Bongeunsa’s location was shaped by a state project. In 1562, King Jungjong’s tomb, Jeongneung, was transferred toward the old temple grounds, and Bongeunsa moved to the present Mount Sudosan site.
Why a temple stood beside royal tombs
Royal memorial temples prayed for deceased rulers and helped care for their tombs. Bongeunsa’s relationship with Seolleung and Jeongneung complicates the simple idea that Buddhist institutions had no place in Joseon’s royal ritual landscape.
Read the missing geography
The old temple zone and the field known as Seunggwapyeong are now embedded in the city around Seonjeongneung and COEX. View all three places on a map to see how royal tomb building and later urban development repeatedly remade the same land.