Yunmen 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 Rucheng Town of

Ruyuan Yao Autonomous County Ruyuan ( postal: Yuyuan; ), officially Ruyuan Yao Autonomous County, is a county of northern Guangdong province, China, with a small border with Hunan to the northwest. It is under the administration of Shaoguan Shaoguan (; Hakka: Seukoan) is ...

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 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 ...

. Yunmen Temple is the cradle of

Yunmen school Yunmen Wenyan (c. 860–949) was a Zen Buddhist master. Yunmen may also refer to: *Yunmen school of Chan Buddhism, named after Yunmen Wenyan *Yunmen, an acupuncture point on the lung meridian * Yunmen Subdistrict () of Hechuan District, Chongqing ...

, which is one of the five schools of

Chan Buddhism Chan (; of ), from Sanskrit '' dhyāna'' (meaning "meditation" or "meditative state"), is a Chinese school of Mahāyāna Buddhism. It developed in China from the 6th century CE onwards, becoming especially popular during the Tang and So ...

. It was first built in 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 went through many changes and repairs through the following dynasties. Most of the present structures in the temple were repaired or built between 1943 and 1951.

History

Tang dynasty

This temple was first built by an accomplished monk Chan master

Yunmen Wenyan Yunmen Wenyan (; romaji: ''Ummon Bun'en''; 862 or 864 – 949 CE), was a major Chinese Chan master of the Tang dynasty. He was a dharma-heir of Xuefeng Yicunbr>} Yunmen founded the Yunmen school, one of the five major schools of Chán (Chinese ...

in 923 during the late

(618–907). After the fall of the Tang dynasty, Yunmen Temple declined and was incredibly disappeared during the

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...

Republic of China

In 1943, master

Hsu Yun Xuyun or Hsu Yun (; 5 September 1840? – 13 October 1959) was a renowned Chinese Chan Buddhist master and an influential Buddhist teacher of the 19th and 20th centuries. Early life Xuyun was purportedly born on 5 September 1840 in Fujian, Q ...

came to Yunmen Temple to promulgate Buddhist doctrines. Under his leadership, more than 300 buildings and halls and 100 statues of Buddha were added to the temple. Renovations and rebuilding to the temple began in 1943 and was completed in 1951.

People's Republic of China

After the establishment of the Communist State, Foyuan (), a disciple of Hsu Yun, succeeded the position of abbot. In 1966,

Mao Zedong Mao Zedong pronounced ; also romanised traditionally as Mao Tse-tung. (26 December 1893 – 9 September 1976), also known as Chairman Mao, was a Chinese communist revolutionary who was the founder of the People's Republic of China (PRC) ...

launched the

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 goal ...

, Yunmen Temple was badly damaged in this ten-year movement. After the 3rd Plenary Session of the 11th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, according to the national policy of free religious belief, regular scripture lectures, meditation and other features of temple life were resumed in 1983. That same year, Yunmen Temple was 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 ...

Architecture

The extant structure is based on 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 ...

building principles and retains the traditional architectural style. The complex include the following halls:

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

, Hall of Sangharama Palace,

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 ...

, Drum tower,

Hall of Guru The Hall of Guru or Guru Hall (), also known as the Founder's Hall, is the most important annex halls in Chinese Buddhist temples for enshrining masters of various Buddhism schools. It is encountered throughout East Asia, including in some Japan ...

Dharma Hall The Dharma Hall, also known as Lecture Hall, is an important building in Chinese Buddhism, Han Chinese Chan Buddhism, Buddhist temples. The Dharma Hall is the place for senior monks to preach and generally ranks right after the Mahavira Hall. Wit ...

, Memorial Hall of Hsu Yun, Dining Room, etc.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yunmen Temple Buddhist temples in Shaoguan Buildings and structures in Shaoguan Tourist attractions in Shaoguan 1951 establishments in China 20th-century Buddhist temples Religious buildings and structures completed in 1951