Monk becomes 'Buddhist world's G-Dragon' with razor-sharp dance moves

Ven. Deoksan, the abbot of Jajaeam Temple in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province, has gained attention for dancing to spread Buddhist teachings. He says dance is part of his practice and plans to keep expanding that effort through rap. He has also drawn support from other monks and positive reactions online.

He first became known for dancing to G-Dragon and Taeyang’s Good Boy at a Buddhist Expo in April and Michael Jackson’s Billie Jean at the Lotus Lantern Festival in May.

Ven. Deoksan said he learned to dance partly by making a four-hour round trip from the temple to a dance academy.

He entered the Buddhist order at age 40 after graduating from the Korean National Police University and working as a police officer for 16 years.

He said nearly 90 percent of comments on his videos are positive, while about 10 percent are malicious.

His next goal is to write his own lyrics and use rap to spread Buddhist teachings.

Published Oct 6, 2026 12:00 am KST

Ven. Deoksan practices dancing in front of a mirror in a tea room at Jajaeam Temple on Soyo Mountain in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province, Sept. 30. Korea Times photo by Jung Da-bin

What I want to emphasize through dance is ‘love for yourself.'

At Jajaeam Temple, nestled deep in the valleys of Soyo Mountain in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province, the silence was broken by “BAD,” a popular song by boy band ATEEZ.

The man engrossed in popping moves, his gray Buddhist robes flying around him, was Ven. Deoksan, the temple’s abbot. He shot to fame after dancing to G-Dragon and Taeyang’s “Good Boy” at a Buddhist Expo in April and Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean” at the Lotus Lantern Festival in May. Despite being in his 60s, his unconventional dance moves have earned him colorful nicknames such as the “G-Dragon of Buddhism,” “Deoksan Daegong” and “Michael Jack-sunim,” a play on Michael Jackson and the Korean word for monk, “sunim.”

Ven. Deoksan, who uses dance as a way to spread Buddhist teachings, was interviewed on Sept. 30.

'Dacing is part of my practice'

Ven. Deoksan gave a shy smile when asked about the popularity of his dance videos on social media, saying he was “embarrassed” by the attention.

“As a practitioner, I hope this can help me convey Buddhist teachings in a more accessible way,” he said.

Unlike his uninhibited performances onstage, the monk is quiet and reserved in everyday life. He described himself as someone who has little to do with dancing.

“I’m tone-deaf, have no sense of rhythm and am timid, so I always felt awkward with things like entertainment. Even when I was living in the secular world, I was so shy that I would never have gone onstage,” he said.

The reason he dances is that he considers it a form of Buddhist practice.

“Practice means doing things you don’t want to do. Since I didn’t want to dance, I thought, ‘Then I should challenge myself to do it,’” he said.

Ven. Deoksan prays at Jajaeam Temple on Soyo Mountain in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province, Sept. 30. Korea Times photo by Jung Da-bin

Even the effort of traveling four hours round trip from the temple to a dance academy to learn is part of his practice. He was also motivated by a desire to communicate with younger generations.

“Most people at temples are older, so my first thought was, ‘How can I share these wonderful Buddhist teachings with young people?’” he said.

When he first started dancing, he never expected the response he receives today. He even worried that the Buddhist order might prevent him from continuing his life as a monk. But contrary to his expectations, the response was positive.

“Surprisingly, most monks liked it,” Ven. Deoksan said. “Ven. Jinwoo, the head of the Jogye Order, even called me and encouraged me, saying, ‘It’s a good form of practice, and it could become known around the world.’”

He said nearly 90 percent of the comments on his videos were positive, while about 10 percent were malicious.

Ven. Deoksan believes dance can go beyond simple entertainment and lead people to take a serious interest in Buddhist teachings.

“If people find something enjoyable through sight and sound, and it becomes familiar and approachable, it can be the first step toward developing an interest in the Buddha’s teachings,” he said.

In fact, during the interview, a 39-year-old novice monk who said he had decided to become a monk after watching Ven. Deoksan’s dance videos visited the temple.

