Taihu Temple

Taihu Temple

Taihu Temple is a cultural relic protection unit of Hanshan County.

Taihu Temple, also known as Taihu Chan Temple, is located within Taihu Mountain National Forest Park in the southern part of Hanshan County. It is one of the key temples in Anhui Province and is named after the Taihu Mountain area. Through renovations over the dynasties, Taihu Temple has developed into a sizable temple complex. From the mountain gate to the TianTai at the summit, there is an axis along which the Heavenly King Hall, Mahavira Hall, Ersheng Hall, Dragon King Hall, and TianTai are distributed. On the northern side of Taihu Mountain, there is Jieyin Nunnery, built halfway up the mountain, in a very tranquil environment.

Taihu Temple was founded in the second year of the Yuanyou era of the Song Dynasty (1709) by the eminent monk Wuyong Chan Master. According to The Biographies of Eminent Monks, during the temple’s founding, Master Wuyong single-handedly cleared the land day and night until he eventually moved heaven, which shone a divine light upon the site. Master Wuyong was not only the founder of the temple but also the author of The Recorded Sayings of Patriarch Wuyong, which has been passed down to this day (as recorded in the Provincial Religious Annals). In the third year of the Hongwu era of the Ming Dynasty (1307), Monk Xingqing rebuilt the temple. Further renovations were carried out in the eighth and twenty-fifth years of the Guangxu era of the Qing Dynasty. Monk Puming of the Qing Dynasty expanded the temple, which was then also called Puming Chan Temple. Over time, the temple buildings have risen and fallen, and abbots have come and gone. In 1927, Abbot Hongrui took charge of Taihu Chan Temple. By the end of 1938, the 27th year of the Republic of China, the Japanese army burned down most of the temple buildings and killed one monk. In 1957, the temple had ten monks, with frequent visits from wandering monks and temple workers. During the Cultural Revolution, scriptures and Buddha statues in the temple were destroyed. After the reform and opening-up, religious policies were gradually implemented, and monks returned to the temple. Taihu Mountain has Zhongshan (Bell Mountain), Gushan (Drum Mountain), and Muyushan (Wooden Fish Mountain). The temple features wonders such as the Indoor Pagoda and the Potside Well. Taihu Temple faces south and is nestled in a natural landscape where a bell mountain lies to the left, a drum mountain to the right, and a wooden fish mountain embraced in between. The Heavenly King Hall is situated at the front, the Mahavira Hall in the center, and the Patriarch Hall at the back. At the center of the Patriarch Hall is the flesh-body pagoda of Master Wuyong. Made of stone and standing four meters tall with a base diameter of two meters, it is called the Indoor Pagoda or Puming Pagoda. Due to its solid construction, the pagoda survived through turbulent times and is one of the two great wonders of Taihu Chan Temple.

In the dining hall on the west side of the Patriarch Hall, there is a well known as the Indoor Well or Potside Well. Legend says it was created by Master Wuyong striking the ground with his tin staff, hence it is also called the Tin Staff Spring. The spring water is inexhaustible when drawn but does not overflow when untouched — it is another wonder of Taihu Chan Temple. About one li behind the temple, in the mountains, there is a hall called Ersheng Hall. The hall is three bays wide and enshrines the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva. It houses an incense burner from the Xuande era of the Ming Dynasty and a chime from the Guangxu era of the Qing Dynasty, though these have now been scattered among the public. TianTai Chan Temple is located halfway up the main peak of Taihu Mountain and consists of Tianlong Pass, Dragon King Hall, and Mahavira Hall. Inside the Dragon King Hall, a clear and sweet spring continuously flows from the mouth of a stone dragon, hence called Dragon Spring. The Mahavira Hall features a massive naturally formed inverted heart-shaped stone. Even more remarkably, to the right of the inverted heart stone grows a mushroom the size of a bowl — once the resting spot of the eminent monk Wuyan Xiankuan. The spiritual energy of the entire mountain is said to converge here, giving rise to the saying, “If you haven’t been to TianTai, you haven’t really been here.” Surrounded by mountains, with a murmuring stream in front and lush forests behind, TianTai Chan Temple enjoys a serene environment.

Jieyin Nunnery, facing Taihu Chan Temple across the mountain, is a key cultural relic protection unit of Hanshan County. To the west of the nunnery are Twin Springs, whose waters are inexhaustible, and in front of the nunnery stands an ancient tree 13.5 meters tall with graceful, spreading branches. The Buddhist temples of Taihu Mountain are densely clustered, thoughtfully arranged along the mountain terrain, forming a distinctive temple complex. Their architectural style resembles that of Jiuhua Mountain, hence the area is also known as “Little Jiuhua of the North.”