Bongeunsa temple - Lotus flower and elephant

The lotus is a symbol of purity because it grows above the water and mud. Buddha is often depicted seated on a lotus flower.
The elephant also has an important place in Buddhism : it would have been the first animal to come to pay its last respects to Sakyamuni. Sakyamuni would have also "tamed" an angry elephant thrown against him by an enemy. Finally, to help him during his period of fasting, a monkey reportedly offered him honey and an elephant bamboo sticks. Also in the book of Brahma, the Buddha would be an elephant with six tusks.