The Banruo Temple (), also pronounced Bore, 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 in

Shenhe District The Shenhe District () is one of ten District (China), districts of Shenyang, the capital of Liaoning, Liaoning Province in Northeast China. Shenhe serves as the central district of Shenyang and currently hosts the Seat of government, seat of the ...

Shenyang Shenyang (, ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly known as Fengtian () or by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a major China, Chinese sub-provincial city and the List of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Lia ...

Liaoning Liaoning () is a coastal province in Northeast China that is the smallest, southernmost, and most populous province in the region. With its capital at Shenyang, it is located on the northern shore of the Yellow Sea, and is the northernmost ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. The temple occupies an area of and the total area including temple lands, forests and mountains is over . It is a Bhikkhuni temple.

History

The Banruo Temple was first established by monk Shi Gulin () in 1684, in the reign of Kangxi Emperor in the Qing dynasty (1644–1912). The temple has been rebuilt two times in 1909 and 1924 successively. In 1966, Mao Zedong launched the Cultural Revolution, most parts of Banruo Temple were slightly damaged under the attack of the Red Guards. After the 3rd Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, according to the national policy of free religious belief, Banruo Temple reactivated its religious activities and was officially reopened to the public. In 1983, Banruo Temple was authorized as a

National Key Buddhist Temple in Han Chinese Area National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

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 ...

. The local government repaired and renovated the complex. Banruo Temple was designated as a municipal level cultural relic preservation organ in 1985 and a provincial level key cultural heritage in 2015.

Architecture

The entire temple faces south and divided into two courtyards. The extant buildings include the Hall of Four Heavenly Kings,

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 ...

and Buddhist Texts Library.

Shanmen

Under the eaves of Shanmen is a plaque with the Chinese characters "Banruo Temple" written by calligrapher Feng Ri'an ().

Hall of Four Heavenly Kings

The

Maitreya Maitreya (Sanskrit: ) or Metteyya (Pali: ), also Maitreya Buddha or Metteyya Buddha, is regarded as the future Buddha of this world in Buddhist eschatology. As the 5th and final Buddha of the current kalpa, Maitreya's teachings will be aimed at ...

Buddha, Skanda and

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 a ...

' statues are enshrined in the Hall of Four Heavenly Kings.

Mahavira Hall

The

is the second hall and most important hall in the temple. Statues of Sakyamuni (middle), Amitabha (left) and

Bhaisajyaguru Bhaiṣajyaguru ( sa, भैषज्यगुरु, zh, t= , ja, 薬師仏, ko, 약사불, bo, སངས་རྒྱས་སྨན་བླ), or ''Bhaishajyaguru'', formally Bhaiṣajya-guru-vaiḍūrya-prabhā-rāja ("Medicine Master ...

(right) are enshrined in the middle of the hall. At the back of their statues are paintings of Guanyin,

Manjushri Mañjuśrī (Sanskrit: मञ्जुश्री) is a ''bodhisattva'' associated with '' prajñā'' (wisdom) in Mahāyāna Buddhism. His name means "Gentle Glory" in Sanskrit. Mañjuśrī is also known by the fuller name of Mañjuśrīkumārab ...

and

Samantabhadra Samantabhadra (Lit. "All Good", or "Always Auspicious") may refer to: * Samantabhadra (Bodhisattva), a bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism associated with practice and meditation * ''Samantabhadra'' (Tibetan: ''Kuntu Zangpo''), the name of a Buddha, ...

. In front of Sakyamuni stand Ananda and Kassapa Buddha on the left and right. Stone rubbings of Sixteen Arhats hang on both sides of the hall. In the center of the eaves of the hall is a plaque, on which there are the words "Mahavira Hall" written by calligrapher Huo Anrong ().

Hall of Guru

The Hall of Guru was built in 1676. Paintings of 28 Buddhas enshrined in the hall.

References

{{National Key Buddhist Temples in Han Chinese Area Buddhist temples in Liaoning Buildings and structures in Shenyang Tourist attractions in Shenyang 17th-century establishments in China 17th-century Buddhist temples Religious buildings and structures completed in 1684 Qing dynasty architecture