Cemetery Pagoda Cluster at Caoshan Temple

Cemetery Pagoda Cluster at Caoshan Temple

Historical records in multiple editions of The Yihuang County Annals and The Dictionary of Religions from the Song, Ming, and Qing dynasties state that to this day, there are over a thousand temples belonging to the Caodong school of Buddhism and tens of millions of followers across China, Japan, Southeast Asia, and Korea. It is recorded that in the 16th year of the Jiading era of the Song Dynasty (1207 AD), Japanese monk Dōgen (Master Shōyō) came to China to study Zen, becoming a disciple of the 13th Caodong Patriarch, Zen Master Rujing, for three years. He received Zen teachings and a Dharma robe before returning to Japan, where he founded Eihei-ji Temple as the main center for spreading the Caodong school. The lineage flourished, and to this day, there are over 8 million followers and more than 15,000 temples.

Master Benji preached at Caoshan for 31 years, teaching over a hundred disciples and gaining thousands of followers. He passed away in 901 AD at the age of 62 and was buried in Fengxing Pit west of Caoshan Temple. In 1743, Emperor Yongzheng of the Qing Dynasty posthumously honored him as “Dharma Master Dingzang Yuansheng.” The patriarch’s pagoda was restored in 1983.

After the early Qing Dynasty, the temple gradually declined. By the Republican era, only some halls and a few Buddha statues remained. By 1969, all structures were destroyed. It wasn’t until 1982 that Caoshan Temple saw a revival, ushering in a new era of restoration for its ancestral monastery. Starting in 1999, over 20 white marble Buddha statues were brought in from both domestic and international sources, making it the Jiangxi temple with the most and most complete collection of jade Buddha statues.

As early as 1985, the provincial government listed Caoshan Baoji Temple and Master Benji’s Cemetery Pagoda among the first batch of provincial scenic spots. In August 1994, the county government approved the opening of Caoshan Temple to the public.

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of Jiangxi Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units