NadeBuddha's Birthday & the Lotus Lantern Festival부처님오신날과 연등회: 봄밤을 밝히는 등불
One spring night, 100,000 handmade lanterns flow through downtown Seoul — a 1,200-year-old tradition anyone can join.
On the eighth day of the fourth lunar month — usually in May — Korea marks Buddha's Birthday, a national public holiday. In the weeks before, temples and city streets fill with paper lotus lanterns, and on the weekend ahead of the holiday, Seoul holds Yeondeunghoe, the Lotus Lantern Festival: a glowing parade of tens of thousands of participants carrying nearly 100,000 handmade lanterns about 3.5 kilometers along Jongno, from Heunginjimun Gate (Dongdaemun) to Jogyesa Temple.
Why lanterns? Lighting a lantern symbolizes brightening the world and one's own mind with wisdom. The practice goes back more than 1,200 years to the Silla kingdom, continued as a state festival in the Goryeo dynasty, and survived into the Joseon era as popular lantern play. In 2020, UNESCO inscribed Yeondeunghoe on its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, noting that a religious rite had grown into a spring festival open to everyone.
Today that openness is the point. Foreigners are welcome — you can watch the parade, make your own lotus lantern at hands-on booths near Jogyesa, and wander among lantern displays along Cheonggyecheon Stream. No one will ask about your religion; Koreans of all backgrounds come simply for the light, the drumming, and the gentle festival mood of a warm spring night.
음력 4월 8일, 보통 5월에 찾아오는 부처님오신날은 한국의 법정 공휴일이다. 그 몇 주 전부터 전국의 사찰과 도심 거리는 연꽃 모양 등으로 물들고, 공휴일 직전 주말에는 서울에서 연등회가 열린다. 수만 명의 참가자가 약 10만 개의 수제 등을 들고 흥인지문(동대문)에서 조계사까지 종로 약 3.5km를 행진하는 빛의 축제다.
왜 등일까. 등을 밝히는 것은 지혜로 세상과 자신의 마음을 밝힌다는 뜻이다. 이 전통은 1,200년 이상 거슬러 올라간다. 신라에서 시작해 고려 때는 국가 행사로 이어졌고, 조선 시대에는 민간의 관등놀이로 살아남았다. 2020년 유네스코는 연등회를 인류무형문화유산으로 등재하며, 종교 의례가 모두에게 열린 봄 축제로 성장한 점을 주목했다.
오늘날 이 '열려 있음'이 연등회의 핵심이다. 외국인도 얼마든지 환영받는다. 행렬을 구경하고, 조계사 근처 체험 부스에서 직접 연등을 만들고, 청계천을 따라 늘어선 등 전시를 거닐 수 있다. 누구도 종교를 묻지 않는다. 따뜻한 봄밤, 빛과 북소리와 축제의 온기를 즐기러 다양한 사람들이 모여든다.
If you go가신다면
Getting there.가는 법. Jogyesa: Subway Line 1 to Jonggak Station or Line 3 to Anguk Station, then a 5-10 minute walk. For the parade, arrive along Jongno (between Dongdaemun and Jonggak) before 7 p.m. on parade day.
Tips.팁. The parade is free and no reservation is needed, but sidewalks fill up early — claim a spot near Jonggak an hour ahead. You may photograph freely, but inside temple halls keep quiet, remove shoes where indicated, and avoid flash. Lantern-making booths near Jogyesa often have English-speaking volunteers.
Best time.가기 좋은 때. The weekend immediately before Buddha's Birthday (usually mid-May); lantern displays at temples stay up for weeks around the holiday.
Places in this story이야기 속 장소
- Jogyesa Temple (Jongno, Seoul)
- Cheonggyecheon Stream lantern displays (Seoul)
- Bongeunsa Temple (Gangnam, Seoul)
- Tongdosa Temple (Yangsan, near Busan)
Hidden spots nearby근처 숨은 스팟
Places locals go — not the ones on every itinerary.관광 코스 말고, 현지인이 가는 곳.
Sources (5)출처 (5)
- Yeondeunghoe was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in December 2020. — https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/yeondeunghoe-lantern-lighting-festival-in-the-republic-of-korea-00882
- The festival's history spans more than 1,200 years, beginning in the Silla period and continuing through Goryeo and Joseon in changing forms. — https://www.korea.net/NewsFocus/Culture/view?articleId=192891 (Korea.net, official ROK government site)
- Buddha's Birthday falls on the 8th day of the 4th lunar month and is a public holiday in Korea (in 2026, Sunday May 24, observed Monday May 25). — https://english.visitkorea.or.kr/svc/contents/contentsView.do?vcontsId=1589555 (VisitKorea, Korea Tourism Organization)
- The lantern parade travels roughly 3.5 km along Jongno from Heunginjimun Gate (Dongdaemun) to Jogyesa Temple, with around 100,000 handmade lanterns carried by tens of thousands of participants. — https://www.ajupress.com/view/20260519123337500 (Aju Press, May 2026 coverage)
- Originally a religious ritual celebrating the Buddha's birth, Yeondeunghoe has become a national spring festival open to all regardless of religion. — UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage nomination file (ich.unesco.org)
Read next이어서 읽기
Go see it for yourself
Nadeuri maps the places behind these stories — with real directions, local context, and answers from people who speak your language.
직접 가서 보세요
나들이는 이 이야기 속 장소들을 지도에 담았습니다. 진짜 가는 법, 현지 맥락, 그리고 당신의 언어로 돌아오는 답변까지.