Girimsa Temple

A thousand-year-old temple founded during the reign of Silla's Queen Seondeok — this is Girimsa Temple.

It was originally built under the name "Imjeongsa," and is said to have been renamed "Girimsa" after Monk Wonhyo later greatly expanded the temple grounds.

The temple is divided into two main areas: one centered on Daejeokgwangjeon, the main hall, alongside a bodhi tree over 500 years old, and another gathering the treasure museum, Samseonggak, Myeongbujeon, and Gwaneumjeon halls. Daejeokgwangjeon is a single-story hip-and-gable building with entasis columns and multi-cluster brackets, enshrining a triad of Buddha statues in the style typical of early Joseon. Right beside it, in front of the Hall of 500 Arhats, stands a three-story stone pagoda.

The treasure museum holds a number of valuable Buddhist cultural artifacts, including a Treasure-designated dry-lacquer half-seated Bodhisattva statue. Also worth noting is a spring known as "Ojongsu," said to carry five distinct flavors, drawing some visitors just to try it.

It offers a quieter, more secluded mountain-temple atmosphere quite different from Gyeongju's downtown historic sites, and also runs temple-stay and mountain-temple experience programs.

Hours are 08:00-18:00 in summer and 08:00-17:00 in winter, open year-round.