Fuxin Ruiying Temple

Fuxin Ruiying Temple

Fuxin Ruiying Temple is a national AAAA-level tourist attraction and a cultural relics protection unit of Liaoning Province.

The Ruiying Temple Scenic Area is located in Fosi Town, Fumeng County. It was first built in the eighth year of the Kangxi reign during the Qing Dynasty (1669). Emperor Kangxi personally inscribed the temple plaque and conferred the title of “Great Lama of Eastern Mongolia under the Qing” upon the First Living Buddha. During the Daoguang reign, the Fourth Living Buddha was granted an official seal. The temple had over 800 affiliated households and more than 3,000 monks. It is the only temple in Northeast China to have enjoyed the management privilege of “combined religious and political authority,” and is one of the Eight Great National Temples of the Qing Dynasty. Surrounded by mountains on three sides and nestled in a valley stretching ten li, the temple complex features Tibetan Buddhist structures such as the Mahavira Hall, Dazhao Temple, Longevity Pagoda, Prayer Hall, Lama Palace, and Philosophical College, which blend harmoniously with the natural landscape of Fosi Reservoir. It is a renowned pilgrimage site in the eastern Mongolian region, often referred to as the “Little Potala Palace” and commonly known among locals as “Eastern Tibet.” Currently, the Seventh Living Buddha, who practices and resides at Ruiying Temple, is one of only six nationally approved Living Buddhas authorized by the State Council. Every year, worshippers flock here to offer incense and seek blessings from the Living Buddha through head-touching rituals, praying for family harmony, career success, and the safety of loved ones.

Just 25 kilometers west of the city lies a historic town with over 300 years of heritage—Fosi Town in Fumeng County. The most prominent architectural complex in the town is the ancient Ruiying Temple (known as “Gegensumu” in Mongolian). Nestled among mountains on three sides and a valley stretching ten li, the temple shines with golden rooftops and is shaded by pine and cypress trees.

Amid the morning bells and evening drums, this grand Tibetan Buddhist temple in Northeast and Eastern Mongolia has stood for over 300 years.

As a national AAAA-level tourist attraction, a provincial-level cultural relics protection unit, and one of Liaoning Province’s Top Fifty Scenic Spots, Ruiying Temple has become a renowned tourist destination in Liaoning and across the nation.

Ruiying Temple: Favored by Several Qing Emperors

The story of Emperor Kangxi’s private visit to Fosi is widely known in the Fuxin area.

Legend has it that when Emperor Kangxi visited the Tümed Left Banner incognito, he met a lama living in a cave—the future First Living Buddha of Ruiying Temple, Sangdan Sangbu. Not only did Kangxi allocate state funds to build Ruiying Temple, but Sangdan Sangbu also paid 13 visits to Emperor Kangxi.

In the 42nd year of Kangxi’s reign (1703), Emperor Kangxi bestowed the temple’s name “Ruiying Temple” and personally granted a vertical plaque inscribed in Manchu, Mongolian, Chinese, and Tibetan with blue background and gold characters. From then on, Ruiying Temple gained even greater fame, rapidly expanding in scale and influence, becoming known as one of the Eight Great National Temples of Tibetan Buddhism, alongside Qinghai’s Ta’er Monastery and Gansu’s Labrang Monastery.

In the fourth year of the Daoguang reign (1824), the emperor granted the Zasak Lama of Ruiying Temple an official administrative seal. At the same time, the prince of the Tümed Left Banner placed 17 nearby villages, their land and residents, as well as 24 temples surrounding Ruiying Temple, under its jurisdiction. From then on, Ruiying Temple, which held combined powers of administration, judiciary, and religion, became not only the largest Tibetan Buddhist temple in Northeast and Eastern Mongolia but also the only one in the region with the special privilege of “combined religious and political authority.”

Historical records indicate that starting from the eighth year of Kangxi’s reign (1669) and over the course of a century of construction, Ruiying Temple gradually developed into a large-scale temple complex nestled against mountains and water. Covering 18 square kilometers, the temple complex included 97 halls and buildings with more than 1,620 rooms, and over 3,000 rooms for monks' residences. Viewed from afar, the temple complex presented a splendid sight of well-arranged halls and pagodas gleaming in gold. At its peak, it housed over 3,000 monks. Hence, there is a folk saying: “Three thousand six hundred famous lamas, countless more than oxen’s hair.”

Fuxin’s First “Comprehensive University”

When it comes to Tibetan Buddhist temples, people are most familiar with the “Zhashang” (academies). The four major “Zhashang” of Ruiying Temple were once renowned far and wide.

“Zhashang,” meaning academy or department in Chinese, is a core component of Tibetan Buddhist culture, which is itself an important part of Chinese civilization and traditional culture. The essence of Tibetan Buddhist culture lies in the “Five Major and Five Minor Sciences” (the Five Major Sciences include craftsmanship, medicine, linguistics, logic, and inner knowledge; the Five Minor Sciences include rhetoric, poetics, metrics, drama, and calendrics). This body of knowledge forms an all-encompassing and profound system. Therefore, some major Tibetan Buddhist temples established specialized “Zhashang” dedicated to the “Five Sciences.”

