Jiande Daciyan Temple

Jiande Daciyan Temple

Jiande Daciyan Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

Daciyan Temple is located within the Daciyan Scenic Area in Daciyan Town, Jiande City, and is known as the “Hanging Temple of Jiangnan.” According to local records, Daciyan was established during the Yuandade era (1297–1307 AD). A man named Mo Ziyuan from Lin’an abandoned his home to come here, carved a Buddha out of the rock, and named it Daci, from which the name Daciyan derives. The main building of the Hanging Temple of Jiangnan is the “Kṣitigarbha Hall.” It is one of the New Ten Scenic Spots of Xin’an, known as the “Hanging Monastery of Ciyun,” because the structure is half embedded in the rock face and half suspended over the cliff, resembling the Hanging Temple of Hengshan in Shanxi, hence the name “Hanging Temple of Jiangnan.”

According to ancient records: Daciyan is a renowned temple set against a cliff. The temple is built beside a towering cliff dozens of zhang high, with a delicate structure resembling a residential house, and features stone stalagmites that seem to emerge from the ground. During the Yuandade era, Mo Ziyuan from Lin’an left his home to settle here, carving a Buddha out of the rock and naming it “Daci.” Local chronicles show that the mountain is named after the temple, and the temple is named after the Buddha—both created by Mo Ziyuan.

Daciyan Mountain stands over 500 meters high, and the temple is suspended about 400 meters up the mountainside. The main structure of the hanging temple is the Qingyin Pavilion, whose facade blends seamlessly with the mountain. From left to right, statues of Confucius, Laozi, and Sakyamuni are seated in sequence. In recent years, to attract tourists, cliffside plank walks have been developed, stretching 800 meters up the mountain, along with new attractions such as the Kṣitigarbha Hall, Tianxiang Hanging Railing, and the Double-Faced Smiling Buddha.