Dule Temple
The Dule Temple (Traditional Chinese characters, Traditional Chinese: 獨樂寺; Simplified Chinese characters, Simplified Chinese: 独乐寺; pinyin: ''Dúlè Sì''; Literal translation, lit. 'Temple of Solitary Joy) is a Buddhist temple located in Jizhou District, Tianjin, Jizhou District of suburban Tianjin, China. The temple is of historical as well as architectural significance. Its oldest surviving buildings are two timber-frame structures, the front gate and the central hall (pavilion) that houses a colossal clay statue of the Eleven-Headed manifestation of the Guanyin, Bodhisattva Guanyin (Avalokiteśvara). Both structures date back to the Liao dynasty and are among the oldest surviving wooden buildings in China. History The origins of the Dule Temple date back at least to the early Tang Dynasty. However, no buildings from the Tang Dynasty era have survived on the site. The oldest buildings still in existence, the Shan Gate and the Guanyin Pavilion, were constructed durin ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ji County, Tianjin
Jizhou District (), formerly a county known as Ji County, is a district in the far north of the municipality of Tianjin, People's Republic of China, holding cultural and historical significance (''e.g''., the Buddhist Temple of Solitary Joy). Overview The administration of Jizhou was transferred from Hebei province to Tianjin in 1973. Historically, it was also known as Yuyang () during the Tang Dynasty. Jizhou is the only mountainous area in the Tianjin municipality, home to the renowned Mount Pan. Known as "Tianjin's backyard", the spectacular natural scenery and numerous historical monuments, including a small section of the Great Wall known as Huangyaguan, in the county means that it is a major tourist attraction. It is also well known for its abundance of unique, local fruits and nuts. Jizhou is approximately away from the city proper of Tianjin. It has an area of and a population of 800,000. Administrative divisions There are 1 subdistrict, 25 towns, and 1 ethnic t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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An Lushan Rebellion
The An Lushan Rebellion was an uprising against the Tang dynasty of China towards the mid-point of the dynasty (from 755 to 763), with an attempt to replace it with the Yan dynasty. The rebellion was originally led by An Lushan, a general officer of the Tang military system. The event involved military activity and direct deaths from battle, but also significant associated population loss from famine, and population dislocations. The event is also known, especially in Chinese historiography, either as the An–Shi Rebellion or as the An–Shi Disturbances (). The use of the term ''luàn'' ("chaos") indicates the extreme social instability and population loss which eventually resulted, far beyond the initial consequences of the rebellion. Traditionally, Chinese family names have begun with the family name first. In this case the family name of the initial rebel leader is An. The term ''Ān-Shǐ'' is used to recognize that the rebellion continued after An Lushan's death, with the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Hall Of Guanyin
The Hall of Guanyin or Guanyin Hall ( or ) is the most important annex halls in Chinese Buddhist temples and mainly for enshrining Guanyin (Avalokiteśvara). Guanyin, also called "Guanshiyin" (), "Guanshizizai" (), "Guanzizai" (), etc., is the attendant of Amitabha and one of the "Western Three Saints" (). Guanyin is renowned for his mercy and sympathy. According to ''Chapter of the Universal Gate of Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva'' (), if people are in danger, they just need to call his name and he will hear them and go to save them. Since he has many manifestations, different places enshrine different statues of Saint Guanyin (), Guanzizai (), and Thousand-armed and eyed Guanyin (). Statues Saint Guanyin Statue of Saint Guanyin sits in the lotus posture with a lotus or the Yujingping in hand, wearing Keyura, necklaces and decorations and a precious crown on the head. There is a sitting statue of Amitabha () on the crown, which is the main symbol of Guanyin. Guanzizai Statue ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Qing Dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speaking ethnic group who unified other Jurchen tribes to form a new "Manchu" ethnic identity. The dynasty was officially proclaimed in 1636 in Manchuria (modern-day Northeast China and Outer Manchuria). It seized control of Beijing in 1644, then later expanded its rule over the whole of China proper and Taiwan, and finally expanded into Inner Asia. The dynasty lasted until 1912 when it was overthrown in the Xinhai Revolution. In orthodox Chinese historiography, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the Ming dynasty and succeeded by the Republic of China. The multiethnic Qing dynasty lasted for almost three centuries and assembled the territorial base for modern China. It was the largest imperial dynasty in the history of China and in 1790 the f ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Four Heavenly Kings
The Four Heavenly Kings are four Buddhist gods, each of whom is believed to watch over one cardinal direction of the world. In Chinese mythology, they are known collectively as the "Fēng Tiáo Yǔ Shùn" () or "Sìdà Tiānwáng" (). In the ancient language Sanskrit, they are called the "Chaturmahārāja" (चतुर्महाराज) or "Chaturmahārājikādeva": "Four Great Heavenly Kings". The Hall of Four Heavenly Kings is a standard component of Chinese Buddhist temples. Names The Kings are collectively named as follows: The Four Heavenly Kings are said to currently live in the Cāturmahārājika heaven (Pali: Cātummahārājika, "Of the Four Great Kings") on the lower slopes of Mount Sumeru, which is the lowest of the six worlds of the devas of the Kāmadhātu. They are the protectors of the world and fighters of evil, each able to command a legion of supernatural creatures to protect the Dharma. File:Guardian of Phra Meru Mas of Bhumibol Adulyadej - Vessav ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Heng And Ha
