Yangshan Temple

Yangshan Temple

Yangshan Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

During the Kaicheng era of the Tang Dynasty, the eminent Tang monk Huizhi came from Weishan to Yangshan in Yichun, where he cleared the land and built “Yangshan Temple” to spread Buddhist teachings. He was widely known as Master Yangshan. The temple is considered the origin of the Weiyang School of Chan Buddhism, which takes Master Lingyou of Weishan and Master Huizhi of Yangshan as its founders—known as the Weiyang School, one of the five major sects of the Southern School of Chan Buddhism.

The temple was originally named “Yangshan Temple.” Due to Emperor Wuzong’s suppression of Buddhism, Huizhi once went into seclusion elsewhere, so during the Dazhong era of Emperor Xuanzong, it was renamed “Qiyin Temple.” In the early Song Dynasty, it was again renamed “Taiping Xingguo Temple.” In the seventh year of the Dade era of the Yuan Dynasty (1304), the temple was destroyed. The abbot, Monk Xiling, raised funds to rebuild it, a project that took eight years. The new temple was completed in the first year of the Huangqing era (1312) and was decreed to be named “Taiping Xingguo Chan Temple.” It included 28 various structures such as halls, towers, pavilions, lodges, storehouses, and kitchens, all featuring soaring eaves, upturned corners, carved beams, and painted rafters, making it extremely magnificent. After the Ming and Qing dynasties, the temple underwent multiple cycles of destruction and reconstruction, gradually shrinking in size.

In the eleventh year of the Daoguang era of the Qing Dynasty (1832), the last reconstruction took place, and the temple was renamed “Xingguo Ancient Temple.” The temple faced south and was divided into upper and lower halls. The upper hall, known as the Mahavira Hall, housed Buddha statues carved from camphor wood and adorned with gold and color decorations. Unfortunately, the temple has been destroyed, leaving only broken tiles and ruins. Today, only two embracing ginkgo trees in front of the temple site remain.