Oct 8, 2024 – Departure from Korea, Arrival in Türkiye
Today is a day of travel, departing from Korea and heading to the Türkiye-Syria border region.
After completing his morning practice and meditation, Sunim left the Seoul Jungto Center at 7:20 AM for the airport.


After arriving at Incheon Airport and completing departure procedures, Sunim departed for Türkiye at 10:25 AM. On the plane, he worked and rested.


After 11 hours and 15 minutes of travel, Sunim arrived at Istanbul Airport at 3:40 PM local time, 30 minutes ahead of schedule.

On February 6, 2023, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck near Gaziantep in southeastern Türkiye. This earthquake severely impacted the southeastern region of Türkiye and the northern border area of Syria.

The northern Syrian border area, in particular, had many refugee camps established due to the ongoing Syrian civil war for over a decade. At the time of the earthquake, northwestern Syria, being a rebel-held area, had buildings weakened by continuous bombardment and poor maintenance, making them vulnerable to the earthquake. Consequently, Syria suffered greater damage. Moreover, the Syrian government’s blockade of aid to rebel-held areas exacerbated the situation.
JTS dispatched an emergency rescue team immediately after the earthquake to provide relief. During this effort, they surveyed a school where 3,500 students and teachers had perished when the building collapsed. Subsequently, to give hope to the earthquake victims, JTS decided to support the reconstruction of the entire school. Construction began in October 2023 and continued for a year until October 2024. The completion ceremony is scheduled for tomorrow.

Attending this school completion ceremony are Min Deokhong, Secretary General of JTS USA, and from JTS Philippines in Mindanao, which has extensive experience in school construction: Lee Wonju, former representative, Roh Jaeguk, current representative, and Lee Gyucho, vice representative. They all made time to attend, both to inspect and celebrate, as large-scale school construction projects may be needed in future disaster areas.

After a two-hour wait for the domestic flight transfer, Sunim departed from Istanbul Airport at 5:55 PM for Gaziantep Airport. By Korean time, it was midnight. Sunim took a short nap on the plane.


After a 1 hour and 45 minute flight, Sunim arrived at Gaziantep Airport at 7:40 PM. After retrieving their luggage, Sunim and his group were warmly welcomed by the Gaziantep representative of White Helmets, JTS’s local cooperation partner.

“Welcome!”
They then traveled together by car to their accommodation.

After arriving at the accommodation at 9 PM, Sunim briefly explained the process leading up to the school completion ceremony.

“The major earthquake in Türkiye occurred on February 6 last year. JTS intended to dispatch an emergency rescue team immediately after the earthquake, but due to the complex situation on the ground, we could only begin our survey a month later. When Park Jina, the JTS representative, surveyed the entire area, she discovered that the Syrian region was in dire straits and not receiving international support. Two-thirds of the earthquake-affected area was in Türkiye, and one-third was in Syria. Unfortunately, the most affected area in Syria was in the democratic rebel-held region not controlled by the government. Because it wasn’t under government control, even UN agencies couldn’t enter, and the area was receiving no support. So, after discussing with the governor, we decided to support the Türkiye-Syria border region. In April, I visited and first provided food aid to 500 households in the Osmaniye refugee camp in Türkiye, and then to 2,000 households in refugee camps in northern Syria.

Reasons for Building a School in the Turkey-Syria Border Region
The ongoing civil war in Syria for over a decade has resulted in numerous refugees. While many fled to Europe, some settled in a demilitarized zone established by the Turkish government within 30km of the Syrian border. Originally, 2 million people lived in northern Syria, but with the influx of refugees, the population increased by 3.5 million, bringing the total to 5.5 million. When the earthquake struck this ungoverned region, the White Helmets, an organization that had previously fought fires caused by Syrian government airstrikes and artillery, and rescued people trapped under rubble, took charge of earthquake relief efforts. JTS consulted with the White Helmets and decided to rebuild a school in Jindires that serves 3,500 students.
While JTS has previously built many small schools with a few classrooms for indigenous people or those with disabilities, they had never constructed a school of this scale. However, given the severity of the earthquake damage and the need to provide hope to the despondent residents, building a symbolically significant school seemed necessary. Before deciding to build the school, JTS first confirmed that the White Helmets could adhere to JTS principles. JTS agreed to provide financial support for the school construction, while the White Helmets, with their excavators and various equipment, would be responsible for excavation and demolition work. This approach allowed the school construction to begin with minimal expenses.

