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Xingfu Temple (Changshu)
Xingfu Temple () is a Buddhist temple located at the foot of Mount Yu in Changshu, Jiangsu, China. History The temple was first construction as "Dabei Temple" or "Temple of Great Compassion" () between 494 and 502 by prefectural governor Ni Deguang (), under the Southern Qi dynasty (479–502). It was largely extended in 539 and renamed "Fushou Temple" or "Temple of Blessing and Longevity" (), during the reign of Emperor Wu of Liang dynasty (502–557). It was also called "Poshan Temple" () because it sits along the Polong Stream (). In 868, in the 9th year of Xiantong period in the Tang dynasty (618–907), Emperor Yizong inscribed plaque with Chinese characters "Xingfu Chan Temple" () to the temple. After the establishment of the Communist State in 1949, the local government renovated and refurbished Xingfu Temple several times. A renovation and rebuilding to the main building began in 1981 and were completed in 1985. Xingfu Temple has been designated as a Nati ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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] |
Hall Of Four Heavenly Kings
The Hall of Four Heavenly Kings or Four Heavenly Kings Hall (), referred to as Hall of Heavenly Kings, is the first important hall inside a shanmen (mount gate) in Chinese Buddhist temples and is named due to the Four Heavenly Kings statues enshrined in the hall. Maitreya Buddha is enshrined in the Hall of Heavenly King and at the back of his statue is a statue of Skanda Bodhisattva facing the northern Mahavira Hall. In Buddhism, the Maitreya Buddha, also the future Buddha is Sakyamuni's successor. In the history of Chinese Buddhism, Maitreya Buddha has the handsome image in which he wears a coronet on his head and yingluo () on his body and his hands pose in mudras. According to ' (; ''Sung kao-seng chuan''), in the Later Liang Dynasty (907-923), there was a fat and big-stomached monk named "Qici" () in Fenghua of Mingzhou (now Zhejiang). Carrying a sack on his shoulder, he always begged in the markets and streets, laughing. So local people called him "The Sack Monk" (). When h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1985 Establishments In China
The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a new agreement on fishing rights. * January 7 – Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency launches ''Sakigake'', Japan's first interplanetary spacecraft and the first deep space probe to be launched by any country other than the United States or the Soviet Union. * January 15 – Tancredo Neves is elected president of Brazil by the Congress, ending the 21-year military rule. * January 20 – Ronald Reagan is privately sworn in for a second term as President of the United States. * January 27 – The Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) is formed, in Tehran. * January 28 – The charity single record "We Are the World" is recorded by USA for Africa. February * February 4 – The border between Gibraltar and Spai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tourist Attractions In Suzhou
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as being limited to holiday activity only", as people "travelling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure and not less than 24 hours, business and other purposes". Tourism can be domestic (within the traveller's own country) or international, and international tourism has both incoming and outgoing implications on a country's balance of payments. Tourism numbers declined as a result of a strong economic slowdown (the late-2000s recession) between the second half of 2008 and the end of 2009, and in consequence of the outbreak of the 2009 H1N1 influenza virus, but slowly recovered until the COVID-19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Buildings And Structures In Suzhou
A building, or edifice, is an enclosed structure with a roof and walls standing more or less permanently in one place, such as a house or factory (although there's also portable buildings). Buildings come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and functions, and have been adapted throughout history for a wide number of factors, from building materials available, to weather conditions, land prices, ground conditions, specific uses, prestige, and aesthetic reasons. To better understand the term ''building'' compare the list of nonbuilding structures. Buildings serve several societal needs – primarily as shelter from weather, security, living space, privacy, to store belongings, and to comfortably live and work. A building as a shelter represents a physical division of the human habitat (a place of comfort and safety) and the ''outside'' (a place that at times may be harsh and harmful). Ever since the first cave paintings, buildings have also become objects or canvasses of much artistic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Buddhist Temples In Suzhou
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gradually spread throughout much of Asia via the Silk Road. It is the world's fourth-largest religion, with over 520 million followers (Buddhists) who comprise seven percent of the global population. The Buddha taught the Middle Way, a path of spiritual development that avoids both extreme asceticism and hedonism. It aims at liberation from clinging and craving to things which are impermanent (), incapable of satisfying ('), and without a lasting essence (), ending the cycle of death and rebirth (). A summary of this path is expressed in the Noble Eightfold Path, a training of the mind with observance of Buddhist ethics and meditation. Other widely observed practices include: monasticism; "taking refuge" in the Buddha, the , and the ; and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sun Zhu