Heng and Ha () are two generals of the Shang dynasty in Chinese mythology, featured within the 16th-century Chinese fantasy novel ''Investiture of the Gods''. These two fictional characters were created by the author of ''Investiture of the Gods'' based upon the vajra warriors, two guards of Buddhist temples in East Asia, and have become their common names in Chinese. Novel In the ''Investiture of the Gods'', the Heng () or Hengjiang () is named Zheng Lun () and the Ha () or Hajiang () is named Chen Qi (), both are officials of guarding the grain in the Shang dynasty. Finally, Jiang Ziya canonized and added them to ''Feng Shen Bangs list (). Buddhism In Chinese Buddhism, Heng and Ha are the common names of the '' jingang lishi'', two guards of Buddhist temples. They are usually placed on both sides of the Shanmen. They hold vajras (short metal weapon that has the symbolic nature of a diamond), namely "Narayana" (Buddha's warrior attendant) or "Yaksha Deity" () or "Zhi Jin Gang" ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ming Dynasty
The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han Chinese, Han people, the majority ethnic group in China. Although the primary capital of Beijing fell in 1644 to a rebellion led by Li Zicheng (who established the short-lived Shun dynasty), numerous rump state, rump regimes ruled by remnants of the House of Zhu, Ming imperial family—collectively called the Southern Ming—survived until 1662. The Ming dynasty's founder, the Hongwu Emperor (r. 1368–1398), attempted to create a society of self-sufficient rural communities ordered in a rigid, immobile system that would guarantee and support a permanent class of soldiers for his dynasty: the empire's standing army exceeded one million troops and the naval history of China, navy's dockyards in Nanjin ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Yan Song
Yan Song (; 1480–1567), courtesy name Weizhong (惟中), pseudonym Jiexi (介溪), was a Chinese politician and regent of the Ming dynasty. He was notorious for being corrupt and for dominating the Ming government for two decades as Grand Secretary during the reign of the Jiajing Emperor. Biography Early life Yan Song was born in Fenyi, modern-day Jiangxi province. His father, a scholar who had repeatedly failed the imperial examination, put great effort into educating his son from childhood. A talented scholar, he passed the village examinations at the age of 10, and acquired the ''jinshi'' degree at the age of 25, being inducted into the imperial secretariat (Hanlin Academy) as an editor. His early career was quickly cut short by a severe illness which forced Yan Song to return to his hometown, though this proved to be a blessing in disguise, since it kept him away from the imperial court just as it was under the domination of powerful eunuch Liu Jin. Yan Song returned t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chiwen
''Chiwen'' () is a Chinese dragon, and in Chinese mythology is one of the 9 sons of the dragon. He is depicted in imperial roof decorations and other ornamental motifs in traditional Chinese architecture and art. The name for this dragon is (), which compounds () and (). () and (), both literally meaning "hornless-dragon head", are similar architectural ornaments or waterspouts, comparable with Western gargoyles, but are not related to the mythological character. ''Chiwen'' is alternatively written , using the homophonous character (). The () and () are additional birdlike roof decorations. The ''chiwen'' is listed second or third among the (), Nine Dragons (), which are traditional mythological creatures that have become traditional Chinese feng shui architectural decorations. Each one of the nine dragons has a protective function. The Nine dragons are also used in many place names in Hong Kong, such as Kowloon, literally meaning "nine dragons" in Cantonese ( ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Shanmen
The Shanmen (), also known as the Gate of Three Liberations, is the most important gate of a Chinese Chan Buddhist temple. Etymology The origins of the name "sanmen" are debated. One theory is that "''Shanmen''" takes its literal meaning of "Mountain Gate", because temples were traditionally built in forested mountain areas where Chan monks could seclude away from secular life. Another suggests that during various episodes of suppression of Buddhism in Chinese history, monks moved their monasteries deep into the mountains, and later built gates at the foot of the mountain to guide pilgrims to the temples. A further theory is that "Shanmen" is a corruption of "Sanmen", or "Three Gates", referring to the "three gateways" to liberations.() in the Dharma - the "Kongmen" (; emptiness liberation), "wuxiangmen" (; no-aspects liberation) and "wuyuanmen" (; desireless liberation). The latter view correlates with the traditional structure of Chan temples which included three gateways, sai ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Shan Gate Of Dule Temple
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the most frequently used word in the English language; studies and analyses of texts have found it to account for seven percent of all printed English-language words. It is derived from gendered articles in Old English which combined in Middle English and now has a single form used with nouns of any gender. The word can be used with both singular and plural nouns, and with a noun that starts with any letter. This is different from many other languages, which have different forms of the definite article for different genders or numbers. Pronunciation In most dialects, "the" is pronounced as (with the voiced dental fricative followed by a schwa) when followed by a consonant sound, and as (homophone of the archaic pron ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Liang Sicheng
Liang Sicheng (; 20 April 1901 – 9 January 1972) was a Chinese architect and architectural historian, known as the father of modern Chinese architecture. His father, Liang Qichao, was one of the most prominent Chinese scholars of the early 20th century. His wife was the architect and poet Lin Huiyin. His younger brother, Liang Siyong, was one of China's first archaeologists. Liang authored the first modern history on Chinese architecture, and he was the founder of the Architecture Department of Northeastern University in 1928 and Tsinghua University in 1946. He was the Chinese representative of the Design Board which designed the United Nations headquarters in New York City. He, along with wife Lin Huiyin, Mo Zongjiang, and Ji Yutang, discovered and analyzed the first and second oldest timber structures still standing in China, located at Nanchan Temple and Foguang Temple at Mount Wutai. He is recognized as the “Father of Modern Chinese Architecture”. Princeton Univer ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |