Korean and American Monastic Practices: A Comparative Case Study Songgwang-Sa Son Buddhist Monastery, Korea, and the Abbey of the Genesee, Cistercian Monastery, U.S.A.

This is a case study of contemporary monasticism in cross-cultural perspective with particular reference to one Korean Son monastery in the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, and one Cistercian monastery in the Roman Catholic tradition in North America. Korea has preserved one of the oldest and richest Buddhist traditions in Asia, and Korean Son monasticism has remained most faithful to what may be considered closest to the traditional form of Buddhist monastic life, and offers an alternative practice to the usual Western portrayals of Ch'an/Zen Buddhism. Compares historical backgrounds; motivational dispositions; and structures of monastic life. A final part is an appraisal of contemporary monastic ideal and trends in its development.