"Couple Success Rate 60%, Thanks to Buddha?"... 'Naneun Jeollo' Season 5 Hits Big

20 Unmarried Men and Women Who Overcame 70:1 Competition Participate
Event Held on Chilseok to Meet Gyeonwoo and Jiknyeo

At the 5th session of the group dating templestay for unmarried men and women called 'Naneun Jeollo' held at Naksansa Temple, 6 couples were finally matched out of 10 pairs of participants, marking the highest couple formation rate in history.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

These participants, aged 30 to 39, met on August 9-10 at Naksansa Temple in Yangyang, Gangwon Province. Since 2012, the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism Social Welfare Foundation has been running a 'meeting templestay' program that combines matchmaking for unmarried men and women with templestay experiences. Last year, the program's name was changed to 'Naneun Jeollo,' a parody of the popular dating reality show 'I Am Solo.'

'나는 절로, Naksansa' participants are taking a group photo at Naksansa Temple in Yangyang-gun, Gangwon Province on the 10th. Photo by Yonhap News

After the name change, public interest grew, and this session recruited 10 men and 10 women each, with a total of 1,510 applicants, setting the highest competition rate ever. Male participants had to overcome a competition ratio of 70.1 to 1, and female participants 77.3 to 1 to attend the event. This session was held to coincide with the lunar July 7th (August 10), the day of the legend of Gyeonwoo and Jiknyeo, adding special significance. For this reason, male participants were called Gyeonwoo, and female participants were called Jiknyeo.

The 'Naneun Jeollo' event maintained the basic framework of templestay, including the opening ceremony, meal offerings, and temple tours, but incorporated various programs such as ▲self-introductions ▲recreational activities ▲evening meal dates ▲and ▲Hanbok night dates throughout the schedule. Especially on the evening of the 9th, all participants engaged in a rotation chat where they looked at and talked to each other for 15 minutes, providing an opportunity to better understand each other's feelings before the final selection. These efforts bore fruit, resulting in a record six couples forming in this session.

Participants of 'I Walk to Naksansa Temple' are dressed beautifully in hanbok and are having a conversation at Naksansa Temple in Yangyang-gun, Gangwon Province on the 9th.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Participants who did not become final couples still have another chance. A general reunion gathering all past participants is scheduled for the end of the year. Foundation Secretary General Monk Deokwoon said at the closing ceremony on the 10th, "I hope those who became couples will have even better outcomes in the future," and added, "For those who did not become couples, there will be opportunities to meet better matches."

Meanwhile, 'Naneun Jeollo' received a presidential citation at the 13th Population Day ceremony held on July 11 at the Grand Ballroom of the Westin Chosun Hotel in Seoul for its contribution to solving the low birthrate problem. At the time, Foundation CEO Monk Myojang said, "We operate 'Naneun Jeollo' to gather Buddhist solutions and wisdom on the low birthrate issue, which all citizens empathize with," and added, "We will continue to strive so that more people can participate, share insights, and find alternatives."

The next session of 'Naneun Jeollo' is scheduled to be held in October at Baekyangsa Temple in Jangseong, Jeollanam-do.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.