War heroes buried at the Seoul National Cemetery. ⒸHanmi Ilbo

Although South Korea has achieved outward economic growth, ranking among the top 10 in the world, the value of national defense, the spiritual pillar supporting the nation, has reached a critical point of collapse. 

With the depletion of social ballast, the ship of state, having lost its counterweight and rudder, is adrift amidst waves of anger and division. 

The psychological term 'Attention Seeking Behavior' is often colloquially referred to as 'gwansjong.' When this psychological mechanism becomes entrenched beyond a temporary phenomenon to a pathological level, psychiatry diagnoses it as 'Histrionic Personality Disorder.' 

Today, some political factions and agitators seem to be engrossed in these pathological mechanisms, recklessly turning national tragedies into their political assets as if they were fish in water. 

National Tragedies Should Not Be Politicized

Using national disasters as a tool to strengthen one's position is a cunning scheme disguised as concern for the people and a cognitive dissonance of conscience. Only by discarding worldly desires can one see the simple truth; these individuals, full of hypocrisy, disrupt public sentiment by feigning sincerity.

A leader's attitude towards fallen soldiers reveals the nation's dignity. In 2009, then-US President Obama saluted the transport plane carrying the remains of overseas fallen soldiers with the highest honor.

In contrast, on June 29, 2002, the day after the Second Battle of Yeonpyeong, where six naval personnel defending the Northern Limit Line (NLL) were killed, then-President Kim Dae-jung departed for Japan to attend the FIFA World Cup final.

Furthermore, in 1982, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher forewent her summer vacation and spent the night writing letters of condolence to all 255 bereaved families of British soldiers who died in the Falklands War. 

In August 2011, President Obama canceled all his appointments and rushed to Dover Air Force Base to attend the return ceremony for the remains of US soldiers killed in an attack by the Taliban in Afghanistan. 

Unlike these many countries that sincerely honor soldiers who sacrificed for their nation, South Korea saw the President's long absence from the Second Battle of Yeonpyeong commemoration ceremony. It was only on the 10th anniversary, after North Korea's sinking of the Cheonan and shelling of Yeonpyeong, that a proper government-level event began to be held.

What reaction would our soldiers show today if their commanders sent them a message saying, "When your descendants ask who your ancestors were, you should have the pride of the ancient Greeks who said their ancestors were warriors who fought at the Trojan front." Shin Chae-ho famously warned, "A nation that forgets its history has no future."

It is said that the German poet Heinrich Heine, while ill, collapsed before the Venus de Milo statue at the Louvre and clutched the armless statue, weeping, "Save me."

Birth, aging, sickness, and death are unavoidable for everyone. This applies to practitioners seeking enlightenment, clergy guiding to heaven, and monks praying for rebirth in paradise. Even more so, the spirit of sacrifice of those who gave their lives for the nation and its people before fulfilling their natural lifespan must never be in vain. 

Can You Not Hear the Lament of the Heroes?

During the Korean War, there were approximately 137,000 국군 casualties. Seventy years later, the peace the people enjoy was bought with the precious lives of those fallen soldiers. 

The government must ensure that veterans, their families, and the descendants of independence activists receive social and economic benefits equal to or greater than those currently debated for recipients of democratization honors. 

While it may be disrespectful to put a monetary value on the sacrifices of those who gave their lives for the nation, compensation should not be inequitable or result in reverse discrimination based on the nature of the sacrifice. 

Currently, South Korea is experiencing a perplexing 'reversal of compensation.' Those who dedicated themselves to national security receive far less recognition than benefits established through the initiatives of certain ideological groups. 

In a country where those who sacrificed for the nation are treated with neglect, who will be willing to take up arms and go to the front lines again? How can children who grow up seeing the older generation disregard the national heroes learn to love their country?

Seosan Daesa, on his deathbed, cautioned, "A thousand plans and ten thousand thoughts are like a single snowflake on a red-hot furnace." Political ambition and ideological bias are as fleeting as a snowflake in a moment. Only the sacrifices of the heroes who defended the nation remain as eternal values. 

The government must, at long last, accord the proper respect to veterans and the descendants of independence activists. That is equity and etiquette. Only then will the country, defended by Admiral Yi Sun-sin and built by General Paik Sun-yup, be willingly protected by a second Lieutenant Han Ju-ho and a third Sergeant Seo Jeong-u when the full moon rises over Hangsan Island's Janggoaksan. 

Can you not hear the lament of the spirits wandering in the vast underworld? Those in power must painfully heed their stern 'Hwal' (喝). 

※Hwal (喝): Originally, it refers to the stern reprimand issued by a Zen master to a disciple to instantly cut through their afflictions and attachments and urge them toward enlightenment. In this context, it metaphorically represents the stern warning from national heroes and the public sentiment directed towards pseudo-politicians blinded by self-interest in the face of national crisis. 

◆ Monk Eungcheon

Chief Administrator, Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism for National Defense 

First Commander, National Defense Monk Corps