Bozhou Baiyi Monastery

Bozhou Baiyi Monastery

Introduction

Also known as Baiyi Nunnery, it is named after the worship of the White-Robed Guanyin (Goddess of Mercy). Located at the western end of Jiaotong Road in Bozhou City, it is a key open monastery in Anhui Province and a provincial-level key cultural relics protection unit. In the 6th year of the Shunzhi reign during the Qing Dynasty (1649), Baiyi Monastery was founded by the monk Jinxiu, and later expanded successively by the Huashan monk Miaozhan, the blind monk Desheng from Mount Wutai, and Shanxi medicine merchant Dong Jiwen. The monastery grew to a grand scale with majestic architecture. To commemorate the blind monk Desheng and medicine merchant Dong Jiwen, the main gate of Baiyi Monastery faces northwest—contrary to common practice—and is oriented toward Shanxi. The stone plaque on the gate inscribed with the characters “Baiyi Monastery” was handwritten by Deng Shiru, a renowned calligrapher of the Qianlong period. The current Baiyi Monastery was funded and built by Mr. Tang Deyin, a Bozhou native residing in Hong Kong. The gate has three bays, a double-eave hip-and-gable roof, and a glazed tile roof. On both sides inside the gate are statues of the Four Heavenly Kings. The Mahavira Hall is the main structure, five bays wide, housing a wooden statue of the White-Robed Guanyin. The rear hall is located on the northern side of the courtyard, also five bays wide, along with over 50 auxiliary rooms and complete religious facilities.

Anhui Chizhou City