A Dharma Talk That Called the Form Realm “a World of Light”
I examine and criticize what Jinje, a former Supreme Patriarch of the Jogye Order, said in his 2022 summer-retreat Dharma talk. The video’s thumbnail labeled three worlds as follows: the desire realm was “a world made of desire,” the form realm “a world made of light,” and the formless realm “a world without light.” Someone unfamiliar with Buddhism may not immediately see the problem. Anyone who has studied even a little Buddhism, however, can recognize a serious error merely by understanding the five aggregates in the Heart Sutra.
Buddhist cosmology commonly speaks of the realms of desire, form, and formlessness. We may set aside for the moment the description of the desire realm. The problem is the literal interpretation of the form realm as a world of light, followed by the claim that the formless realm lacks light. Here, form does not mean only light or color.
The Form Aggregate and Visible Form Must Be Distinguished
What does form mean in “form, feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness”? It is neither light nor color in the narrow sense. When mind and matter are distinguished, form is the material side: material shape and what can be encountered through the senses. It is not limited to what the eye sees. The word in “form realm” must be understood in this context.
Buddhist terminology also uses the same word for visible objects. In the list “form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and mental objects,” form refers to what vision encounters and can therefore be related to light or color. The same character does not carry an identical scope in every context. One must distinguish the form aggregate from visible form among the six sense objects. Anyone who has done elementary study for the Heart Sutra should know this.
Yet a man who served as Supreme Patriarch and remains head of the Palgong Monastic Community restricted the form realm to vision and called it a world made of light, while presenting himself as awakened. I call this an explanation by someone who has not studied Buddhism at all. The form realm is not a world of light. You ignorant man. Buddhism must not be transmitted falsely, you sham monk. What can a person who has not studied Buddhism teach, and what has he awakened to? My language in the video is harsh because this is not a trivial slip but a basic distortion delivered under the authority of a major Dharma talk.
Why Did Nobody Challenge the Error There?
The larger problem is not one person’s error. While the head monk gave this explanation during the opening of the summer retreat, nobody listening below said, “Venerable sir, it is an error to call the form realm a world made of light.” What is right must be called right, and what is not must be called wrong. Buddhism is not cowed silence before authority. It requires doubt, questioning, and the courage to identify error.
If a high monk claiming awakening gives a talk full of errors and everyone simply listens, how can that be acceptable? A structure in which the titles of Supreme Patriarch and monastic head prevent questions contradicts Buddhism itself. If even the Buddha’s words and scriptures are to be examined, the authority of a living monk must not shut down inquiry.
The Responsibility of Buddhist Broadcasting
BBS Buddhist Broadcasting uploaded the talk to YouTube and even placed “a world made of light” in its thumbnail. It handles Buddhist terms throughout the year. Did nobody in the editing and publication process find the phrase strange? Someone should at least have checked it and said that the erroneous explanation could not be published unchanged.
The speaker, the monks who listened, and the people who edited and uploaded the broadcast all let the error pass. From where to where does the failure extend? This goes beyond one individual’s lack of knowledge. It reveals a Buddhist institutional structure in which questioning and correction do not function before authority.
One Who Is Not Awakened Must Not Pretend to Be
I have repeatedly said that Jinje is not awakened, and I will not repeat the entire criticism here. The final point is clear: even if one’s mouth is crooked, one’s words must be straight. People must be able to object on the spot when something is wrong. Being crushed by authority is not Buddhism.
One who is not awakened must not pretend to be awakened. Jinje, step down immediately as head of the Palgong Monastic Community at Donghwasa.
This article was edited by AI solely from the supplied video captions and description. No external sources were used.