Yingfeng 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

Yingjiang District Yingjiang District () is an urban district of and the easternmost county-level division of the city of Anqing, Anhui Province, People's Republic of China. It has a population of (2005) and an area of . Administrative divisions Yingjiang Distric ...

Anqing Anqing (, also Nganking, formerly Hwaining, now the name of Huaining County) is a prefecture-level city in the southwest of Anhui province, People's Republic of China. Its population was 4,165,284 as of the 2020 census, with 804,493 living in the ...

Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...

, China.

History

Song dynasty

The temple was first built in 974, under Emperor Taizu (960–976) rule in the recently founded

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 ...

(960–1279).

Ming dynasty

In 1619, in the reign of

Wanli Emperor The Wanli Emperor (; 4 September 1563 – 18 August 1620), personal name Zhu Yijun (), was the 14th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1572 to 1620. "Wanli", the era name of his reign, literally means "ten thousand calendars". He was the ...

(1573–1620) of the

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 ...

(1368–1644), Ruan Zihua (), a local gentleman, rebuilt the temple. In the following year,

Emperor Guangzong Emperor Guangzong of Song (30 September 1147 – 17 September 1200), personal name Zhao Dun, was the 12th emperor of the Song dynasty of China and the third emperor of the Southern Song dynasty. He was the third son of his predecessor, Emper ...

(1620) inscribed and honored the name "Huguo Yongchang Chan Temple" ().

Qing dynasty and Republic of China

A war left the temple in ruins in 1861, in the ruling of

Xianfeng Emperor The Xianfeng Emperor (17 July 1831 – 22 August 1861), or by temple name Emperor Wenzong of Qing (), given name Yizhu (), was the eighth Emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the seventh Qing emperor to rule over China proper, reigned from 1850 t ...

(1851–1861) in 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 ...

(1644–1911). It was restored and renamed "Yingjiang Temple" () in 1862, in the 1st year of

Tongzhi period Tongzhi (Wade-Giles: ''T'ung-chih'') can refer to: * Tongzhi Emperor (1856–1875, reigned 1861–1875) of the Qing dynasty **Tongzhi Restoration (c. 1860–1874), an attempt to strengthen the late Qing dynasty ** Tongzhi porcelain, a Chinese porcel ...

(1862–1874). Sixteen years later, master Yuexia () was proposed as the new abbot of Yingjiang Temple. He was dismissed after voicing his strong opposition to the restoration of monarchy by

Yuan Shikai Yuan Shikai (; 16 September 1859 – 6 June 1916) was a Chinese military and government official who rose to power during the late Qing dynasty and eventually ended the Qing dynasty rule of China in 1912, later becoming the Emperor of China. H ...

in 1916. His disciple Xinjian () succeeded the position.

People's Republic of China

After the establishment of the Communist State in 1949, the Anhui Provincial Government provided great protection for the temple. After the 3rd Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, according to the national policy of free religious belief, the administrative power was transferred to the local Buddhist association. Yingjiang Temple has been designated as a National Key Buddhist Temple in Han Chinese Area 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 ...

in 1983.

Architecture

Now the existing main buildings include

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 ...

Heavenly Kings Hall 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 ...

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 ...

, Pilu Hall, Buddhist Texts Library and Zhenfeng Pagoda.

Heavenly Kings Hall

The statues of

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 ...

are enshrined in 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 ...

. The hall is high and covers a building area of .

Mahavira Hall

The

is the main hall in the temple. 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 ...

, Amitabha 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 ...

are placed in the middle of the hall. Statues of

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, ...

are placed at the back. And 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 Ni ...

sitting on the seats before both sides of the gable walls. The Mahavira Hall is high and occupies a building area of .

Pilu Hall

The Pilu Hall () enshrining the statues of

Vairocana Vairocana (also Mahāvairocana, sa, वैरोचन) is a cosmic buddha from Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. Vairocana is often interpreted, in texts like the ''Avatamsaka Sutra'', as the dharmakāya of the historical Gautama Buddha. In East ...

Brahma Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 21 ...

and

Indra Indra (; Sanskrit: इन्द्र) is the king of the devas (god-like deities) and Svarga (heaven) in Hindu mythology. He is associated with the sky, lightning, weather, thunder, storms, rains, river flows, and war. volumes/ref> I ...

. At the back are 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 ...

with

Shancai Sudhanakumāra (), mainly known as Sudhana and Shancai or Shancai Tongzi in Chinese, and translated as ''Child of Wealth'', is the protagonist in the last and longest chapter of the ''Avatamsaka Sutra''. Sudhana appears in Buddhist, Taoist and folk ...

standing on the left and

Longnü Longnü (; Sanskrit: ''nāgakanyā''; Vietnamese: ''Long nữ''), translated as ''Dragon Girl'', along with Sudhana are considered acolytes of the bodhisattva Guanyin (Avalokiteśvara) in Chinese Buddhism. Her presence in Guanyin's iconography ...

on the right.

Buddhist Texts Library

The Buddhist Texts Library is high and occupies a building area of . It is divided into three storeys. Statues of the Three Sages of the West (), namely

, Amitabha and

Mahasthamaprapta Mahāsthāmaprāpta is a bodhisattva mahāsattva who represents the power of wisdom. His name literally means "arrival of the great strength". Mahāsthāmaprāpta is one of the Eight Great Bodhisattvas in Mahayana Buddhism, along with Mañjuś ...

, are enshrined in the middle storey.

Zhenfeng Pagoda

The Zhenfeng Pagoda () was originally built in the

(960–1279) and reconstructed in 1570 in the reign of

Longqing Emperor The Longqing Emperor (; 4March 15375July 1572), personal name Zhu Zaiji (朱載坖), was the 13th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1567 to 1572. He was initially known as the Prince of Yu (裕王) from 1539 to 1567 before he became th ...

(1567–1572) of the

(1368–1644). It initially called "Ten Thousand Buddha Pagoda" (). The pagoda has the brick-and-wood structure with seven storeys and eight sides. Curved bars and cornices are set on each story, which are magnificent and become the symbol of Yingjiang Temple. Over 1,200 statues of Buddha are enshrined in its interior.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yingfeng Temple Buddhist temples in Anqing Tourist attractions in Anqing 19th-century establishments in China 19th-century Buddhist temples Religious buildings and structures completed in 1862 Linji school temples