Only 1 in 3 'temple stay' participants is Buddhist: survey

▲ Foreigners participate in a temple stay program at Geunsan Temple in Gimje, North Jeolla Province, on Sept. 8, 2025. (Yonhap)

   SEOUL, Feb. 19 (Yonhap) -- Only 1 in 3 participants in "temple stays," an overnight cultural program held at Buddhist temples, identified as Buddhist last year, a survey showed Thursday.

   According to the survey by the Cultural Corps of Korean Buddhism under the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism, the country's largest Buddhist sect, 9,295 respondents, or 33.7 percent of the total 27,563, said they were Buddhist. 

   Among the rest, 52.5 percent said they had no religion, while 8.2 percent were Catholic and 5 percent were Protestant.

   The findings are consistent with those from 2024 and 2023, reflecting the cultural program's popularity across religious boundaries.

   Among foreign participants, the share of Buddhists has grown steadily, from 5.9 percent in 2023 to 7.5 percent in 2024 and 9.9 percent last year. As with Korean respondents, those with no religion made up the largest group at 43.4 percent.

   Meanwhile, a record 349,219 people, comprising 293,704 South Koreans and 55,515 foreign tourists, participated in the program at 158 temples nationwide in 2025, up 5.1 percent from the previous year.

   It marked the highest figure since the program, which allows visitors to experience daily life at a temple, was first launched in 2002.

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