Baiyun temple

Baiyun temple

synonym

Baiyun temple (baiyun temple, Minquan County, Henan Province) generally refers to baiyun temple (baiyun temple, Minquan County, Henan Province)

Baiyunsi, located in baiyunsi village, baiyunsi Town, Minquan County, Shangqiu City, Henan Province, was built in the Zhenguan period of Tang Dynasty (627-649). It is one of the four famous temples in the Central Plains and the place where the emperor Shunzhi of Qing Dynasty became a monk.

On November 21, 1986, Minquan baiyun temple was announced as the second batch of key cultural relics protection units in Henan Province by the people's Government of Henan Province.

Historical evolution

During the reign of Zhenguan of Tang Dynasty (627-649), baiyun temple, formerly known as Baiyi temple, was built. Every summer and autumn, the temple is shrouded by white clouds. The scenery is strange, so it is called baiyun temple. The whole building is simple, elegant and magnificent.

During the Jin and Ming Dynasties, temples were destroyed by wars twice.

In 1687, baiyun temple was repaired on a large scale.

On November 21, 1986, baiyun temple was announced as the second batch of key cultural relics protection units in Henan Province by the people's Government of Henan Province.

geographical position

Baiyunsi is located in baiyunsi village, 20 kilometers southwest of Minquan County, Shangqiu City, Henan Province.

architectural composition

survey

Baiyun temple covers an area of more than 100 mu and faces south. The gate of the temple is majestic, with four characters "baiyun temple" written on it. On the central axis, there are Tianwang hall, Guanyin hall and Daxiong hall. On the right side of the main hall is the Yangxin hall, and on the left side of the hall is the Zen hall, with wing rooms on the left and right. They are all Qing Dynasty buildings. On the east side of the main hall, there is a big locust tree with three people, which grows in a big iron pot. The pot body is in the soil, which is called "iron pot locust". This is one of the wonders of baiyun temple. After the main hall, there is a sutra building, also known as duobaota. It is 4 meters high, with nine levels and six edges, and carved with bluestone. The pagoda is engraved with pictures of monks worshiping Buddha, six monks chanting sutras with drum music, the Scripture of diva, one Buddha, sun, moon, crane and lotus. The carving is exquisite and simple. Fifty meters northeast of the temple, there is a Buddha pagoda, 4 meters high, pavilion style, three levels of six ridges, and the lower part is a hexagonal xumizuo. The front of the pagoda is engraved with 16 characters of "Buddha Spirit Pagoda" and "Buddha monk 31 of Buddha cave sect". The body of the pagoda is also engraved with doors, windows, flowers, birds, insects, grass and animals. The tower is exquisite and has high artistic value.

main hall

The main hall is the main building of the whole complex, and it is also a common facility of Buddhist temples. The statue of Sakyamuni was originally built inside. There are 5 rooms in width and 3 rooms in depth, with single eaves hanging on the top of the mountain, green glass ridge, relief dragon and lotus. Yellow glazed tiles cover the top, there are 8 gold pillars in the hall, and 9 beams on it. Sakyamuni was born in 557 BC in India. He was the prince of King Jingfan. He became a monk at the age of 29. In 65 A.D., Buddhism was introduced into China. Some emperors believed in Buddhism and some destroyed it. Therefore, there was a struggle between Buddhism and Taoism in Chinese history. In order to avoid being destroyed, some monasteries combine with Chinese local culture, so there are statues of dragon and lotus in Buddhist art. The ridge of the main hall of baiyun temple is dragon rolling ridge on the sunny side and Phoenix dancing ridge on the shady side, which is different from other temples. It is one of the prominent symbols of the royal temple. Located in the back of baiyun temple, there is an exquisite courtyard. This is the place where the Indian monk Qingxiu lived. There are two dragons carved on both sides of the flash gate in the small courtyard. Since ancient times, only the emperor can get in and out of the flash gate, and only the emperor can have the fortune to pass under the gate, so no one has been in and out of the flash gate for hundreds of years. On the back wall of the main hall, the Emperor Kangxi wrote the word "ZhuoZhi" (homonym for "cognition"), which means that the hall should keep quiet and strictly abide by the rules. In the Qing Dynasty, all the civil and military officials came here. The civil officials got off the sedan chair and the military officials got off the horse.

Buddism godness Guanyin Temple

The first hall to enter baiyun temple is Guanyin hall, behind which is the main hall. This kind of architectural layout does not seem to conform to the ritual system in temple buildings. Every temple has a rule that it can only be built, not destroyed, because baiyun temple was first called "Guanyin hall". The first Guanyin hall was built, so the Guanyin hall was built in front of the main hall. With the continuous expansion of the construction scale, such a special phenomenon has formed.

Jade Buddha Hall

The nine incomplete inscriptions in front of the Jade Buddha Hall tell true legends. It is said that during the reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty, Emperor Kangxi visited baiyun temple three times and lived for a few days. After presenting valuables such as Longtou Wuzhan, Yucui Ruyi hook and eight cabinets of scriptures, Emperor Kangxi personally wrote the four characters "often enjoy in the hall" and engraved them in the shade of the mountain gate. Although the monument is incomplete, it still exists today. More than 10 jade Buddhas in the Jade Buddha Hall are all carved with Burmese white jade, inlaid with silver, and vivid. In particular, Sakyamuni's nirvana Dharma phase, which is more than 3 meters long, is rare in China. Fu Fengying, the aunt of general Fu Zuoyi, made a special contribution to baiyun temple from Myanmar. Baiyun temple is the place where most jade Buddhas are worshipped.

