• Journal of the Daesoon Academy of Sciences
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• v.38
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• pp.153-182
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• 2021

The Buddhist monk, Kim Ji-jang (金地藏), a native of Silla, is still revered as Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva in China. In Chinese Buddhism, Kim Ji-jang's becoming Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva is unique in at least two ways. First, it is said that his becoming the bodhisattva originated not in Silla, but in China, a foreign country. Second, it is said that the historical person became regarded as a mythical being, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. The process of Kim Ji-jang's becoming Bodhisattva can be divided into three periods. The first period is the period of entering and practicing at Mount Jiuhua in China, and this also includes the period wherein he was first revered as Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. The second period begins immediately after Kim Ji-jang's death and ends three years later. In this period he became regarded as Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. The third period spans three years after his death to the present age. His status as Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva carries on at present. There are two main causes for Kim Ji-jang's transformation into the bodhisattva. The first is an internal bodhisattva process. According to Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva's main vow, Kim Ji-jang's practice and edification impressed the public. The second is an external bodhisattva process. The miracles that appeared at the time of his death or the manifestation of the incorruptible relics three years after his death played a decisive role in the process of Kim Ji-jang becoming a bodhisattva. In line with the public's devotion, the Chinese imperial family repaired and supported the temple that enshrined the relics of Kim Ji-jang. Various factors could be analyzed in the process of Kim Ji-jang's becoming Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, but more than anything else, it was Kim Ji-jang's severe ascetic practices and his virtuous edification of others.