Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring

The film opens with a very young Buddhist apprentice living with his master in a small floating monastery on a serene lake in the mountains of Korea. Their days are filled with prayer, meditation, and occasional trips to the bank of the lake for exercise and herb gathering.

The young apprentice begins to demonstrate cruel behavior by tormenting various creatures in the creek, initially targeting a fish, then a frog, and finally a snake. His master silently observes these actions, which culminate in a harsh lesson for the boy later that night.

The apprentice wakes up the next morning with a large rock tied to his back, a punishment from his master. He is forced to find and untie the creatures he tormented, confronting the reality of his actions as he discovers the fish dead, the frog alive but struggling, and the snake bloodied.

In the summer, the now teenage apprentice encounters a modern-dressed mother and daughter searching for the lake monastery. They arrive at the monastery, where it becomes clear that the daughter is suffering from an illness, prompting her mother to seek help from the master.

As the teenage girl stays at the monastery, the apprentice begins to feel a strong sexual attraction towards her. However, his initial advances lead to a moment of panic when he gropes her while she sleeps, resulting in a slap and a fervent return to prayer.

The apprentice and the girl begin a secret sexual relationship, hiding it from his master. Their escapades culminate in them being discovered by the master in a compromising situation on a rowboat, leading to a warning about the consequences of lust and desire.

Emotionally distressed over the master's warning and the thought of losing the girl, the apprentice steals the monastery's Buddha statue and a rooster and runs away into the night. This impulsive act marks a significant turning point in his life.

In the fall, the aging master returns from the village with a cat and comes across a newspaper article revealing the arrest warrant for his former apprentice, now a murderer. Anticipating the apprentice's return, he begins making preparations.

The adult apprentice appears at the lake's edge, filled with anger and bloodstained from the murder of his wife. He attempts to end his life in a ritualistic manner, but the master intervenes, demonstrating a blend of tough love and desperate compassion.

Under the master's guidance, the apprentice begins his path of repentance, carving characters into wood as the master paints. Their yoga is interrupted when detectives arrive to arrest the apprentice, but the master gains them a delay until the carving is complete.

After the apprentice is taken away by the detectives, the master prepares for his own end by building a pyre in the rowboat. He performs a similar suicide ritual as the apprentice but meditates as he suffocates, tears visible on the paper covers sealing his features.

Years later, the now middle-aged apprentice is paroled and returns to the frozen lake and the abandoned monastery. He unearthed the remains of his master and begins to reflect on his past misdeeds while paying homage to the teachings he once ignored.

While at the monastery, the apprentice encounters a woman who leaves her infant son there before fleeing across the frozen lake. Tragically, she falls into a hole and drowns, which the apprentice discovers the next day, stirring up complex emotions about loss and responsibility.

He reflects on his past transgressions while climbing a mountain with a heavy stone tied around his body as a form of penance. Once at the summit, he leaves behind a statue as a gesture of farewell and a promise to his master.

The film concludes back where it began in Spring, with the new master now living in the monastery alongside an abandoned baby who becomes his apprentice. The cycle of torment and learning begins anew as the boy echoes the misdeeds of his predecessor.