To go forth and become a monk is not a trivial matter. Its purpose is neither to seek bodily comfort nor to be warmly clothed and fully fed, nor to seek honor and wealth.

Rather, its purpose is to escape the cycle of birth and death, to sever one’s affections, to walk in the bright wisdom of the Buddha and to save sentient beings by showing them the way out of the threefold world.

Baru gongyang, the monastic communal meal, is a Buddhist practice that promotes solemnity and pensiveness.

Each one of us is different in the way we have lived, as well as our appearance and surrounding environment. Therefore, even in preparing a vegetable dish, our own ideas and habits are added to it, while generous consideration for others and the community are lacking. Thus, we should get rid of stubbornness and the concept of self; we should put others ahead of ourselves and use good sense and wisdom when preparing food.

Black trumpet mushroom soup

Ingredients

- 1/2 daikon radish

- 20 grams dried black

- trumpet mushrooms

- 3 dried shiitake mushrooms

- 3 dried stalks from a tree of heaven (ailanthus altissima or Chinese sumac)

- 5 dried red peppers, 3 large dried scallion roots

- 5 pieces of ginger

- 2 tablespoons soy sauce

Directions

1. Place daikon radish, black trumpet mushrooms, stalks from a tree of heaven, peppers, large scallion roots and ginger in a pot.

2. Add water and bring to a boil. Keep boiling over medium heat until the radish is tender.

2. Remove tree of heaven stalks, peppers, large scallion roots and ginger.

3. Add soy sauce to your taste. To relieve cold symptoms, add bean sprouts to the soup.

Stir-fried young green peppers

Ingredients

- 100 grams young green peppers

- cooking oil

Seasoning

- 2 tablespoons soy sauce

- 3 tablespoons water

- 2 tablespoons crushed roasted sesame seed

Directions

1. Stir fry young green peppers until lightly cooked.

2. Combine soy sauce and water, and mix with the cooked peppers.

3. Lastly, sprinkle with crushed, roasted sesame seeds.

Provided by Cultural Corps of Korean Buddhism

Temple food is the food of ascetics. They express gratitude for all forms of life and wish peace for the whole world. The Cultural Corps of Korean Buddhism operates the Korean Temple Food Center, where guests can learn and experience temple food. -- Ed.