TEMPLE OF GREAT CHARITY

History

The temple, originally built under the Jin and subsequently edited under the Yuan, was reconstructed under the Ming in 1457 on the order of Emperor Tian Shun. He was then baptized «Temple of Great Mercy and Great Relief» (Hong Ci Guang Ji Si). The ensemble still experienced some work and, following a fire, the temple had a last restoration in 1935.

Visit

Covering an area of 2.4 ha, the temple runs over four courses, the whole opening to the south.

We cross the first courtyard with tower of the Cloche and Tower of the Drum, at the bottom of which is held in Maitreya.

In the second courtyard, there are many Ming and Qing stalls that have interesting inscriptions and announce the main hall, the Heroes Room (Da Xion Bao Dian). By lifting the head, you will notice on the central ridge of the roof a ridge adorned with lotus flowers and a inscription in Sanskrus meaning "the Eternal World". In the hall, we will note the important statue, with the statues of Sakyamuni, Kasyapa and Maitreya (the Buddhas of the Past, Present and Future) surrounded by the effigies of the eighteen arhats. Behind the plot is a magnificent painting of 10 on 5 m, representing Sakyamuni preaching the law to his disciples, surrounded by a hundred mythological characters.

At the bottom of the third courtyard stands the room of perfect understanding (Yuan Tong Dian), dedicated to Guan Yin, goddess of Mercy. This room houses very beautiful statues of Avalokitésvara and, in the center, a beautiful and gigantic statue of Guan Yin with thousand eyes and thousand arms. On both sides, a golden statue of Guan Yin dating from the Ming, and another bronze where the goddess is represented on a lotus flower flower.

The fourth and last courtyard is closed by a majestic two-story room, the Relics of Buddha (She Li Ge), on the ground floor which can be admired by the gifts offered by the foreign Buddhist associations.

Today, the temple is the headquarters of the association of Buddhists of China, and monks organize ritual ceremonies there every month. Its library contains more than 100,000 rare copies of sacred texts as well as other texts inscribed on stone and many relics.