The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (462 page)

m (Kuan-yin) was also widely held among the people.
The Kory
dynasty (935–1392) marks the zenith of Korean Buddhism. Buddhism absorbed religious
Taoism
and Buddhist
esotericism;
the halls of the seven stars (of the Dipper) and the halls of mountain gods were built along with the Buddha halls.
Ma
alas
of buddhas, bodhisattvas, and gods were painted. Two new sects were established in this period: the Ch'
nt'ae (
T'ien-t'ai
) sect, by
ich'
n
(1055–1101), and the Chogye sect, by
Chinul
(1158–1210), through a unification of the nine existing S
n lineages. The publication of the
Korean Tripi
aka
in the 13th cent. was a brilliant achievement of Kory
Buddhism. For all of this, Buddhism was plagued by increasing internal corruption and external discontent.
The rulers of the Yi dynasty (1392–1910), adopting
Neo-Confucianism
as the state orthodoxy, advanced a series of anti-Buddhist policies which dealt a crippling blow to Buddhism. King T'aejong (r. 1401–18) reduced the eleven existing sects to seven, and King Sejong (r. 1419–50) reduced those seven sects to just two: the doctrinal school (
kyojong
) and the meditational school (
s
njong
). The number of monasteries was drastically diminished.
During the period of Japanese rule (1910–45), Korean Buddhism, under the influence of its Japanese counterpart, made some reforms but also suffered serious set-backs. The two surviving Buddhist groups were forced in 1911 to merge with the Chogye sect. In 1919 countless Buddhists together with other religionists and patriots participated in the March First Movement against Japanese colonial rule.
Since Korea's independence in 1945, Buddhism has coped with the challenges of the modern world. Shedding its seclusion in deep mountains, it is nowadays active in the cities. The Chogye sect remains influential. Young people are involved in Buddhist studies, meditation, the monastic way of life, and social services. The activities of nuns are noteworthy.
Won Buddhism
is the most popular lay Buddhist movement today.

 
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Buddhism in South-East Asia
.

SE Asian Buddhism is mostly
Therav
da
and historically related to the
Sthaviras
(i.e. elders) who emerged in the 3rd cent. BCE, in what is now
ri Lank
. During the following centuries monks carried the teaching of the
Tripi
aka
to Thailand, Burma, Laos, and Cambodia, where it flourished, though not without substantial accommodation to popular Hinduism and animism.
A major reason for the rapid spread of Buddhism in SE Asia was its acceptance by monarchs. Thai Buddhism, for example, owes much to King Mongkut (1804–68). He founded a new branch of the sa
gha known as the Dhammayutika Nik
ya (‘those who adhere to the Dhamma’). The older group subsequently became known as the Mah
nik
ya (‘the great branch’).
The Dhammayutika monks became popular among the educated élite, and a parallel group came into being in Cambodia. The former remained subject to a single patriarch, whereas the latter had one for each branch. Mongkut's insistence on the
Vinaya
, the first of the Tripi
aka
(Skt.), as the cornerstone for reform, influenced Thai, Cambodian, and to a lesser extent Laotian monks by making them more careful to observe its detailed rules.
Nuns are rare in SE Asia, though provision exists for women to ordain to the level of
an
g
rika
, which is intermediate between the five precepts for a lay Buddhist, and the ten undertaken by the novice. They wear white robes. In Thailand they are known as
mae chii
, and their role is gaining in importance.
In Laos and Cambodia the political events of the 1970s have severely curtailed the activities of Buddhist monks. In Burma,
pongyis
(‘great glory’) played a prominent role in the movement for independence from Britain, and supported U Nu in his 1960 election campaign. But more recently, since the advent of Ne Win, sa
gha and State have parted company.
Thailand's continuous tradition of monarchy and sa