When religion meets the algorithm: Buddhism Expo draws 250,000 visitors, led by Gen Z and nonreligious crowds

In front of Bongeunsa, a temple in southern Seoul, at 6 p.m. on a Friday, a line began to form. But it wasn’t for prayer or ritual — it was for an EDM party. The night before, hip-hop DJ Wegun and rapper Woo Won-jae had taken the stage. This was part two, headlined by DJ Soda, who boasts over 24 million followers across social media platforms. At exactly 7 p.m., a monk stepped onto the stage and began reciting a passage from the Heart Sutra.