Jeon Si-hoo, 39, from Gimcheon, North Gyeongsang Province, said, “I quit dancing a few years ago because I thought I was too old, but I happened to see Ven. Deoksan’s dance videos. I had always been interested in Buddhist teachings, but I was so impressed by him that I eventually decided to become a monk.”

Ven. Deoksan takes a break while enjoying the view at Jajaeam Temple on Soyo Mountain in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province, Sept. 30. Korea Times photo by Jung Da-bin

Cultivating new ways to transmit Buddha's message

Ven. Deoksan became a monk relatively late, at the age of 40. Before entering the Buddhist order, he graduated from the Korean National Police University and worked as a police officer for 16 years.

He was not a Buddhist at the time. But while spending a week on vacation at Jajaeam, he was exposed to Buddhist teachings for the first time and decided to become a monk. The tears he shed while listening to the sermon continued even after he returned to work.

He realized that his time with his job had come to an end, resigned from the force and told his family he intended to become a monk. For his elderly parents, who had placed great hopes in him, it was effectively an act of filial disobedience. But he was so certain of his decision that he now calls becoming a monk “the best thing I have ever done in my life.”

After more than 20 years as a Buddhist practitioner, the message Ven. Deoksan wants to convey through dance is “love for yourself.”

He believes that only by loving yourself can you love others, and ultimately society as well.

“If we look at when we love ourselves, it is when we take on something difficult and challenging and accomplish it,” he said. “By setting ambitious goals in life and continually challenging the part of ourselves that wants to become lazy or settle for what is comfortable, we come to love ourselves.”

Ven. Deoksan’s challenges and practice do not stop at dance. His next goal is rap.

For a monk unfamiliar with hip-hop music, it is another new challenge. Believing that dance alone has limitations as a means of communication, he plans to write his own lyrics and use rap to spread Buddhist teachings.

From dance to rap, the ways Ven. Deoksan seeks to share Buddhist teachings continue to evolve.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.

京畿道东豆川市慈济岩寺住持德山法师因以舞蹈传播佛法而备受关注。他表示舞蹈是其修行的一部分，并计划通过说唱进一步拓展这一领域。他的做法也获得了其他僧侣的支持和网络上的积极反响。

他最初因在四月份的佛教博览会上跳 G-Dragon 和太阳的《Good Boy》以及在五月份的莲花灯会上跳迈克尔·杰克逊的《Billie Jean》而为人所知。

德山法师说，他学习舞蹈的部分原因是他每天要花四个小时从寺庙往返舞蹈学院。

他从韩国国立警察大学毕业，做了16年警察，40岁时皈依佛教。

他说，他视频下的评论中，近 90% 是正面的，而大约 10% 是恶意的。

他的下一个目标是自己创作歌词，并用说唱来传播佛教教义。

发布于2026年10月6日凌晨12:00（韩国标准时间）

9月30日，在京畿道东豆川市昭耀山慈载岩寺的茶室里，德山法师对着镜子练习跳舞。（韩国时报 郑多彬 摄）

我想通过舞蹈强调的是“爱自己”。

在京畿道东豆川市昭耀山山谷深处的慈载岩寺，男子组合 ATEEZ 的热门歌曲《BAD》打破了寂静。

那位全身心投入机械舞的男子，灰色的佛袍在他周围飘扬，他正是德山法师，这座寺庙的住持。今年四月，他在佛教博览会上跳了G-Dragon和太阳的《Good Boy》，五月又在莲花灯会上跳了迈克尔·杰克逊的《Billie Jean》，之后便一举成名。尽管已年过六旬，他那别具一格的舞步依然为他赢得了许多响亮的绰号，例如“佛教界的G-Dragon”、“德山大公”以及“迈克尔·杰克逊僧人”（Michael Jack-sunim），后者是迈克尔·杰克逊和韩语中“僧人”（sunim）一词的谐音。

德山法师以舞蹈为手段传播佛教教义，他于9月30日接受了采访。

“跑步是我训练的一部分。”

