Geungnakam Hermitage (Gangwon)

To reach Geungnakam Hermitage, take the road toward Jinburyeong from the Ganseong Daedae-ri checkpoint for about 2 kilometers, and you will see a signpost on the right. Follow the village road from this signpost through a forest path around the mountain bend, and you will find a small, cozy temple nestled quietly among old pine trees, reminiscent of a mother's embrace. In the past, Geungnakam Hermitage was located 2 kilometers northwest of Geonbongsa Temple and served as a practice place for bhikkhunis (nuns). It was founded in 945 in Myojeok-dong, and in 1878, it was destroyed by a forest fire along with Geonbongsa Temple, but was rebuilt the following year. Until the Japanese colonial period, it had a total of 49 kan (a unit of measurement for building size), including one kan for the Sansingak (Mountain Spirit Hall), making it the largest among Geonbongsa Temple and its five hermitages.

It was a practice place where about 50 bhikkhunis lived together and also served as a dormitory for female students who came from afar to attend Bongmyeong School. That site is now within the Civilian Control Line and inaccessible, with only the foundation remaining about 1 kilometer beyond the northwestern ridge behind the Daeungjeon Hall of Geonbongsa Temple. In the past, there was even a road wide enough for oxcarts to travel from Geonbongsa Temple to the hermitage. After liberation, as it was located north of the 38th parallel, normal religious activities became impossible, and the bhikkhunis of Geuknakam Hermitage dispersed. Bhikkhuni Beopseon, who had lived at Geuknakam Hermitage, built a new hermitage in 1956 in Gangsan-myeon Gwangsan 3-ri, and in 1962, it was moved to its current location at 280 Gyodong-ri, Ganseong-eup, Hambak-dong, becoming the Geuknakam Hermitage of today.