Jogye Order President Ven. Jinwoo gave a special dharma talk to ordained Buddhist military chaplains working in the field of dharma propagation in Korea's military forces. He asked them to realize and promote the principles of the mind so that soldiers can avoid suffering and always have peace of mind.

On March 28, Ven. Jinwoo visited Hoguk-Hongjesa Temple in Gyeryongdae, where the "2024 Military Chaplain Monks’ Retreat and Precepts Meeting" was being held. He gave a special dharma talk to the 121 ordained Buddhist military chaplains from Korea's military forces who had held their opening ceremony the previous day, saying, "The ultimate goal of Buddhism is to let go of suffering," and added, "By knowing the Buddha-dharma accurately and conveying it properly, I hope you can help young soldiers to internalize the teachings of the Buddha for themselves and feel inspired."

On this day, Ven. Jinwoo emphasized, "The Buddha taught that we must cease dualistic thinking that judges things to be either good or bad, happy or painful, etc. To achieve this, we must escape the karma stored in our alaya consciousness."

As a way to do this, he suggested "letting go." He said, "If you continually let go of things from your mind, you will become empty of emotions such as joy and suffering, and then you can live a life of unhindered freedom." He added, "Entrust all matters to Vairocana Buddha who embodies the pure dharma body, and to Locana Buddha who embodies the blissful reward body."

Ven. Jinwoo then asked the Buddhist military chaplains to teach this principle to soldiers so that they can separate the phenomenal world of interdependent arising and their joys and sorrows. Then these soldiers will be able to escape suffering and always have peace of mind. He added, "Please teach the soldiers Seon meditation so they can meditate even while eating and sleeping, so that they can escape suffering."

Prior to this, Ven. Jinwoo performed 108 prostrations with Buddhist military generals and received a courtesy visit afterward from each military chief of staff. On this day, he also spent time at Hoguk-Hongjesa Temple with the military generals who had served since his inauguration, and they all vowed in unison to promote the revival of Buddhism and the development of Buddhism in the military.

During the conversation over tea that followed, Ven. Jinwoo received a courtesy visit from generals from each military branch. He told them, "Infinite power comes from true emptiness," and "If you understand the formula of the mind as you do the multiplication table, your mind will not be shaken even when under fire on a battlefield." Army Chief of Staff Park An-su said, "I understand that the monk militia soldiers during the Japanese Invasion of Korea (1592-1598) were able to protect their homeland because they fought with the mindset of 'no thought and no conceptualization,'" and added, "I will keep in mind the words of Venerable Jinwoo."