Let me tell you a tales of Mihwangsa temple.

Unlike many other temples in korea,

Buddhism has arrieved in MIhwangsa temple across the sea from India.

In the 8th year of the reign of king Kung Duk,

A stone ship reached off the coast of Sajapo, with beautiful sound.

The fisher man and the villagers were curious.

What could this be?...

They came closer to see, then the ship would go far,.

They stand back, then the ship would come closer again.

Then they all went to see the Master Euijo.

"Master Euijo, Master Euijo, there is a starange ship at the shore.

Please come and see and tell us what it is and what to do?"

Master Euijo thought for the moment, then with two monks and one hundred residents

purified themselves and offered prayers.

Once aboard the stone ship, they discovered a golden box and a black rock.

Inised the box were the sutras and beautiful Buddhist tanka paintings and statues of

Buddha.

He opened the golden box, they broke open the black rock too.

A tiny balck cow emerged from the rock!

Suddenly it grew into a huge cow.

Master Euijo had a dream that night.

He saw a man in golden robes saying that "I am the king of wuijeon Guk of Inida.

The shape of the Dharma mountain in this area is auspicious and suitable for a shrine

to ten thousand Buddhas. Please place the sutras on the back of the cow and estblish a

temple where it lays down".

The next day master Euijo did as he had been told in the dream.

The cow sat dowm when it was crossing Dharma mountian.

But stood back up again and kept going.

He continued for quite some time before finally falling down again with a loud crash.

This time the cow did not stand back up.

Therefore Tonggyosa was established at that place where the cow sat down the first

time.

And mihwangsa temple was built whre it stopped last time.

The name Mihwangsa temple comes form this story.

"Mi" -comes from the beautiful a sound of cow.

"Whang"- comes from the colour of golden robe of the Indian king in Master Euijo's

dream.

Even people from Song Dynasty in China used to visit here, believing that there is a

spirit of Seon of Boddhi Dharma.