As a result, the inauguration ceremony will be held tomorrow. Since White Helmets managed to save on expenses, JTS has agreed to provide additional support for all school uniforms, bags, shoes, school supplies, as well as learning equipment like computers.

White Helmets completed the construction in just one year, doing their best. Yesterday, 150 White Helmets members worked hard cleaning the entire school. If this project proceeds well according to JTS principles, we plan to continue with follow-up projects. Currently, it’s said that 500,000 children in northern Syria are unable to attend school. Drastic measures are needed to eradicate illiteracy.
During the conversation, the White Helmets Gaziantep representative came to explain tomorrow’s inauguration schedule and greeted us.

“Tomorrow you will see the construction of the largest new school in the Turkiye-Syria border region. JTS and the White Helmets are creating a new history that will open the future of Syria. Tomorrow will be the school’s inauguration ceremony, which is the historic site. So, rest well and see you tomorrow.”
“Okay. See you tomorrow.”
After further discussion about tomorrow’s schedule, the day’s work ended. We traveled a very long distance today.

Since there was no Dharma talk today, this article will conclude by sharing a conversation between Sunim and a questioner from the Daegu-Gyeongbuk branch members’ day event at Gumi Adomoryewon on the 1st.
My Husband’s Unending Extravagance: Should I Also Start Spending Lavishly?
“Why do you want to spend money together with your husband and avoid arguing? You can avoid spending money and avoid arguing too.”
“It’s because my husband’s values haven’t changed for 10 years.”
“People’s values don’t change easily. Between a situation where you want to live lavishly but your husband is stingy, and a situation where your husband wants to live lavishly but you want to save, which conflict do you think would be less difficult for you?”
“I’d rather my husband not run a business and be a salaried employee, and I’d like to work too and live as a dual-income couple.”
“In Dharma Q&A sessions, we sometimes encounter cases where the husband is so stingy that he tightly holds onto money, wears old shoes, and has been wearing the same worn-out suit for 20 years without giving money to his wife. There are husbands who complain and prevent their wives from buying anything. Between living with such an extremely stingy husband and living with a husband who spends and indulges more than you do, which do you think would be easier to live with?”
“I’m not sure. My biggest worry right now is that my husband’s business scale has grown too large, and if a crisis of bankruptcy comes, I think we might go completely broke.”
“We’ll talk about that issue later. First, think about this: Would it be harder to live with a stingy husband? Or would it be harder to live with someone who spends a lot of money like your husband?”
“I think a stingy husband would be better. Although I may not have the ability, I’m confident I could adjust and live with that.”
“Well, let’s ask the audience here. If you think living with a stingy husband would be easier than living with a husband who spends money freely, please raise your hand. Only two people agree with the questioner. (Laughter)
It would be a problem if I wanted to save but my husband took my money and spent it. However, whether your husband inherited money from his parents or earned it himself, you can’t control how he spends his own money. If you want to live frugally while living with such a person, you can just save your own money. But if your husband is completely stingy, it becomes much harder for you to live. That’s why I’m saying your situation is much easier. However, that doesn’t mean you should think, ‘Okay, I’ll spend money freely too and we’ll go broke together.’ When you go out with your husband, it’s okay to dress up a bit out of consideration for his image.”
“It’s not just dressing up a little; he likes to show off a lot.”
“If he likes to show off, buy some fake earrings, necklaces, and rings for decoration. Whether they’re real or fake isn’t important. Just wear what your husband wants you to wear.”
“Yes, I understand.”
“Have you become a Dharma teacher now?”
“I graduated from Jungto Sutra School in February.”
“If you’ve graduated from Jungto Sutra School, you haven’t even received the Five Precepts yet.”
“I’m a general member.”
“Then it’s okay to wear some accessories. The Five Precepts that general member practitioners should follow don’t include rules against wearing earrings or necklaces. They only include ‘Don’t kill,’ ‘Don’t hit,’ ‘Don’t steal,’ ‘Don’t sexually harass,’ ‘Don’t lie or use abusive language,’ and ‘Don’t get drunk and cause trouble.’ But when you become a Dharma teacher, you need to follow the precepts that Seowon practitioners follow. You must live frugally and humbly. You shouldn’t use luxury items, and you shouldn’t live arrogantly just because you have some money. You shouldn’t party as you please, saying ‘Drink up!’ In other words, you shouldn’t indulge in excitement.
