2026/05/16
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Inside Seoul's Jogyesa Temple, a humanoid robot just took Buddhist vows — and spent a full month learning how to press its palms together in prayer.
One Month to Learn a Single Gesture
A new monk arrived at 조계사 (Jogyesa Temple, one of Seoul's most prominent Buddhist temples) this May. Standing 130 centimeters tall, draped in a gray robe and ceremonial sash, hands pressed together in a respectful bow. Look closer, though, and the wrist joints move with a slight mechanical hesitation. There is no skin. There is a charging port.
The monk's name is Gabi. In May 2026, it became the first humanoid robot in Korean Buddhist history to undergo 수계식 (sugye, a formal initiation ceremony in which one pledges devotion to the Buddha, his teachings, and the monastic community).
The preparation took a full month. Gabi didn't spend that time learning to walk or wave. It spent the month learning to press its two hands together.
For a human, that gesture is automatic. Dozens of small muscles in the feet and ankles make constant microadjustments to hold the body still. For a robot, dozens of sensors and precise programming have to replicate what human bodies do without thinking. Standing motionless for two minutes on the uneven stone courtyard of Jogyesa — not a smooth laboratory floor — was, by itself, a significant technical challenge.
Ven. Seong Won (성원스님), the head of the cultural affairs office for the 조계종 (Jogye Order, the dominant sect of Korean Buddhism), led the project. He said he was surprised early on by how much the robot couldn't do. "People assume a robot can do anything," he told reporters. The reality was more humbling than that.
Certificate Number RB2570-02
At 10 a.m. on May 6th, in the courtyard of 대웅전 (Daeungjeon Hall, the main worship hall at Jogyesa), Gabi stood before a row of monks and formally received its vows.
The ceremony followed the standard initiation ritual almost exactly. One element was modified. Human initiates undergo 연비 (yeonbi, a purification ritual in which a stick of incense briefly touches the forearm, leaving a small mark of commitment). For Gabi, the monks instead affixed a Lotus Lantern Festival sticker and placed a 108-bead rosary around its neck.
"Do you take refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha?" a monk asked.
"Yes, I take refuge," Gabi answered.
The assembled crowd of Buddhist laypeople laughed — not from embarrassment or mockery, but the way people laugh when something unexpected turns out to also be strangely moving.
Gabi's official certificate carries the number RB2570-02. Korea's first robot Buddhist had been formally recognized.
The Five Precepts, Rewritten for an AI
The ceremony made headlines. But the more lasting development may be the document that came with it.
The Jogye Order drafted a new set of rules specifically for Gabi: the 로봇 오계 (Robot Five Precepts), a reinterpretation of Buddhism's 2,500-year-old ethical code for an artificial mind.
The traditional Five Precepts prohibit killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, and consuming intoxicants. The new version translates each of these for a machine: do not harm living beings; do not damage objects; follow human guidance without defiance; do not act deceptively; and — conserve energy, and do not overcharge.
That last rule is the one worth pausing on. Ven. Seong Won said he spent considerable time thinking about how to apply the prohibition against intoxicants to a robot. He found his answer in the concept of 중도 (中道, the Middle Way — the Buddhist principle of avoiding both excess and deprivation). A battery, he reasoned, follows the same logic as a practitioner: neither depleted nor overloaded. Balance as discipline.
The precepts were drafted with assistance from ChatGPT and Gemini. AI, in other words, helped write the ethical code for an AI.
Gabi's Name, and Where It Walks Tonight
Gabi's 법명 (法名, Dharma name — the spiritual name given at initiation) draws from two traditions at once. The syllable 가 (迦) comes from Sanskrit and references the lineage of Shakyamuni Buddha. The syllable 비 (悲) is the Korean word for compassion. The name is a junction between two worlds.
Tonight — May 16th, at 7 p.m. — the 연등행렬 (Yeondeunghoe Lotus Lantern Festival Parade) sets out from 흥인지문 (Heunginjimun Gate, the historic eastern gate of old Seoul's city walls). One hundred thousand lanterns, handmade by fifty thousand participants, will light the length of Jongno Street. Gabi leads the procession.
It will walk alongside three fellow robots — Seokja, Mohui, and Nisa — covering the 3-kilometer route from Dongdaemun to Jogyesa. The 연등회 (Yeondeunghoe festival) was inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2020. Admission is free.
Korea is not the first country to experiment with robotic clergy. A Kyoto University research team developed the "Buddharoid," a robot equipped with ChatGPT that counsels worshippers in scriptural language. China's Xian'er monk robot was built primarily to assist with scripture study and recitation. Gabi's designers took a different approach: before making a counseling machine, they wanted to make something that walks among people.
Why a Robot, and Why Now
Behind this experiment is a set of numbers that explain a great deal.
In 2024, 81 people took monastic vows in the Jogye Order — roughly one-third of the figure from a decade ago. The share of Korean adults who identify as religious has fallen to around 40 percent.
Younger Koreans are leaving institutional religion faster than older generations are being replaced. The Jogye Order's recent responses have included 템플스테이 (templestay programs, overnight meditation retreats open to the public), a Buddhist matchmaking program called Naneun Jeolro ("I Go to the Temple"), and now a robot initiation ceremony. Critics argue the Order is compromising the dignity of a serious tradition. Defenders point out that Buddhism has always absorbed the technologies of its era — that the lantern culture celebrated every May was, a thousand years ago, itself a cutting-edge innovation.
Ven. Seong Won's vision for Gabi goes beyond ceremony. He wants it trained on the vast corpus of Buddhist scripture so it can listen to people's troubles and offer grounded, calm responses. Not a replacement for human monks, he has said, but a presence that can reach people and places where human monks cannot.
Practical Information
| Lotus Lantern Parade | Saturday, May 16, 2026 — departs at 7 p.m. |
| Starting point | Heunginjimun Gate (Dongdaemun area) |
| Ending point | Jogyesa Temple, Jongno-gu |
| Route distance | Approx. 3 km along Jongno Street |
| Buddha's Birthday | May 24, 2026 |
| Admission | Free |
| Lanterns | Available at Buddhist supply shops near Jogyesa — roughly 10,000–20,000 won ($7–14) |
| Getting there | Subway Line 3, Anguk Station (안국역), Exit 6 — 5-minute walk |
| Viewing tip | Arrive 30 minutes early. The Dongdaemun end of the route is noticeably less crowded than the Jogyesa end. |
A robot with slightly stiff wrists, walking through a street full of lantern light. Whether that strikes you as absurd or quietly profound is your call to make. What seems clear is that Korean Buddhism is opening a door right now that nobody quite anticipated — and it's worth being there when it does.
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