Sun Zhu (1711–1778Yu, 64-65) was a Qing scholar. He was also known as Hengtang Tuishi ("Retired Master of Hengtang") and was the original compiler and editor of the anthology ''Three Hundred Tang Poems'', a popular compilation of Tang poetry, partly designed as a study aid for students. An enduring classic, Sun Zhu's version has often been reprinted, often in revised or re-edited editions. Biography Dissatisfied with the anthology ''Poems by a Thousand Masters'' (''Qianjiashi'' ) compiled by Liu Kezhuang in the late Southern Song dynasty and influenced by Ming Dynasty poetry anthologies, Sun selected the poems for a new anthology, based upon their popularity and educational value. His collection has been popular ever since, and can be found in many Chinese households. For centuries, elementary students memorized the poems and used them to learn to read and write. The collection includes selections of most major forms of Tang poetry of the ''shi'' form, which is considered to be ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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] |
Three Hundred Tang Poems
The ''Three Hundred Tang Poems'' () is an anthology of poems from the Chinese Tang dynasty (618–907). It was first compiled around 1763 by Sun Zhu (1722–1778Yu, 64–65), who was a Qing Dynasty scholar and was also known as Hengtang Tuishi (, "Retired Master of Hengtang"). Various later editions also exist. All editions contain slightly more than 300 total poems. The number 300 (or more exactly 305) was a classic number for a poetry collection due to the influence of the ''Classic of Poetry'' (, ''Shijing''), which was generally known as ''The Three Hundred Poems''. Dissatisfied with the anthology ''Poems by a Thousand Masters'' (, ''Qianjiashi'') compiled by Liu Kezhuang in the late Southern Song, and influenced by Ming Dynasty poetry anthologies, Sun selected the poems based on their popularity and educational value. The collection has been popular ever since and can be found in many Chinese households. For centuries, elementary students memorized the poems and used them to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dharma Hall
The Dharma Hall, also known as Lecture Hall, is an important building in Chinese Buddhism, Han Chinese Chan Buddhism, Buddhist temples. The Dharma Hall is the place for senior monks to preach and generally ranks right after the Mahavira Hall. With the similar architecture form with other halls, the Dharma Hall is more spacious. In the central back, there is a high platform with a sitting chair putting in the middle. In front of the chair is a table with a small sitting Buddha on it, behind the platform is a screen or a picture of lion which is also known as "Roaring lion" () in Buddhism Dharma hung on the wall. Seats are placed on both sides of the platform with bells and drums for senior monks to beat when they are preaching. There are also seats on both sides of the monks' seats for laymen to listen to the Buddha Dharma by senior monks. References Further reading * * External links {{Buddhist temples in China Chinese Buddhist architecture ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hall Of Guru
The Hall of Guru or Guru Hall (), also known as the Founder's Hall, is the most important annex halls in Chinese Buddhist temples for enshrining masters of various Buddhism schools. It is encountered throughout East Asia, including in some Japanese Buddhist Kaisandos (). The Hall of Guru is generally situated to the west of the Mahavira Hall. Chan Buddhist temples usually have the Hall of Guru, which is followed by other schools' temples. Therefore three statues are always enshrined in the Guru Hall, namely the founder of the school, the senior monk who make significant contributions to the establishment of the school and the builder of the temple. Generally the Guru Hall in Chan Buddhism temples has Bodhidharma enshrined in the middle, the 6th Master Huineng's (638-713) statue on the left and Master Baizhang Huaihai's (720-814) statue on the right. Patriarch Bodhidharma and ''Damo'' () for short, from south of ancient India, was the original ancestor of Chan Buddhism. The 6th Mas ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Drum Tower (Asia)
A drum tower () or gulou is a tower in the center of an old Chinese city or village, housing signal drums. There was usually also a bell tower nearby. There were once found all over China in villages, marking the symbolic center of the settlement and used to mark nightfall and to summon the people for civic ceremonies and significant occasions, such as Chinese New Year. The drum tower often being located in the symbolic center of a city, downtown districts of several Chinese cities have been named after the tower. See also * Drum tower (Chinese Buddhism), a different type of drum tower Individual drum towers * Gulou and Zhonglou (Beijing) (Drum Tower and Bell Tower of Beijing) * Drum Tower of Xi'an * Drum Tower of Nanjing * Bianjing Drum Tower The Bianjing Drum Tower, also known as the Bianjing Pavilion and by its Chinese name as the Bianjing Lou, is a drum tower in Shangguan, the seat of Dai County, Xinzhou Prefecture, Shanxi, in the People's Republic of China. It dates t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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