Buddhist pagoda Scripture building

The Sutra building of Buddha's Spirit Pagoda, also known as Duobao pagoda, is a brick and stone structure with a height of 4 meters. It is a pavilion type, three-level hexagonal xumizuo. The front of the pagoda is engraved with 16 characters in regular script: "Buddha Spirit Pagoda" and "thirty one Buddha monk of Buddha cave sect". The tower is also carved with doors, windows, flowers, birds, insects, grass, animals and so on. The tower is exquisite, exquisite and beautiful, with high artistic value. This pagoda was donated by a resident surnamed Peng in Nanyang during the reign of Kangxi to commemorate Abbot Fuding. FUDING is a famous monk in the history of Chinese Buddhism, and has made great contributions to the construction and development of baiyun temple. In the 26th year of the reign of Emperor Kangxi (1687 AD), Buddha came to the long abandoned baiyun temple. After entering the temple, he traveled around, preaching, Jianghan in the South and Youyan in the north. Those who believe in goodness from far and near may offer millet and silk for food and clothing, or wood and stone for building. At that time, the magistrate of guide also felt that his Buddhism was profound and extensive. He donated 2000 liang of official silver and 500 liang of private silver to support the construction of baiyun temple. At that time, the imperial court believed in Buddhism. There were Buddhist temples and Guanyin in every household. Chinese Buddhism reached an unprecedented period of development, which was also the most glorious period of baiyun temple. In the 60th year of Emperor Kangxi's reign (1721 A.D.), 75 year old monk Fuding returned to baiyun temple after his last trip to Jianghuai. In August of this year, monk Fuding passed away after bathing in Xiangtang. After the death of Buddha, Mu Qinyuan, the political envoy of Henan Province, wrote the TA Ming for him. This is the stupa of Buddha. After the death of Buddha Ding, he was buried here. Later, he was honored as "three great God monks" by the world, and called "nanjigong, beiyuantong, zhongfuding". Why is it called "duobaota"? There are Buddhas on the six sides above, and each one has a Buddha statue inside. The Heart Sutra is in the middle below, and the drumming music of monks is in the bottom. Therefore, there are Buddha, Dharma and monks in the pagoda, which is also the three treasures of Buddhism. Therefore, the pagoda gets its name.

Weituo Hall

It is located in the highest mountain gate of the whole building complex, with 3 rooms in width and 3 rooms in depth. It is hard mountain style, with gray tile top, lotus on the ridge of tube tile, and five beam structure inside the hall. It is said that it is the place where the white horse carries its way. Big iron bell: the existing Weituo hall, weighing about 750 kg, is the largest existing bell in Eastern Henan. The sound of the bell is deep and loud, reaching tens of miles. Incense pot: it is also in Weituo hall, with a diameter of 1.16 meters, a lip thickness of 0.15 meters and a weight of 250 kg. It is used by Buddhist believers to burn incense. Behind the baiyun temple, there are many tower foundations, all of which are the cemeteries of well-known monks. Now the tower no longer exists. There are still many stone carvings, inscriptions on the tower and empty brick certificates. In the cave, there are large VATS with the word "Shou" painted on the ashes and relics of monks. All over the world, the face of Bodhisattva Weituo is white, but the face of Bodhisattva Weituo in baiyun temple is red. Here is a magical legend - the fate of Weituo.

Sutra Library

Baiyun temple has a sutra library, which was destroyed in the war. At the beginning of the construction of the Sutra collection building, abbot Foding made great efforts.

Treasure of zhensi

Kangxi stele

The legend of Kangxi's second visit to baiyun temple to find his father is widely spread in Shangqiu. In order to find Shunzhi's father, who was a monk, Kangxi traveled to baiyun temple in the South and made offerings for 1200 monks in baiyun temple. He met a Shaoguo monk who called himself "Bayi". After Kangxi returned to Beijing, he talked with his mother and empress that the clever mother and empress combined the word "Bayi" into the word "father". Kangxi suddenly realized that he wanted to meet his father and son in baiyun temple, but he didn't expect that his father had gone to Chaoshan and disappeared. Kangxi expressed his secret to the master of Buddha Ding and Shang, worshipped Buddha Ding as a teacher, and wrote the four words "Dang, Tang, Chang, Shang" to show his reward. This stone tablet is the treasure of baiyun temple. The four words "Dang, Tang, Chang and Shang" are very well studied. They all start with the word "Shang" of monks. What does that mean? Because Kangxi's father was a monk here, the famous living Buddha of China decided to be Abbot here at that time, so he meant that the monk should be superior. The four words "Dang, Tang, Chang and Shang" begin with "Shang", representing monks and temples. What do the words "Tian, Tu, Jin and Bei" under "Shang" mean? "Tian" represents the land that can be cultivated by people, and the word "Dang" composed of "Shang" and "Tian" represents that monks and monasteries also need land for their survival. "Tu" means dwelling. The word "Tang", which is composed of "Shang" and "Tu", stands for dwelling