History

Buddhism arrived in the Korean peninsula during the Three Kingdoms period (4th–7th century CE), introduced separately to Goguryeo (372 CE), Baekje (384 CE), and Silla (527 CE). From the outset, Korean Buddhism developed a strong tradition of mountain retreat — monks sought remote peaks for meditation and cultivation, following the Buddhist concept of the sacred mountain as a site of enlightenment.

The foundation dates of the seven sansa span three centuries (426–875 CE), all during the period of the Three Kingdoms and Unified Silla. By the Goryeo dynasty (918–1392 CE), Buddhism had become the state religion, and the sansa were major centres of scholarship, art production, and royal patronage. The Tripitaka Koreana — the world’s most complete collection of Buddhist scriptures, carved on 81,258 wooden printing blocks — was produced in this period, partly in response to the Mongol invasions that destroyed earlier woodblocks.

The Joseon dynasty (1392–1897 CE) officially adopted Neo-Confucianism and suppressed Buddhism, forcing the monasteries from the cities into the mountains. Paradoxically, this persecution is partly responsible for the exceptional preservation of the sansa: driven from urban centres, the monasteries became self-sufficient mountain communities whose physical isolation protected them from repeated waves of destruction.

The Japanese invasions of 1592–1598 (Imjin War) destroyed much of Korea’s built heritage. The sansa suffered damage but were rebuilt in the 17th century, producing much of the architecture visible today. The buildings of this reconstruction period — characterised by the dancheong polychrome painted decoration on wooden brackets — are among the finest examples of Korean traditional architecture.