Yunxiu Temple

Yunxiu Temple

Yunxiu Temple is a Zhejiang Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Deqing Yunxiu Temple (Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit)

Era: Ming Dynasty

Announcement Date: December 12, 1989

Yunxiu Temple is located in Yunxiu Mountain, Erdou Township, Deqing County. It was first built in the eighth year of the Chunxi era of the Song Dynasty (1181), and has undergone several periods of prosperity and decline. It was renovated in the fifth year of the Zhizheng era of the Yuan Dynasty (1345). Yunxiu Mountain once had the Qingyun Pagoda, hence it is also known as Pagoda Mountain. The temple sits against Yuping Peak, surrounded by peaks such as Da’niu Mountain, Jiaozi Top, Housun Mountain, and Yiqiu Ridge, embraced by a ring of mountains and lush bamboo and pine trees. Inside the temple grounds are a Song Dynasty plum tree and ancient osmanthus trees that bloom all year round, offering a delightful scenery and making it a popular tourist destination.

In the thirteenth year of the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty (1887), the abbot Guangyan, by imperial decree, went to Beijing and was bestowed with 12 sets of the Dragon Collection (a Buddhist canon published by the Qing Imperial Household Department) and a full set of ceremonial insignia. Upon returning to the mountain, he held ordination ceremonies. Empress Dowager Cixi, Emperor Guangxu, and Prince Gong each inscribed calligraphy. Cixi wrote the plaques “Sutra Depository,” “Pure and Enlightened,” and “Mahavira Hall.” At that time, the temple housed 70–80 monks, 99 and a half halls, one large bell, and one large incense burner. Over the past hundred years, through wars and turmoil, the incense offerings gradually declined. In the early years after liberation, there still remained the Mahavira Hall in the Song Dynasty style, as well as over 40 structures built during the Qing Dynasty, including the Vajra Hall, side halls, Guanyin Hall, Sutra Depository, dining hall, and ordination hall, covering an area of 2,200 square meters. In 1982, it was listed as a county-level cultural relics protection unit. In 1985, with funding from the National Cultural Relics Bureau, the design by the Ancient Architecture Restoration Center of the Provincial Cultural Relics and Archaeology Research Institute restored the temple according to the Song Dynasty style, bringing the 800-year-old ancient temple back to its former glory. Today, it features vermilion gates, white walls, soaring wing corners, and a majestic, classic elegance. In December 1989, it was designated as a provincial-level cultural relics protection unit.

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Zhejiang Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units