当被问及他的舞蹈视频在社交媒体上的受欢迎程度时，德山法师腼腆地​​笑了笑，说他对这种关注感到“不好意思”。

“作为一名修行者，我希望这能帮助我以更易于理解的方式传达佛教教义，”他说。

与他在舞台上奔放不羁的表演截然不同，这位僧人在日常生活中安静内敛。他自称与舞蹈几乎毫无瓜葛。

“我五音不全，没有节奏感，而且很胆小，所以对于娱乐之类的事情，我总是感到很不自在。即使在世俗世界里，我也非常害羞，根本不可能上台表演，”他说。

他跳舞的原因是他认为这是一种佛教修行方式。

“练习意味着做你不想做的事情。既然我不想跳舞，我就想，‘那我应该挑战自己去跳，’”他说。

9月30日，德山法师在京畿道东豆川市昭耀山慈载岩寺祈祷。韩国时报记者郑多彬摄。

甚至连从寺庙往返四个小时到舞蹈学院学习也是他修行的一部分。此外，他也渴望与年轻一代交流。

他说：“寺庙里的大多数人年纪都比较大，所以我首先想到的是，‘我该如何与年轻人分享这些美好的佛教教义呢？’”

他最初开始跳舞时，从未预料到会获得如今这样的反响。他甚至担心僧团会阻止他继续做僧侣。但出乎他意料的是，反响是积极的。

“出乎意料的是，大多数僧侣都很喜欢这种方式，”德山法师说。“曹溪宗的住持真宇法师甚至打电话给我鼓励我，说：‘这是一种很好的修行方式，而且有可能在全世界范围内传播开来。’”

他说，他视频下的评论中，近 90% 是正面的，而约 10% 是恶意的。

德山法师认为舞蹈可以超越简单的娱乐，引导人们对佛教教义产生浓厚的兴趣。

他说：“如果人们通过视觉和听觉发现某些事物令人愉悦，并且变得熟悉和容易接近，那么这可能是培养对佛陀教义兴趣的第一步。”

事实上，在采访期间，一位39岁的沙弥僧人参观了寺庙，他说自己是在观看德山法师的舞蹈视频后决定出家的。

来自庆尚北道金泉市的39岁全时厚说：“几年前我因为觉得自己年纪大了而放弃了跳舞，但偶然间看到了德山法师的舞蹈视频。我一直对佛教教义很感兴趣，但德山法师深深地打动了我，最终我决定出家为僧。”

9月30日，德山法师在京畿道东豆川市昭耀山慈载岩寺欣赏美景时稍作休息。（韩国时报 郑多彬 摄）

探索传播佛陀教义的新途径

德山法师出家相对较晚，40岁才出家。在进入佛教僧团之前，他毕业于韩国国家警察大学，并担任了16年的警察。

他当时并非佛教徒。但在贾贾姆寺度假一周期间，他第一次接触到佛教教义，并决定出家为僧。聆听佛法时流下的泪水，即使回到工作岗位后也依然萦绕心头。

他意识到自己在警队的工作已经结束，于是辞去了职务，并告诉家人他打算出家为僧。对于对他寄予厚望的年迈父母来说，这实际上是一种违背孝道的行为。但他对自己的决定无比坚定，如今他称出家为“我一生中最棒的决定”。

德山法师修行佛教二十余年后，他想通过舞蹈传达的信息是“爱自己”。

他认为，只有爱自己才能爱别人，最终才能爱社会。

他说：“如果我们审视一下自己何时爱自己，就会发现那是在我们接受并完成一些困难且具有挑战性的事情的时候。通过在生活中设​​定远大的目标，并不断挑战我们内心那个想要变得懒惰或安于现状的自己，我们最终会爱上自己。”

德山法师的挑战和修行并不局限于舞蹈。他的下一个目标是说唱。

对于一位不熟悉嘻哈音乐的僧人来说，这又是一个新的挑战。他认为单靠舞蹈作为一种沟通方式存在局限性，因此计划自己创作歌词，并用说唱来传播佛法。

从舞蹈到说唱，德山法师分享佛法的方式不断演变。

本文来自《韩国日报》（《韩国时报》的姊妹报），由人工智能生成系统翻译，并由《韩国时报》编辑。