Articles > Bunking Down with the Monks

Temple retreats have become the latest “it” holidays for South Koreans seeking solitude and serenity within the confines of nature. Indeed, about three dozen Buddhist temples offer such stays in the country.

While I have no desire to convert to Buddhism, I learned that what the religion lacks in matzo-ball soup and brisket, it more than makes up for in peace and tranquility. How do I know this? I recently escaped go-go Seoul for a two-day stay at Haein Temple, a World Heritage Site in the Kaya Mountains.

When I arrive, I'm told to ditch my bag and slip into monk gear. Much mugging for the camera ensues. Haein is a working hermitage — 200 monks live and study there, surrounded by cherry blossoms, wind chimes and mountain streams.

Our monk guide, Ilgan, leads us in prayer and meditation, teaching us the moves alongside other monks, who view us just as curiously as we view them. Then there's a call to chanting, as oversized drums beat in the centre of the temple grounds. More prayers, a ceremonial tea ceremony, lessons in ink-block printing, a simple vegetarian meal of rice, kelp and various preparations of tofu, then lights out at 9:30 p.m. We tourist monks sleep en masse on radiant-heated floors.

The fluorescent lights flare up at 3 a.m. Are we having fun yet?

Out into the dark cold, we stumble down a path, arriving at a circular stone bench in a thicket. We meditate in silence for about an hour, some of us using this time to perfect a new skill: sleeping upright.

Rice gruel for breakfast, a tour of more lovely hermitages with their earthen tiles and gently sloping eaves, then it's back into our street clothes, and we are out of here.

Clearly, a temple stay is not for everyone. These short retreats are cultural experiences more than opportunities to find inner peace. Still, it's a time to unwind, and a time to think. If you're not ready for it, it won't be ready for you. With this in mind, here are some other destinations around the world that offer religious retreats focusing on personal and spiritual wellness.

New Camaldoli Hermitage California
Straddling the Santa Lucia Mountains near Big Sur, this Catholic hermitage houses about 20 Benedictine monks who live in seclusion. Two types of accommodations are available for both men and women, who take up to a week out to pray, suntan and hike the mountainsides. The retreat house features private rooms, each with a half-bath and personal garden overlooking the Pacific, as well as a shower room and common kitchen from which mostly veggie meals are retrieved and eaten in isolation. There are also five trailer hermitages located along the hillside below for even greater solitude. So don't come a-knockin', even if these trailers aren't rockin'.

But there's food to sweeten the deal: The monks are known for their brandy-dipped fruitcakes ($34). They're made “from the finest California raisins, walnuts, dates and Georgia pecans, baked to perfection, hand-dipped in grape brandy, and aged for several months.”

Mt. Koyasan, Japan
A pilgrimage to the beatific Wakayama region of Japan offers temple lodgings for both religious visitors and area day-trippers. About 50 temples offer accommodations, called shukubo, near the foot of Mount Koyasan. There are forested temple routes here dating back 1,200 years, linking sacred sites such as Koyasan to the cities of Nara and Kyoto. Pacific views abound. The temples blend Shinto, a made-in-Japan religion rooted in nature, with a good dose of Buddhism.

Rooms range from simple to luxurious, and meals are creative vegetarian fare, such as yam slices presented as faux sashimi. This is a nature-swathed area ripe for exploration; a visit is more about the mountains and Japanese gardens than prayer and chanting. And it's more about the monks serving you than you pretending to be a monk. You don't even need to abstain from alcohol. Hot Japanese sake called hannya-yu (enlightening hot water) and beer may be enjoyed with temple dinners.

Huntsville Trappist Monastery Utah
The Trappist-Cistercian monastery north of Salt Lake City is all about silent reflection for male visitors, Catholic or not, who may partake of retreats of up to three days. Rooms are private, with shared bathrooms and showers. Women who wish to retreat can use the family guest house when it is not occupied by relatives of monks. Retreatants may join the traditional services, which usually start at 3:30 a.m. and run throughout the day. Individual guests arrange their own time for prayer, reading, hiking or resting. Priests of the community are available for counselling and for the sacrament of reconciliation. And the monastery follows the words of St. Benedict in his Rule for Monks: “When they live by the labour of their hands, as our fathers and the apostles did, then they are really monks.” The happy results include fine honey, which locals think is the bee's knees. The monks also raise beef cattle as part of a farming operation, and grow alfalfa, barley and hay to feed them. Any grain the cattle don't eat is sold, along with the honey, to support the monks and their charitable endeavours.

Zen Mountain Monastery, New York
Professional spiritual practitioners come here — to a 100-hectare forest preserve in New York's Catskills — to engage the Buddhist teachings through Zen monastic training. Forget about Henny Youngman and Dirty Dancing . The idea here is to partake of Wilderness Exploration, Right Action and Work as Sacred Labour (just a few of the monthly retreat options). It's all part of the Eight Gates of Zen, a Western rendition of Buddha's Eightfold Path. The monastery is open to the public for a Sunday program and Wednesday-evening meditation periods. Newbies will receive an intro in Zen meditation and an orientation of the monastery. And from Dec. 11 to 13, the monastery hosts “Perfection of Giving,” a “holiday community dinner with Daido Roshi and ZMM staff.” This could be the best Buddhist Christmas ever! Pass the peace and tranquility, please.

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