Gaoping Kaihuasi Temple

Gaoping Kaihuasi Temple

Kaihuasi Temple is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Kaihuasi Temple

Kaihuasi Temple (Fifth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units)

Era: Northern Song to Qing Dynasties

Address: On the mountainside of Sheli Mountain, Wangcun Village, Chenping Town, 20 km northeast of Gaoping City

According to the "Inscription on the Stupa of the Chan Master of Sheli Mountain in the Great Tang" inside the temple from the third year of Tongguang during the Later Tang Dynasty (925 AD), the temple was established in the Tiancheng era (904–907 AD) at the end of the Tang Dynasty. Initially named Qingliang Temple, it was renamed Kaihuasi Chan Monastery during the Song Dynasty, and later became known as Kaihuasi Temple. It underwent multiple renovations throughout the Song, Jin, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. The existing main structures include the Dabei Pavilion in the front (a Ming Dynasty building), the Mahavira Hall in the center (a Song Dynasty structure), the Guanyin Pavilion in the eastern corner (a remnant of the Jin Dynasty), and the east side hall and the east and west corner towers in the rear courtyard (all Yuan Dynasty architecture). The rest are Ming and Qing Dynasty buildings.

The temple faces south and is arranged along a central axis that includes the Dabei Pavilion, the Mahavira Hall, and the Yanzuo Hall. The complex extends two courtyards longitudinally, with ten side halls on the east and west in the front courtyard, and east and west side halls, the Wenchang Emperor Pavilion, and the Sage Hall in the rear courtyard. To the east of the Yanzuo Hall is the Guanyin Pavilion, and to the west is the Vimalakirti Chamber.

The Guanyin Pavilion is a Jin Dynasty structure featuring three bays, a single-eave hanging hip roof. The Dabei Pavilion is a two-story building, three bays wide and deep, square in plan, with a double-eave hip-and-gable roof.

The Mahavira Hall was built in the sixth year of Xining during the Song Dynasty (1073 AD). It stands on a stone-paved platform, measures three bays square, has six rafters, and features a single-eave hip-and-gable roof. The main bays on the front and rear eaves have doors, while the side bays on the front eave have pierced lattice windows. The eave pillars bear inscriptions indicating they were donated in the sixth year of Xining (1073 AD), marking the exact year the hall was built. The bracket sets under the eaves feature complex designs, with single brackets on the outer layer and double layers inside. The lower set is positioned atop the pillar capitals, and the upper ones connect to the roof purlins. This construction method is rare in later architecture. Except for parts of the interior, most of the roof structure is exposed. Above the four purlins, the roof frame is visible. The beams and brackets are richly decorated with carvings including floral patterns, beasts, dragons, phoenixes, and cloud motifs, similar to those depicted in the Song Dynasty painting "Qingming Shanghe Tu." It is one of the best-preserved examples of Song Dynasty painted wooden structures in China.

The walls of the hall are entirely covered with murals, spanning a total of 96 square meters. According to inscriptions on stelae and painted labels, as well as the colored paintings on the beams, these murals were created in the third year of Shaosheng during the Song Dynasty (1096 AD). The artist was Guo Fa. The murals mostly depict Buddhist jataka tales, sutra stories, and scenes of secular life at the time. The overall composition is rigorous, with bold and fluid brushwork, providing valuable material for the study of Song Dynasty painting art.

Further reading:

· Fifth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units