In retrospect, Ruiying Temple of that time could be considered the region’s first comprehensive “university,” with its four self-contained “Zhashang” serving as its “departments.” For example, the Menpa Zhashang (Medical Monks' College) focused on the study and research of medicine and pharmacology, specifically training talents in Mongolian medicine; the Dingga Zhashang (Kalacakra Monks' College) studied Kalacakra, astronomy, calendrics, and astrology; the Akhbar Zhashang (Esoteric Monks' College) specialized in Esoteric Buddhism; and the Sanit Zhashang (Dharma Philosophy College) focused on the study of Buddhist philosophy.

Over the centuries, Ruiying Temple has trained a large number of experts, scholars, and outstanding talents in fields such as Mongolian medicine, philosophy, and astronomy. Among them, the Menpa Zhashang, known for producing many renowned doctors, is regarded as the “highest institution” for Mongolian medicine and has long served as a talent cultivation center for Mongolian medicine in the Northeast.

A Colorful Tapestry of Culture and Customs

Visitors to Beijing’s Lama Temple are often amazed by the oversized bronze cauldron placed in front of the main hall. In fact, these large cauldrons were used to cook meat porridge for monks and worshippers during major Buddhist ceremonies. While the size of the cauldrons varied by temple, they do reflect differences in the scale, status, and cultural influence of each temple.

It is recorded that Ruiying Temple’s “Mangzhen” bronze cauldron was much larger in both diameter and capacity than the one at Lama Temple, with a total of four such cauldrons. How big was the Mangzhen cauldron? It could cook 5,000 jin (2,500 kg) of meat and 2,000 jin (1,000 kg) of rice in one go, burning through 1,200 bundles of corn stalks for a single batch of meat porridge.

The large bronze cauldrons may serve as a microcosm of Ruiying Temple’s glorious history and culture. Back then, the Qing rulers’ policy of keeping the populace ignorant did not succeed in stifling the Mongolian people, who instead became a cradle for nurturing a great number of elites.

— Representing Mongolian folk performing arts, the Huurin storytelling art was listed among the first batch of National Intangible Cultural Heritage. The founding master of Huurin storytelling, DanSen NiMa, was a lama who came from Ruiying Temple.

— The epic novel “The Five Tales of the Rise of Tang,” beloved by the Mongolian people, is a shining jewel in the history of Chinese literature. Its author, Enkhetegus, was a high-ranking monk during the era of the Fifth Living Buddha of Ruiying Temple.

— The scripture box music and Cham dance are two ancient art forms that have long been active in Ruiying Temple ceremonies. Today, these two vibrant art forms, rich in religious, ethnic, and historical significance, have become treasured cultural heritage and representations of regional characteristics in the Fuxin area.

After the founding of New China, especially following the implementation of the Party’s religious policies after the Cultural Revolution, Ruiying Temple has regained new vitality under the guidance of Party policies and with the support of all sectors of society. On October 9, 1997, after 55 years without a Living Buddha, Ruiying Temple welcomed its Seventh Living Buddha, Losang Yeshi Chelaiqie. After more than a decade of restoration and development, Ruiying Temple has now become not only an Eastern hub of Tibetan Buddhist historical culture but also a cultural “business card” of Fuxin, as well as a tourism and cultural exchange center that attracts visitors from around the world.

Danqiong Ranbanzha, Executive Council Member of the Buddhist Association of China, said that Fuxin is located along the Ming Great Wall and the Qing Willow Palisade, bordering Mongolian and Han regions. By the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, when Tibetan Buddhism was introduced, the local Mongolian people were undergoing a transformation from a nomadic to an agricultural economy. Thus, the interaction and integration of Tibetan Buddhist culture—represented by Ruiying Temple—with Mongolian traditional culture, Han culture, and other cultures gradually gave rise to a unique regional culture. It is this profound cultural heritage that has nurtured the simple, kind, bold, warm-hearted, and generous character of the people of Fuxin, giving birth to the distinctive cultural landscape and regional customs of this magical land.

In 2011, Ruiying Temple was approved by the National Tourism Administration as a national AAAA-level tourist attraction, honored by the National Religious Affairs Bureau as an Advanced Collective among the First National Harmonious Temples, Churches, and Mosques, recognized by the Publicity Department of the Liaoning Provincial Committee and the Religious Affairs Bureau of Liaoning Province as a Civilized Religious Activity Site, and listed among Liaoning Province’s Top Fifty Scenic Spots, among many other accolades. With the strong support of all sectors of society, the future of Ruiying Temple is sure to be even brighter.

Protected Area: Within 17 meters east, 132 meters south, 12 meters west, and 58 meters north of the outer wall base of the central main hall.

Construction control zone: A secondary construction control zone extends 100 meters east, 20 meters south, 150 meters west, and 20 meters north beyond the protected area.

Scenic area address: Benjie, Fosi Town, Fumeng County. Scenic area phone: 0418－8171909

Further reading:

· Fifth batch of cultural relics protection units in Liaoning Province