Cuiyan Chan Temple

Cuiyan Chan Temple

Cuiyan Chan Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

Located at the northern end of Cuiyan Road in Wanli District, Nanchang, it sits within the Wanli Basin at the foot of Meiling. Backed by Hongya Mountain (also known as Fulong Mountain), which features the highest peak Shijia Peak, the second-highest Dharma Peak, and the lower Lingguan Peak.

Cuiyan Temple was first built during the Northern and Southern Dynasties and is one of the famous temples in Jiangxi. It is one of the “Eight Great Temples of Western Mountains” along with Xiangcheng, Shuangling, Yunfeng, Fengsheng, Anxian, Liutong, and Panlong. During the Tang Dynasty’s Wu era, the temple’s name was changed to Hongjing, then later to Cuiyan, and during the Southern Tang it was renamed Cuiyan Guanghua Monastery. After the Northern Song Dynasty, the temple gradually declined, and by the Ming Dynasty, it had been repurposed as residential housing.

In the seventh year of the Shunzhi era of the Qing Dynasty (1650), monks Huixi and Kexue from Xiangcheng Temple initiated the restoration of the ancient temple. Supported by Vice Minister of Personnel Xiong Wenju and Prefect Chen Hongxu, and presided over by the monk Guxue, the temple was revived. During the Anti-Japanese War, parts of the ancient temple were burned down by Japanese invaders. After the war, the temple was repaired, and local stonemason Lei Shisen was invited to carve the four large characters “Amitabha Buddha” on the cliff below Hongya Pavilion. Now, the ancient temple shines anew, with morning bells ringing once more, Buddhist chants resounding, and a surge of worshippers returning it to its former glory as the foremost of the “Eight Great Temples of Western Mountains.”

Yingxiao Hall, located on the peak behind the temple, was built in an unknown year and is renowned for its many inscribed poems on the walls. Since the Tang Dynasty, poets such as Liu Yuxi, Mou Rong, Cao Song, Ouyang Xiu, and Yue Fei…

have left their poetic inscriptions on the walls. In front of the hall are a nine-joint bamboo cane, a thousand-year-old tangerine tree, and a crane’s nest pine.

Miaogaotai (Wonderful Height Platform), situated in front of the temple, is associated with a famous exchange during the Northern Song Dynasty. The lay Buddhist Zhang Shangying (also known as Zhang Shangying, Vice Minister of the Ministry of War) visited the temple, and on the way, he was met by the monk Baoning Yuansi. Their dialogue inspired a fine poem, which was later inscribed on Miaogaotai.

Huiquan (Wisdom Spring), located behind the Mahavira Hall, emerges from a fissure in the ground. Due to escaping underground gases, the spring emits a rhythmic “gugugugu” sound. The water is crystal clear, slightly sweet to the taste, and considered high-quality mineral water. Above the spring stands the Zhenyuan Pavilion, whose pillars bear a couplet: “The wisdom lamp shines eternally, revealing the emptiness of the five aggregates; the pure spring cleanses away the dust of worldly impurities.”

Address: No. 157, Cuiyan Road, Wanli District, Nanchang

Type: Temple

Recommended visiting time: About 1 hour

Opening hours:

8:00-18:00

Ticket information:

Door price: 5.0 RMB