Temple of the Infinite

Temple of the Infinite

The Temple of the Infinite is a cultural tourism attraction.

The Temple of the Infinite is a thousand-year-old temple on Mount Tai, renowned for its springs. The spring water here is sweet, clear, and can be drunk directly or boiled for tea. As a result, it attracts a constant stream of traveling monks who come to drink, as well as locals from Tai’an who come to enjoy it. The spring has a plentiful and uninterrupted flow year-round, and fetching water is completely free.

The temple is composed of a mountain gate, main hall, east and west side halls, and meditation rooms. The couplet on the mountain gate reads: “Five hundred hidden beneath the Tiantai Cliff, three thousand concealed atop Mount Sumeru.” Inside the courtyard, there is a three-bay stone main hall, with the plaque above the door inscribed “Supreme Spiritual Wonder,” and the couplet stating: “Jade towers and splendid flowers, a celestial garden on high; green jade and emerald waters, overlooking Mount Kunlun.” The plaque above the east window reads “Celestial Ancestor of Mount Tai,” with the couplet: “Enveloping yin and nurturing yang, the origin of the two principles; creating heaven and earth, the foundation of all teachings.” The west window plaque says “Fundamental Form of Heaven and Earth,” with the couplet: “Bestowing sweet rain, the compassionate clouds cast their shade; widely opening the path to enlightenment, the precious moon shines brighter.” In front of the main hall are three-bay east and west side halls, while the west courtyard serves as the meditation room area, with three rooms each on the west and south sides.

The main hall enshrines the Goddess of the Infinite, while the side halls enshrine the Goddess of Childbirth on one side and the Goddess of Vision on the other. What’s the story behind the Goddess of Vision? A lookup reveals: The Goddess of Vision, commonly known as the Goddess of Eyesight. The *Daozang Dhāraṇī Sutra* states that she can cure all eye diseases and is a deity in Chinese Taoism.

On the southern foot of Mount Tai, there are Eastern and Western Temples of Vision, each enshrined as secondary deities in various Yuanjun (Jade Maiden) temples. Her origins are similar to those of the Goddess of Childbirth, and her elegant title is the Holy Mother of Visionary Light, the Goddess Who Illuminates Sight.

It is likely that people worship the Goddess of Vision in hopes of gaining clarity and insight. The small temple courtyard is not large, with ancient pines and locust trees that give it a sense of timelessness. The origins of the Temple of the Infinite are as follows: In 1925, when Zhang Zongchang was the governor of Shandong, Zhang Peirong, the garrison commander of Yanzhou, appointed his wife as the “Goddess of the Infinite” and built the Temple of the Infinite on the site of the old Bamboo Forest Temple. It is indeed strange for a garrison commander to “appoint” his own wife as a “goddess.” Such a thing was probably only something Zhang Zongchang’s subordinates would do.

The Goddess of Childbirth is one of the many goddesses who bless people with children, and her official title is “The Transformative Goddess Who Escorts Fetuses and Delivers Births.” It is said that the Goddess of Childbirth has two faces: the front is kind and gentle, with a benevolent expression; the back is fierce and terrifying.

It is said that when this goddess delivers a child to the human world, fearing the child might be reluctant to leave, she first shows her kind face, then turns her head to reveal her fierce face. The child, frightened, is then born. In woodblock prints, the Goddess of Childbirth is depicted riding a horse, with attendants leading the way and maidens fanning from behind, making a grand procession.