Lingyan Temple () 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

Changqing District Changqing District () is one of 10 urban districts of the prefecture-level city of Jinan, the capital of Shandong Province, East China, covering part of the southwestern suburbs. It has an area of 1,208.54 km2 and has 578,740 permanent resi ...

Jinan Jinan (), Postal Map Romanization, alternately romanization of Chinese, romanized as Tsinan, is the Capital (political), capital of Shandong province in East China, Eastern China. With a population of 9.2 million, it is the second-largest city i ...

Shandong Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...

Province,

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 ...

, about north of the city of

Tai'an Tai'an () is a prefecture-level city in Western Shandong Province of the People's Republic of China. Centered on Mount Tai, the city borders the provincial capital of Jinan to the north, Zibo to the east, Linyi to the southeast, Liaocheng to ...

.Valder, 118. The temple grounds are situated in a valley on the western edge of the Taishan range. The Lingyan Temple has a long

recorded history Recorded history or written history describes the historical events that have been recorded in a written form or other documented communication which are subsequently evaluated by historians using the historical method. For broader world hist ...

, and was one of the main temples in China during the times of the Tang and Song Dynasties. Its most renowned landmarks are the 11th century ''Pìzhī-tǎ'' (辟支塔; "Pizhi Pagoda") and the ''Qiānfó-diàn'' (千佛殿, "Thousand Buddha Hall") which houses a

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 ...

bronze

Buddha statue Much Buddhist art uses depictions of the historical Buddha, Gautama Buddha, which are known as Buddharūpa (literally, "Form of the Awakened One") in Sanskrit and Pali. These may be statues or other images such as paintings. The main figure in ...

as well as 40 painted clay statues of life-size luohan from 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 ...

.Valder, 119.

History

The original temple was established in the Yongxing reign period (357–358), during the reign of

Fú Jiān The character ''Fú'' (, Unicode U+798F) meaning "fortune" or "good luck" is represented both as a Chinese ideograph and, at times, pictorially, in one of its homophonous forms. It is often found on a figurine of the male god of the same name, o ...

(r. 357–385) of the

Former Qin The Former Qin, also called Fu Qin (苻秦), (351–394) was a dynastic state of the Sixteen Kingdoms in Chinese history ruled by the Di ethnicity. Founded by Fu Jian (posthumously Emperor Jingming) who originally served under the Later ...

state. Gaining a greater reputation during the

Northern Wei Wei (), known in historiography as the Northern Wei (), Tuoba Wei (), Yuan Wei () and Later Wei (), was founded by the Tuoba (Tabgach) clan of the Xianbei. The first of the Northern and Southern dynasties#Northern dynasties, Northern dynasties ...

(386–534), the temple reached its apex of importance during the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...

(618–907) and

(960–1279). There were over 40 different wooden temple halls located at the temple, composing more than 500 monastic rooms.Lingyan Temple
. From ChinaCulture.org. Retrieved on 2008-02-12. More than 500

Buddhist monks A ''bhikkhu'' (Pali: भिक्खु, Sanskrit: भिक्षु, ''bhikṣu'') is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male and female monastics ("nun", ''bhikkhunī'', Sanskrit ''bhikṣuṇī'') are members of the Sangha (Buddhist c ...

lived at Lingyan Temple during its height. The oldest structures at the site are the various stone

stupa A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as ''śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation. In Buddhism, circumamb ...

s and square-based stone

Chinese pagoda A pagoda is an Asian tiered tower with multiple eaves common to Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most often Buddhist but sometimes Taoist, ...

in the pavilion style from the Tang dynasty, the 8th century Huichong Pagoda. Of the 167 stone stupas at the temple, no two are identical, and like the luohan statues of the Qiānfó-diàn, have been well preserved. The tallest structure of the temple is the 54 m (177 ft) tall Pìzhī-tǎ, built originally in 753, although the present structure was built from 1056 to 1063.Pizhi Pagoda at Lingyan Temple in Changqing of Shandong Province
. From China.org.cn. Retrieved on 2008-02-12. Although the wooden halls were all reconstructed during the

(1368–1644) and

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 ...

(1644–1912), the stone pedestals at the base of the pillars in the Qiānfó-diàn are the original work of the Tang and Song eras.

Gallery

File:Lingyan Si - Qian Fo Dian.jpg, The exterior of the Qiānfó-diàn (Thousand Buddha Hall) of Lingyan Temple. Notice the elaborate ''

dougong ''Dougong'' () is a structural element of interlocking wooden brackets, one of the most important in traditional Chinese architecture. The use of dougong first appeared in buildings of the late centuries BC and evolved into a structural net ...

'' brackets supporting the pent, shingled roof. File:Stupas at Lingyan Si.jpg, Some of the 167

s in the stupa forest at Lingyan, some as old as the

(618 - 907) while some date as late as the

(1636 - 1911). File:Jinan 2009 1499.jpg, This squared stupa (742-755 AD,

) marks the burial of monk Hui Chong, who led the monastery during his lifetime. File:Jinan 2009 1491.jpg, The corners of the pagoda display dour guardian telamons such as this, that symbolically hold up the entire structure File:View on Lingyan Si.jpg, From a cliffside of nearby

Mount Tai Mount Tai () is a mountain of historical and cultural significance located north of the city of Tai'an. It is the highest point in Shandong province, China. The tallest peak is the '' Jade Emperor Peak'' (), which is commonly reported as being t ...

, a view onto Lingyan Temple and Pìzhī-tǎ (Pizhi Pagoda)

Notes

References

*Valder, Peter. (2002). ''Gardens in China''. Portland: The Timber Press, Inc. .

External links

Lingyan Temple at ChinaCulture.org
{{coord, 36, 21, 46, N, 116, 58, 41, E, type:landmark_region:CN-37, display=title 8th-century Buddhist temples Religious buildings and structures completed in 1063 11th-century Buddhist temples Song dynasty architecture Tang dynasty Buddhist temples Buddhist temples in Jinan Tourist attractions in Jinan Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Shandong

History

Gallery

See also

Notes

References

External links