The most striking aspect of the 2026 Busan International Buddhism Expo was its demographic: Hundreds of people in their 20s and 30s packed the booths at BEXCO’s Exhibition Center 1 in Busan on Aug. 9. Young visitors took part in hands-on Buddhist cultural experiences like preparing temple food and performing 108 prostrations. The atmosphere was markedly different from that of other religious events, many attendees said. It was also a far cry from just four or five years ago. The new trend shows young people are experiencing traditional Buddhist culture as something novel and embracing values such as compassion and self-reflection, rather than finding them difficult to understand. Much of this change cannot be discussed without mentioning Haetal Company, a Buddhist merchandise brand that reinterprets Buddhist teachings through online memes familiar to millennials and Generation Z and prints them on clothing and household goods. The company's strategy is to present Buddhism in a cheerful and contemporary way, rather than in the solemn manner conventionally associated with the religion