Daxiangguo Temple () is a famous Chinese Buddhist Temple in

Kaifeng Kaifeng () is a prefecture-level city in east-central Henan province, China. It is one of the Eight Ancient Capitals of China, having been the capital eight times in history, and is best known for having been the Chinese capital during the Nort ...

in eastern

Henan province Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...

People's Republic of 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 ...

. It is located in the center of Kaifeng City. It played a key role in the development of Chinese Buddhism. The views of the temple earned many honors, include "Ten Miracles of a Chinese Temple", "Eight sights of Bianliang", "Xiangguo Frosty Bells," which is also one of the most famous views of this temple. It is also considered among the top ten famous temples in China. A famous computer game called "Moonlight Blade Online" created by

Tencent Games Tencent Games () is the video game publishing Division (business), division of Tencent Interactive Entertainment, itself a division of Tencent, Tencent Holdings. It has five internal studio groups, including TiMi Studio Group. Tencent Games was ...

recognizes this temple.

History

It was first built in 555 A.D., the sixth year during Emperor Wenxuan's reign of the

Northern Qi Qi, known as the Northern Qi (), Later Qi (後齊) or Gao Qi (高齊) in historiography, was a Chinese imperial dynasty and one of the Northern dynasties during the Northern and Southern dynasties era. It ruled the eastern part of northern China ...

period (550–577) and it was named "Xiangguo Temple"(. From the historical record, the temple is built on the land belonging to Mr. Xinling, who was one of "Four Gentlemen" during the

Warring States The Warring States period () was an era in ancient Chinese history characterized by warfare, as well as bureaucratic and military reforms and consolidation. It followed the Spring and Autumn period and concluded with the Qin wars of conquest ...

period. Then it was renamed Daxiangguo Temple in memory of

Emperor Ruizong of Tang Emperor Ruizong of Tang (22 June 662 – 13 July 716), personal name Li Dan, also known at times during his life as Li Xulun, Li Lun, Wu Lun, and Wu Dan, was the fifth and ninth emperor of Tang Dynasty. He was the eighth son of Emperor Gaozong ...

, who took the throne as Xiangwang (), the king of Xiang, in 712 A.D. The temple reached the height of its status as a Royal Temple in the

Song Dynasty The Song dynasty (; ; 960–1279) was an imperial dynasty of China that began in 960 and lasted until 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song following his usurpation of the throne of the Later Zhou. The Song conquered the rest ...

. This temple was worshipped and respected by emperors; therefore they reconstructed it in its new area, which is about 540 mu (about 360,000 square meters), managed 64 departments of

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

and Commandment with several thousand of

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

s. After the reconstruction, the temple became one of the largest

Buddhism 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 gra ...

temples in China. It's also known as a big hub of poets, musicians and a meeting place for all citizens in that period. Also, the Daxiangguo temple was known as an international Buddhism center; many foreign tourists visited, and many monks went there to study. It was a place for the Chinese to exchange their culture with foreigners. However, it was destroyed in the late

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 ...

due to the flood of the

Yellow River The Yellow River or Huang He (Chinese: , Standard Beijing Mandarin, Mandarin: ''Huáng hé'' ) is the second-longest river in China, after the Yangtze River, and the List of rivers by length, sixth-longest river system in the world at th ...

. It was reconstructed under the

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 ...

. Today, the constructs that remain were basically built during the

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 ...

Architecture

Hall of Four Heavenly Kings

The

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 enshr ...

(Tian Wang Dian) includes three red doors and five rooms. The roof was made of golden glazed tiles. The statue of

Maitreya Buddha 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 ...

is located in the center of the hall. He sits on a lotus, smiling. On both sides of the hall, Four Heavenly Kings stand there as the guard. Maitreya Buddha is also known as the successor of

Sakyamuni Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...

(Gautama Buddha), who is the founder of Buddhism.

Bell tower

Almost every Buddhist temple in China has a

bell tower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell tower ...

, as does the Daxiangguo temple. The bell tower is the first major building that visitors see after they step through the main gate. A bell is hanging in the tower, it weighs about 5 tons, and its height is about 2.23 meters. It had been built in 1748. In winter, the sound echoes of the bell can be heard all over the city.

Mahavira Hall

The

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 ...

(The Great Buddha Hall) is the main hall of the temple. It is an individual building which does not connect with other constructs. Bluestone Banister is around the hall. In front of the hall, there are ten little vivid stone lions. Ancient Chinese thought lions could be the guards. Now, there is no statue in this hall.

Arhat Hall

Arhat Hall The Arhat Hall is a hall used for enshrining an arhat or arhats in Chinese Buddhist temples. Arhat is another term for Arahant, one who has gained insight into the true nature of existence and has achieved Enlightenment and liberated from the� ...

is called Luo Han Dian in Chinese. It's a hall with eight angles. The constructor used a colored glaze to make the roof. This design makes the hall unique and beautiful; it's very rare in the whole world. In the hall, there are 500 Buddhist

arhat In Buddhism, an ''arhat'' (Sanskrit: अर्हत्) or ''arahant'' (Pali: अरहन्त्, 𑀅𑀭𑀳𑀦𑁆𑀢𑁆) is one who has gained insight into the true nature of existence and has achieved ''Nirvana'' and liberated ...

s standing on both sides of the building. In the center, there is a wooden

Guanyin Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She ...

Statue ( Avalokitesvara) .

Festival

There are many festivals held in the temple every year; the most popular one is the Lantern Festival. During the Lantern Festival, there is a big lantern exhibition in the temple. It is a place to feel traditional Chinese culture.

References

External links

Website of Daxiangguo Temple
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