Yuhua Temple site

Yuhua Temple site

Yuhua Temple site is located in Yuhua mountain, 2 km north of Yuhua village, Wuhua Township, Tongchuan City, Shaanxi Province. It was formerly known as renzhigong. It was built in 624 A.D. and expanded in 646 A.D. and renamed Yuhua palace. It became the palace of Li Shimin, Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty.

Historical evolution

According to records, Yuhua palace of Tang Dynasty is composed of nine towering palaces. The main hall is called Yuhua hall. In the 22nd year of Zhenguan, Li Shimin summoned master Xuanzang of Sanzang here. In addition, Li Shimin's preface to the Sanzang holy religion of the Tang Dynasty and the Prince Li Zhi's shusanzang holy book were all made here.

In order to make the eminent monk have a more quiet Taoist temple, in 651 ad, Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty changed the name of the abandoned palace to Wuhua temple. Emperor Xuanzang of the Tang Dynasty translated Buddhist scriptures here.

Xuanzang translated 74 Buddhist scriptures all his life. In 660-662 A.D., he translated his last Buddhist path "Da Ban Ku Jing" before she Hua in Yuhua temple. He died in the middle of the night on February 5, 664, the first year of Emperor Gaozong's reign. He was 62 years old. After the sad news reached Chang'an, the government and the public were deeply grieved. According to historical records, when Xuanzang's remains slowly descended from Yuhua and were buried on Bailuyuan, on the East Bank of Shahe River in the eastern suburb of Chang'an, tens of thousands of ladies were buried.

After Tianbao rebellion, Yuhua temple was decadent. Du Fu, the poet, traveled northward to this place, touched the scene and wrote a poem: "the stream returns, the pine wind grows, and the gerbil runs through the ancient tile. I don't know what the king's palace is, but it's still under the precipice. " "At that time, he served Jinyu, so it was only a stone horse.". In the Song Dynasty, even the stone horse did not exist.

There is a Buddha statue in the stone chamber of Yuhua, with 20 characters engraved on the side: "Xuanzang, the master of Sanzang, made a Buddhist statue of Shijia and provided for by the workers" in the second year of longshuo of the Tang Dynasty, which is of precious historical value.

There are more stele relics about the palace and temple in Yuhua Temple site than other Tang Palace sites. In recent years, ancient porcelain kiln sites and iron smelting sites have been found in the Yuhua Temple site, which provides new information for the study of China's ceramic history and local iron smelting.

Address: Yuhua palace, Yuhua Town, Yintai District, Tongchuan City

Longitude: 108.95065

Latitude: 35.342942

Ticket information: no ticket required. It is included in the ticket of Yuhua palace scenic spot. Peak season (June 1 to the end of February): 70 yuan, off season (March 1 to May 31): 50 yuan.