Kaiyuan Temple () is a Buddhist temple located in

Xiangqiao District Xiangqiao District () is a district under the administration of Chaozhou city, in Guangdong province of the 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 Li ...

of Chaozhou,

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...

, China. After ascending the throne in 713, Emperor Xuanzong issued the decree building "Kaiyuan Temples" which was named after his reign title "Kaiyuan" () in each prefecture of the

Tang Empire The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingd ...

(618–907). Through the rise and fall in the Tang,

Song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetit ...

, Yuan,

Ming The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peop ...

and

Qing dynasties 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-speaki ...

, most of the present structures of Kaiyuan Temple still preserves the original appearance include several national treasures.

History

Kaiyuan temple was first established in 738, in the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdom ...

(618–907) with the original name of "Lifeng Temple" (). The name was changed to "Kaiyuan Wanshou Chan Temple" () during the

Yuan dynasty The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fift ...

(1172–1638). And then it was renamed "Kaiyuan Zhenguo Chan Temple" () in the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last orthodox dynasty of China ruled by the Han peo ...

(1368–1644). 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-spea ...

(1644–1911), people usually called it "Kaiyuan Temple" () which is still use now. In 1950, Buddhist monk Chunxin () was elected as the new abbot of the temple. Under his leadership, the temple was refurbished and redecorated. In 1962, Kaiyuan Temple was categorized as a provincial level key cultural heritage by the Guangdong Provincial Government. During the ten years devastating

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goa ...

, the resident monks were being to disrobe and return to secular life, the abbot died in countryside. After the 3rd Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, according to the national policy of free religious belief, Buddhist monk Huiyuan () was unanimously chosen as abbot of the temple. He headed the reconstruction project. The reconstruction of the project lasted six years. In 1983, Kaiyuan Temple was classified as a National Key Buddhist Temple in Han Chinese Area. In 1991, Buddhist monk Dingran () was elected as abbot. During his term in the position,

Thai Chinese Thai Chinese (also known as Chinese Thais, Sino-Thais), Thais of Chinese origin ( th, ชาวไทยเชื้อสายจีน; ''exonym and also domestically''), endonym Thai people ( th, ชาวไทย), are Chinese descenda ...

, Upasika Xie Huiru () donated property to establish a Thailand style Buddhist Hall known as "Taifo Hall" ( with a

Buddha image Buddhist art is visual art produced in the context of Buddhism. It includes depictions of Gautama Buddha and other Buddhas and bodhisattvas, notable Buddhist figures both historical and mythical, narrative scenes from their lives, mandalas, and ...

Maravijaya attitude Māravijaya attitude or ''mara vichai'' ( th, ปางมารวิชัย, ; Khmer: ព្រះពុទ្ធផ្ចាញ់មារ, ''preah pud (buddha) p'chanh mea'') is an attitude of Buddha in Thai art of which the seated Buddha ...

enshrined in the hall. On June 25, 2001, Kaiyuan Temple was listed among the fifth group of "

Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Guangdong Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

" by the State Council of China.

Architecture

Along the central axis are 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 ...

Four Heavenly Kings Hall 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 ...

, Mahavira Hall and Buddhist Texts Library. The other buildings include Dabei Hall, Taifo Hall, abbot's hall, dining hall, wing-rooms, etc.

Mahavira Hall

The Mahavira Hall enshrining the statues 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 ...

(middle), Amitabha (west) and Bhaisajyaguru (east). The statues of

Eighteen Arhats The Eighteen Arhats (or Luohan) () are depicted in Chinese Buddhism as the original followers of Gautama Buddha (''arhat'') who have followed the Noble Eightfold Path and attained the four stages of enlightenment. They have reached the state of N ...

stand on both sides of the hall.

Dabei Hall

The Babei Hall () was built in 2005. The construction took five years, and lasted from 2000 to 2005. It is wide, high with a depth of . The hall covers a building area of and the total area of . Under the eaves is a plaque with the Chinese characters "Dabei Hall" written by

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

sinologist

Jao Tsung-I Jao Tsung-I or Rao Zongyi (; 9 August 1917 – 6 February 2018) was a Hong Kong sinologist, calligrapher, historian and painter. A versatile and prolific scholar, he contributed to many fields of humanities, including history, archaeology, epig ...

. A total of 86 statues of

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 ...

are enshrined in the hall.

Taifo Hall

A bronze statue of

Gautama Buddha 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 ...

is enshrined in the Taifo Hall (). It is high and weights . On the walls of the hall are painting with stories of Prince Siddhartha attaining Enlightenment in Thai artwork style. The statue of

Phra Phrom Phra Phrom ( th, พระพรหม; from Sanskrit: ''Brahmā'', ब्रह्मा) is the Thai representation of the Hindu creator god Brahma. In modern Thailand, Phra Phrom is often worshipped outside of Hindu contexts by regular Buddh ...

(), also known as "Four-faced Brahma" (), stands in the east side.

National treasures

Thousand Buddha Pagoda

The seven story, tall,

hexagon In geometry, a hexagon (from Greek , , meaning "six", and , , meaning "corner, angle") is a six-sided polygon. The total of the internal angles of any simple (non-self-intersecting) hexagon is 720°. Regular hexagon A '' regular hexagon'' has ...

al-based Chinese pagoda is made of wood in the

(1368–1644). The

and Twenty-four Gods and Kings are carved on the body of the pagoda.

Bronze bell

The bronze bell which is high and in circumference is the symbol of Kaiyuan Temple, weighs more than . It was cast in 1114 in the reign of Emperor Huizong of

Northern Song dynasty Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ...

Stone pillars

Kaiyuan Temple houses four stone pillars (), they were made in the

(618–907). They are decorated with relief carvings of the Buddha, lotus petals, Hercules, Buddhist texts, and other designs.

Banisters

The banisters of the Mahavira Hall are carved with stories of Sakyamuni's becoming monk and other patterns, they were made in the Tang dynasty (618–907).

Xianglu

Kaiyuan Temple collected two ''Xianglu'' (). One was cast by Korean monk in the Kaiyuan period (713–741) of Tang dynasty (618–907). The other was cast in 1325 by

(1271–1368) politician Xu Zhenjin ().

Yunban

The ''Yunban'' () in 1346, during the 6th year of Zhizheng period (1341–1370) of the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368).

Dragon-store Canon

A set of ''Dragon-store Buddhist Canon'' () which printed in the

Qianlong era The Qianlong Emperor (25 September 17117 February 1799), also known by his temple name Emperor Gaozong of Qing, born Hongli, was the fifth Emperor of the Qing dynasty and the fourth Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigning from 1735 t ...

(1376–1796) of the

(1644–1911) are preserved in Kaiyuan Temple. The

Buddhist Canon 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 ...

was printed by imperial government and only 100 copies were produced at that time.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kaiyuan Temple Buildings and structures in Chaozhou Tourist attractions in Chaozhou 8th-century establishments in China 8th-century Buddhist temples Buddhist temples in Chaozhou