"The Simpsons" visit Buddhist lands (cartoon)

The Simpsons; Jon Dunbar (koreatimes.co.kr); CC Liu, Amber Larson (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Homer sits in front of a statue of Podae Hwasang in Jogye Temple, Korea (20th Century Fox)

We're what they call ugly Americans.

Popular animated sitcom family The Simpsons have been all around the world. They went to Buddhist Japan, where Bart and Homer became fluent in Japanese in prison and they nearly died on a game show.

They went to Australia, where Bart escaped the country's supposedly brutal justice system.

And they visited Brazil in an episode that had the local tourist board threatening a lawsuit over its depiction as a crime-ridden slum.

Now in their 30th season, The Simpsons have finally made it to Buddhist Korea, the country where they are animated.

I've understood the Tao of Zen: Satori.

In the episode that aired March 17th, Bart goes to Seoul to participate in an eSports tournament. The whole family comes along after Lisa, a practicing Buddhist, expresses interest in visiting Jogye Temple for its salt mandalas.

On arrival, they drive past the "Simpsons Animation Studio and Casino" and stay at the "Courtyard by DMZ."

At Jogye Temple, parents Homer and Marge both achieve "zen" by making sand mandala portraits out of salt particles then destroying them.

We visited Korea before The Simpsons.

Buddhist monks, including one voiced by Korean-American comic actor Ken Jeong, admire Homer's sudden enlightenment and compare him to a portly Buddhist statue at the temple. More

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