It doesn’t violate the Five Precepts for you to accommodate your husband’s tastes to some extent. However, if you have a strong belief in saving due to the climate crisis and can’t meet your husband’s demands, then you can say, ‘Honey, I’m sorry. As a practitioner, I’ve promised to live frugally, so I can’t fulfill all your requests.’ It’s not a big deal. Your husband probably spends that way because he earns some money.”
“He seems to think of bank money as his own money.”
“That’s okay. Originally, bank money is prepared to lend to business people.”
“This year, he’s trying to borrow 50 million won from my money too.”
“You don’t have to lend that.”
“He’s been chasing after me asking to borrow it, and he says next time he needs to get a 500 million won loan.”
“If he asks to borrow money, get a written agreement from your husband.”
“I’ve already got many written agreements. What I want to ask Sunim now is, should I still be saying ‘Thank you’ in my morning prayers in this situation? How should I pray?”
“As long as your husband isn’t committing crimes, it’s not your place to interfere. Pray like this: ‘I will not interfere with my husband.’ And don’t nag him.”
“Yes, I’m not nagging him now either.”
“Anyway, do you earn your own living? Or do you live on the money your husband provides?”
“My husband earns most of it, and I do part-time jobs on the side.”
“Do you get all your living expenses from your husband? Or are you self-sufficient?”
“I get it from him.”
“Then you should offer prayers of gratitude. Whether your husband spends a lot or a little, it’s his money. You don’t need to interfere. However, if you’re receiving money from him and using it, that’s something to be thankful for. Whether your husband lives frugally or not, as long as he’s not committing crimes, it’s not your place to interfere. So it’s not right to receive and use his money without being grateful just because you don’t like how he lives. For example, if you receive 1 million won every month from Venerable Pomnyun Sunim, you shouldn’t say things like ‘Venerable Pomnyun Sunim doesn’t even do morning prayers.’ Whether he does prayers or not is his business, and you should be grateful for the 1 million won you receive every month. If you think Venerable Pomnyun Sunim is violating the Five Precepts and committing terrible crimes, then you shouldn’t accept that money. Your husband isn’t going around committing crimes, is he? So your husband isn’t a big problem. It’s good that you live frugally as a Jungto practitioner, but you shouldn’t force your thoughts on others. Just because you’re a vegetarian doesn’t mean you should criticize others for eating meat. You should have the perspective that ‘Your eating meat is your business, and I’ll be a vegetarian according to my thoughts.'”
“My husband seems to be stressed about such things.”
“Since you need to continue living together as a couple, it would be good to accommodate him a little as long as it doesn’t violate the precepts.”
“Yes, I understand.”
“From my perspective, you seem a bit inflexible.”
“It’s because I’ve lived in that kind of environment.”
“If you live frugally because you grew up in a frugal environment, that’s not practice but habit. People like me are like that. No matter how much money I’m given, I can’t spend it. Even if I’m told to buy good food, I can’t. Even if I’m told to go stay somewhere expensive and comfortable, I can’t. Why? Because I’ve never experienced spending like that. So even if you say you live frugally, you’re not an outstanding practitioner. It’s just a habit you developed from growing up in a poor environment. On that point, don’t blame your husband, but say, ‘I’m sorry. You’re right. But I’m satisfied living like this.’ If you’re not going to divorce your husband, it’s better to accommodate him a bit when he asks you to make a good impression in front of his friends for a short while.”
“Yes, I understand.”
“He seems like a decent man, so there’s no need to divorce him.”
“Except for that, he’s a good man in all other aspects.”
“Even if you divorce, you should do it after he goes bankrupt. (Laughter) How long have you been married now?”
“It’s almost 20 years.”
“For 20 years you thought he might go bankrupt, but you’ve managed to live until now without going bankrupt.”
“He’s been in business for 10 years.”
“Just leave your husband be. If he goes bankrupt, from then on, you can both work jobs and live harmoniously together. As long as what your husband does isn’t a major crime, try to understand him a bit and live together. Just because his values don’t align with yours doesn’t mean he’s a bad person. That doesn’t mean you have to agree with him either. But there’s no need to criticize. You can say once or twice, ‘Let’s save and not waste for the sake of the environment.’ It would be good if he listens, but if he doesn’t, you have to let it be. If you keep agonizing over something you can’t change, you’re only hurting yourself.”
“Thank you. I understand well.”

Tomorrow, we will move to the Turkey-Syria border region. In the morning, we will attend the inauguration ceremony of the school built in collaboration between JTS and White Helmets, and then return to Gaziantep.