Baisui Palace () is a

Buddhist temple A Buddhist temple or Buddhist monastery is the place of worship for Buddhists, the followers of Buddhism. They include the structures called vihara, chaitya, stupa, wat and pagoda in different regions and languages. Temples in Buddhism represen ...

located on the top of Chaxiao Peak, in

Chizhou Chizhou () is a prefecture-level city in the south of Anhui province, China. It borders Anqing to the northwest, Tongling and Wuhu to the northeast, Xuancheng to the east, Huangshan to the southeast, and the province of Jiangxi to the southwest. ...

Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...

, China. Over the course of 400 years, the temple was destroyed and rebuilt several times, due to war and natural disasters. Alongside Zhiyuan Temple, Dongyan Chan Temple and Ganlu Temple, it was venerated as one of the "Four Great Buddhist Temples in Mount Jiuhua".

History

Ming dynasty

The temple was first built in the Wanli period (1573–1620) of the

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 ort ...

(1368–1644) by monk Haiyu (), who more commonly known as "Master Wuxia" (). Haiyu died by age 110, his body became a

mummy A mummy is a dead human or an animal whose soft tissues and organs have been preserved by either intentional or accidental exposure to chemicals, extreme cold, very low humidity, or lack of air, so that the recovered body does not decay fu ...

Qing dynasty

The temple underwent five renovations in the whole

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-speak ...

(1644–1911). In 1717 in the reign of

Kangxi Emperor The Kangxi Emperor (4 May 1654– 20 December 1722), also known by his temple name Emperor Shengzu of Qing, born Xuanye, was the third emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the second Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1661 to 1 ...

(1662–1722), a disastrous fire consumed the temple, and it was restored in 1721 by abbot Sancheng (). It was refurbished and redecorated in 1814 and 1826 respectively. In 1853, in the ruling of

Xianfeng Emperor The Xianfeng Emperor (17 July 1831 – 22 August 1861), or by temple name Emperor Wenzong of Qing (), given name Yizhu (), was the eighth Emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the seventh Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigned from 1850 t ...

, most of the temple buildings were destroyed during the war between the

Taiping Rebellion The Taiping Rebellion, also known as the Taiping Civil War or the Taiping Revolution, was a massive rebellion and civil war that was waged in China between the Manchu-led Qing dynasty and the Han, Hakka-led Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. It lasted fr ...

of the Qing army. Part of the temple was destroyed by fire in the late

Guangxu period The Guangxu Emperor (14 August 1871 – 14 November 1908), personal name Zaitian, was the tenth Emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the ninth Qing emperor to rule over China proper. His reign lasted from 1875 to 1908, but in practice he ruled, wi ...

(1875–1908). The mummy of Haiyu, gold seal, jade seal survived.

Republic of China

From 1931 to 1953, monk Changdi (), Juezhen (), Wuguang () and Xinmiao () successively served as abbot of the temple.

People's Republic of China

After the 3rd Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, the local government refurbished and redecorated the temple in 1982. The temple has been designated as National Key Buddhist Temple in Han Chinese Area by the

State Council of China The State Council, constitutionally synonymous with the Central People's Government since 1954 (particularly in relation to local governments), is the chief administrative authority of the People's Republic of China. It is chaired by the p ...

in 1983.

Architecture

The temple occupies a building area of . The existing main buildings include the

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 "Mo ...

Mahavira Hall A Mahavira Hall, usually simply known as a Main Hall, is the main hall or building in a traditional Chinese Buddhist temple, enshrining representations of Gautama Buddha and various other buddhas and bodhisattvas. It is encountered throughout ...

, Body Hall (), Dining Hall, storehouse, and monk's House.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baisui Palace Buddhist temples on Mount Jiuhua Buildings and structures in Chizhou Tourist attractions in Chizhou 18th-century establishments in China 18th-century Buddhist temples Religious buildings and structures completed in 1721