Ven. Hyon Gak, a Buddhist monk widely known for his book “From Harvard to Hwagyesa,” posted a message criticizing the Jogye Order of Buddhism’s hierarchical practices and announcing his plans to leave South Korea.

The New Jersey-born Hyon Gak, born Paul J. Muenzen, who has been practicing in South Korea for over 24 years, posted a link on his Facebook page on July 27 to an article titled “Foreign Professors at Seoul National University leaving in droves.”

“I understand 100% how they feel and feel 100% the same way,” he wrote.

“Foreign monks in Korea are simply decoration for the Jogye Order,” he continued.

“As soon as I finish my training in Greece, I‘m making my last official vision to Korea in mid-August. I’m going to be staying in the West for a while after that. I plan to go to Hwagye Temple to pay respects before my teacher’s [Seungsahn] pagoda, and then get ready for ‘sayonara.’”

Written in sometimes awkwardly worded Korean, the message noted that the Zen master Seungsahn “opened the doors [for foreign monks] for the sake of Korean Buddhism 45 years ago.”

“Yet the order keeps narrowing those doors, with seven to nine foreign monks returning to secular life just in the past two to three years,” Hyon Gak added.

“How can I send Western people - Western women in particular - with a proud foundation in rationalism for education that’s only suited to a Joseon-era mentality?” he continued.

“Instead, I send the ones who truly have the mind of faith to Gyeryong Mountain or the famous Zen rooms in Japan.”

In closing, he lamented that “that open place that once spread Korean Zen Buddhism throughout the world, where anyone could see their true nature, has been turned into just another ‘prosperity religion.’”

“‘Prayer = $.’ It’s truly sad,” he added.

A graduate of Yale and Harvard, Hyon Gak joined the Buddhist priesthood in 1992 after hearing a sermon by Seungsahn while a graduate student in 1990. Since then, he has worked to share Korean Buddhism with the rest of the world through dharma readings and English translations of Buddhist scripture. He has served as head monk at Hyeonjeong Temple and director of the Hwa Gye Sa International Zen Center.

By Lee Jae-hoon, staff reporter

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