple.[1]

## Contents

* 1 Paintings (Joseon period)
* 2 Japanese colonial period
* 3 Destruction
* 4 References
* 5 Sources

## Paintings (Joseon period)[edit]

Mahayeon was depicted by several Korean painters. Among them:

* Kim Hong-do <마하연 (摩訶衍)> as #43 in the 《Geumgang Four Counties Album 금강사군첩(金剛四郡帖)》, 1788
* Kim Ha-jong, <마하연 (摩訶衍)> as #17 of the 《Haesando Album》, 1815

## Japanese colonial period[edit]

The #12 (1932) of the "Joseon historical site walk" contains several views of each temple around Mt. Geumgang, Mahayeon among them.[2] Moreover, the area became a touristic destination, leading to the publication of illustrated guides.[3] These pictures taken during the Japanese colonial period are precious since many of these buildings are no longer extant.

## Destruction[edit]

During the Korean war, the Bombing of North Korea dropped a total of 635,000 tons of bombs, including 32,557 tons of napalm, on Korea.[4] "Every installation, facility, and village in North Korea [became] a military and tactical target", and the orders given to the Fifth Air Force and Bomber Command was to "destroy every means of communications and every installation, factory, city, and village".[5] As a result, this hermitage has been destroyed by the US bombings of the area.[1]

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b Jogye 2011.
2. ^ Choson walk 1932.
3. ^ Tokuda 1930.
4. ^ Armstrong 2010.
5. ^ Conway-Lanz 2014.

## Sources[edit]

* Sekino Tadashi (1916–1935). 朝鮮總督府, Japanese Governor of Korea (ed.). 朝鮮古蹟図譜 [Joseon historical sites walk]. 15 volumes.

* Tokuda Tomijirō (徳田富次郎) (1930). Mt. Kumgang of 12,000 peaks: Korea. Tokuda Photo Studio Main Store.

* Korean Buddhist Jogye Order Headquarters, ed. (2011). 북한의 전통사찰 A B 세트 [North Korean traditional temples]. ISBN 9788996665908.. 10 volumes, 2800 pages. What is said about Jeongyangsa can be accessed through this Naver link.

* Armstrong, Charles K. (2010-12-20). "The Destruction and Reconstruction of North Korea, 1950-1960" (PDF). The Asia-Pacific Journal. 8 (51): 1. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
* Conway-Lanz, Sahr (4 August 2014). "The Ethics of Bombing Civilians After World War II: The Persistence of Norms Against Targeting Civilians in the Korean War". The Asia-Pacific Journal. 12 (37).