Jinxian Jinshan Temple

Jinxian Jinshan Temple

Jinxian Jinshan Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

Jinshan Temple is situated on Jinshan Ridge, at the junction of Jinxian County in Nanchang City and Linchuan City in Jiangxi Province. The ridge is characterized by rolling emerald peaks, undulating terrain, solitary towering summits, majestic momentum, steep cliffs, and a grand and magnificent presence, standing at an altitude of 265.9 meters. It is also called Jinfeng (Golden Peak) because the rocky outcrops contain gold ore. When viewed from the adjacent National Highway 316, the lush mountain ridges frame a resplendent complex of temple buildings. On rainy days, the temple appears and disappears amid swirling clouds and mist, while on sunny days, it shimmers with radiant light amidst the rising clouds, resembling a heavenly paradise. Looking down from the mountain, National Highway 316 winds around the hills, and the Beijing-Fuzhou Expressway stretches from north to south. Below the mountain, vast fertile fields stretch for miles, dotted with numerous villages, crisscrossed by roads, with the Fu River winding like a ribbon and lakes shining like mirrors — a breathtaking panorama of the human world unfolds before your eyes.

Over the course of more than a thousand years of history, Jinshan Temple has experienced repeated cycles of prosperity and destruction. During the Song and Yuan dynasties alone, it was destroyed several times by war. In the early Ming Dynasty, it flourished once again, only to suffer another battering by war in the late Ming period. The Buddha statues were relocated to Qianyuan Village at the foot of the mountain, where a new temple was built for worship to keep the faith alive. For over three hundred years following this, Jinshan Ridge fell into desolation, and Jinshan Temple existed in name only. It was not until the early 1980s that the monk Huìwù, who had by then become the 45th-generation lineage holder of the Linji School of Chan Buddhism under the dharma name "Yinkong," saw that the national religious policies were gradually being implemented and resolved to revive Jinshan Temple. In the spring of 1985, amid the ruins of the overgrown and dilapidated temple, a new chapter of arduous development began. With the support of numerous monks, nuns, and devotees from home and abroad, after more than ten years of hard work and perseverance, Master Yinkong’s long-cherished dream was finally realized. Jinshan Temple regained its former glory, with a complex of over 5,000 square meters of buildings standing proudly atop Golden Peak.

Today, Jinshan Temple is not only reputed as the “Buddhist City of Eastern Jiangxi,” enjoying widespread fame, but is also a sacred Buddhist destination frequented by devout worshippers. It often welcomes monks from Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia who come here to set up Buddha statues and practice meditation. On the birthday of Guanyin Bodhisattva, the 19th day of the second lunar month, the two mountain roads leading up to the temple are packed with vehicles, and the mountain is teeming with people, with over 30,000 worshippers coming and going — a testament to its enduring splendor. Now, there is also the newly built Wàn Fó Tǎ (Ten Thousand Buddhas Pagoda), visible from miles away, spreading the radiance of Buddha’s light across the land.

With Jinshan Temple being rated as a national AA-level tourist attraction and further improvements to its infrastructure, it is bound to become a scenic destination for travelers.

Source: Jinxian County People's Government Website