Tiantai Guoqing Temple

Tiantai Guoqing Temple

Guoqing Temple in Tiantai is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Guoqing Temple is located 4 kilometers north of Chengguan Town in Tiantai County, Zhejiang Province. It is the birthplace of the Tiantai sect, the first Buddhist school founded in China, and was initially built in the 18th year of the Kaihuang era during the Sui Dynasty (598 AD), originally named Tiantai Temple, and later renamed Guoqing Temple, inspired by the saying “If the temple is completed, the nation will be purified.”

Guoqing Temple was destroyed during Emperor Wuzong’s suppression of Buddhism and in the second year of the Xuanhe era of the Northern Song Dynasty. It was restored in the second year of the Jianyan era of the Song Dynasty and ranked among the “Five Mountains and Ten Monasteries.” In the 11th year of the Yongzheng era of the Qing Dynasty, an imperial decree ordered its reconstruction, and further additions were made through the late Qing Dynasty and the Republican period. The temple complex covers over 2 hectares and features more than 600 ancient structures arranged along four north-south axes, with a total area exceeding 13,000 square meters.

During the Southern Song Dynasty, Guoqing Temple was listed as one of the “Ten Temples of Jiangnan,” and its current buildings date back to the 12th year of the Yongzheng era of the Qing Dynasty (1734 AD), when it was reconstructed by imperial order. The entire temple complex spans 73,000 square meters and is organized along five longitudinal axes. The central axis runs from south to north and includes the Maitreya Hall, Rain Flower Hall, Mahavira Hall, Medicine Buddha Hall, and Guanyin Hall. Other structures include the Liberation Pond, Bell and Drum Towers, Juxian Hall, Abbot's Quarters, Three Saints Hall, Miaofa Hall (above which is the Scripture Depository), Sangharama Hall, Arhat Hall, and the Relics Room. The central hall of the Mahavira Hall houses a Ming Dynasty bronze statue of Sakyamuni sitting cross-legged. Behind the statue, there is a group sculpture centered on Guanyin, symbolizing the salvation of all beings. On both sides of the hall are 18 arhats carved from nanmu wood during the Yuan Dynasty. The entire architectural complex encompasses 28,000 square meters of floor space, over 73,000 square meters in total area, and includes more than 8,000 rooms.

Guoqing Temple in Tiantai, Zhejiang, together with Lingyan Temple in Jinan, Qixia Temple in Nanjing, and Yuquan Temple in Dangyang, is known as one of the Four Great Temples of China.

Further Reading:

· Fifth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units