[Activation Monk Hyosan] A Great Way to Illuminate Life: Caring for the Body

🌸 As we move through life, we take care of many things.

We look after our families and those around us, work hard to fulfill our responsibilities, and stay busy preparing for the future. But amid all of this, are we truly taking care of the body at the center of it all — our own?

🌳 The monk says that human dignity lies in the ability to walk.

Walking is not merely a means of getting from one place to another. It means being able to move on one’s own, to live one’s life through one’s own strength. As we grow older, we come to realize more deeply the importance of health. In the end, what protects our freedom and dignity in life is not something grand, but the simple ability to move for ourselves.

He also does not regard exercise as something special or separate from daily life. Exercise is not confined to a specific place or time, nor only to strenuous movement (that leaves us breathless and drenched in sweat). Sitting, standing, walking, lying down — the entirety of our daily movement is exercise. (Exercise should arise naturally from how we care for and manage the movements of everyday life.) Perhaps we have become so fixated on “working out” that we have overlooked the simple yet essential movements of daily living that truly care for the body.

In particular, he emphasizes the importance of lower-body health for modern people. Since humans live standing firmly on two feet, caring for the lower body forms the foundation of overall health. When the lower body becomes unstable, movement decreases; and when movement decreases, many bodily functions begin to decline as well. What matters is caring well for this foundation, and upon it, maintaining the alignment and balance of the whole body as we move through everyday life.

Most striking of all is the insight that many of the words we use to describe growth and maturity contain the idea of “strength.” The ability to observe and reflect on one’s life, the discipline and perseverance required to build good habits, the willpower to continue steadily forward — all of these require strength. And this “strength” is not merely an abstract or mental concept. It includes physical vitality and stamina. It is expressed through action. Even the word “mental strength” itself contains the notion of force and power.

To care for the body is not simply about living longer. It is a process of preserving the dignity of the life we have been given. It is a way of allowing life to shine. That is why one of the most meaningful acts in life may be asking ourselves each day:

Four hours south of Seoul lies Jirisan, a mountain revered as one of Korea’s sacred peaks. Beneath its 1,915-meter summit, where the mountaintop seems to touch the sky, stands Silsangsa Temple, a place that has preserved 1,200 years of history. There Venerable Hyosan continues a life devoted to cultivating balance between body and mind.

This retreat is more than simple rest. It is a journey into the quiet way of being that resides within oneself, experienced amidst the natural beauty of Korea.

You are warmly invited to this special time — created for those seeking physical vitality and groundedness, inner peace, and a truly deep rest.