Jing'an Temple () is an esoteric Tangmi Buddhist temple on the West Nanjing Road in Shanghai. Jing'an District, where it is located, is named after the temple.

History

Buddha in the Precious Hall of the Great Hero, Jing ’an Temple, Shanghai

The original temple was first built in 247 AD in the Wu Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period of ancient China. Originally located beside the

Suzhou Creek Suzhou Creek (or Soochow Creek), also called the Wusong (Woosung) River, is a river that passes through the Shanghai city center. It is named after the neighboring city of Suzhou (Soochow), Jiangsu, the predominant settlement in this area prior ...

, it was relocated to the Jing'an site in 1216 during the Song dynasty. The temple was rebuilt in the Qing dynasty but, during the Cultural Revolution, the temple was razed and turned into a plastic factory. In 1983, the site was returned to its original purpose and the temple rebuilt. Over the years, the temple has been expanded, with the Jing'an Pagoda being completed in 2010. In 1953, Master Chisong (释持松), a monk who had been initiated into the

Shingon sect Shingon monks at Mount Koya is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asia, originally spread from India to China through traveling monks such as Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra. Kn ...

and was trained as an acharya, was appointed abbot of the temple. He re-established the temple under the Tangmi Buddhist tradition and enshrined the Mandala of the Two Realms within the temple. In contemporary times, the temple still officially practices Tangmi Buddhism. On December 19, 2009, a 15-ton silver statue of Buddha Rudra cast in pure silver was installed in Jing'an Temple. More than ten 3-ton silver statues of the Bodhisattva and the disciples were added to the Daxiongbao Hall.

Features

Goddess in the Guanyin hall of Jing ’an Temple, Shanghai

Three Southern-style halls, each with its own courtyard, dating from the most recent reconstruction (1880): * Hall of Heavenly Kings * Hall of the Three Saints * Hall of Virtuous Works * 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 ...

("Precious Hall of the Great Hero"), the main hall * To the east of the main hall is the Guanyin Hall. In the center of the hall is a statue of the goddess made out of

camphor Camphor () is a waxy, colorless solid with a strong aroma. It is classified as a terpenoid and a cyclic ketone. It is found in the wood of the camphor laurel ('' Cinnamomum camphora''), a large evergreen tree found in East Asia; and in the k ...

wood. Standing on a

lotus Lotus may refer to: Plants *Lotus (plant), various botanical taxa commonly known as lotus, particularly: ** ''Lotus'' (genus), a genus of terrestrial plants in the family Fabaceae **Lotus flower, a symbolically important aquatic Asian plant also ...

-shaped base, it is 6.2 meters tall and weighs 5 metric tons * Opposite the hall is the Jade Buddha Hall, where a 3.8-meter

jade Jade is a mineral used as jewellery or for ornaments. It is typically green, although may be yellow or white. Jade can refer to either of two different silicate minerals: nephrite (a silicate of calcium and magnesium in the amphibole group of ...

Buddha sits in the center. It is the largest sitting jade Buddha statue in the country * Abbot's Chambers * Ming Dynasty copper bell (Hongwu Bell), weighing 3.5 tons * Stone Buddhas from the Southern and Northern Dynasties period (420-589 AD) * Paintings by master painters, Chu Zhishan, Zhang Daqian and Wen Zhenming * Mandalas enshrined at a tantric altar on the upper floor

Transportation

The temple sits on top of the Jing'an Temple Station, a major hub of the

Shanghai Metro The Shanghai Metro (; Shanghainese: ''Zaon6he5 Di6thiq7'') is a rapid transit system in Shanghai, operating urban and suburban transit services to 14 of its 16 municipal districts and to Kunshan, Jiangsu Province. Served as a part of Shangha ...

network where

Line 2 Line 2 or 2 Line may refer to: Public transport Americas *2 (New York City Subway service), a rapid transit service in the A Division of the New York City Subway *2 Line (Sound Transit), a light rail line in Seattle, Washington *Line 2 Bloor–Dan ...

and Line 7 intersect. You can take Bus No.113, 40, 830, 824, 20, 15, 37, 21 to arrive Jing'an Temple. There are also Shuttle Express Service provided from airports to Jing'an Temple
Pudong Airport Shuttle Bus Line No. 2
run from City Terminal (beside Jing'an Temple)

Opening Time

The temple opens at 7:30AM and closes at 17:00PM daily in most times of the year .

References

File:Jing'an Temple at night.jpg, The night scene of Jing'an Temple File:Jing'an Temple interior 2.jpg, Inside the temple File:Jing'an Temple door pull.jpg, Doors of the temple File:Jing'an Temple Well Room.jpg, The Well Room File:Jing'an Temple walkway.jpg, Walkways File:Jing'an Temple groups.jpg, The grounds File:Jing'an Temple stairs carving.jpg, The carvings on the stairs File:Jing'an Temple's original bell.jpg, This bell was the original temple bell File:Jing'an Temple wall carving.jpg, carvings File:Jing'an Temple special beam.jpg, The right most beam of the temple is unfinished on the top. File:Jing'an Temple inside.jpg, Interior File:Jing'an Temple window.jpg, The windows File:Jing'an Temple Shanghai 8.jpg, Inside Jing'an Temple File:Jing an with temple.jpg, Jing'an temple inside the modern urban area File:Jing'an Temple Shanghai 3.jpg, Inside Jing'an Temple

External links

*
Official Jing'an Temple website
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{{Portal bar, Religion, China Buddhist temples in Shanghai Jing'an District Qing dynasty architecture Song dynasty architecture 3rd-century Buddhist temples 247 establishments 3rd-century establishments in China Landmarks in Shanghai