Pingyao Qingliang Temple

Pingyao Qingliang Temple

Pingyao Qingliang Temple is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Qingliang Temple is located north of Yongcheng Village, Buyi Township, Pingyao County. It derives its name from the fact that the Bodhisattva Manjushri established a sacred site on Qingliang Bao Mountain (Mount Wutai). According to the 1882 Pingyao County Annals from the 8th year of the Guangxu reign during the Qing Dynasty, Qingliang Temple was first built in the 2nd year of the Zhizheng era of the Yuan Dynasty (1342), and was later renovated or refurbished in the 11th year of the Chenghua era (1475), the 16th year of the Jiajing era (1537), and the 5th year of the Longqing era (1571), with the Buddha statues being repainted and refurbished again in the 13th year of the Yongzheng era (1735) of the Qing Dynasty.

The mountain gate of Qingliang Temple consists of five brick-arched cave rooms, with the remnants of bell and drum towers on either side. Originally, there was a Guan Yu Pavilion on top of the gate, which was destroyed during the “Cultural Revolution.” Passing through the central hall leads to the main courtyard of Qingliang Temple. The main hall is called the “Seven Buddhas Hall,” while the east and west halls are the Guanyin Hall and the Kṣitigarbha Hall. In earlier times, they housed the “Eighteen Arhats Worshiping Guanyin” and the “Ten Kings of Hell Paying Homage to Kṣitigarbha,” from which we can infer that the central hall was originally the “Four Heavenly Kings Worshiping Maitreya,” clearly reflecting the Buddhist worship layout of the Ming and Qing periods.

The Seven Buddhas Hall had long been neglected and was in a precarious state as early as the early 1980s. Shortly after the Cultural Relics Protection Law was promulgated, the main hall was already in critical condition, with multiple sections of the roof exposed to the sky, the back wall leaning precariously, and the western half of the back wall tilting forward, pushing the statue of Amitabha Buddha along with its halo decorations forward. It probably would have collapsed had it not been for the “boundless power of the Buddha”—though that, of course, is a joke. At the time, following appeals by ten provincial People's Congress deputies, the county government managed to allocate a small amount of funds from its strained budget and implemented some emergency measures. It wasn’t until the early 1990s that a group of veteran cadres including Mr. Zhao Kexiao from Pingyao County initiated the establishment of the “Pingyao County Veteran Cadres’ Cultural Relics Friends Association.” They jointly sent out letters appealing for donations to fellow Pingyao natives across the country, raised funds, and received partial allocation from the county government, which finally enabled a complete renovation. The precious cultural relics in the hall, namely the “Three Buddhas and Four Bodhisattvas,” were thus saved intact. The main hall’s Buddha platform enshrines the tall “Three Vertical World Buddhas”: the Medicine Buddha of the Eastern Pure Lapis Lazuli World, the Amitabha Buddha of the Western Pure Land, and in the center, the Shakyamuni Buddha of the Saha World. In front of the Buddha platforms on the eastern and western walls of the hall are enshrined the Four Bodhisattvas: Manjushri, Samantabhadra, Guanyin, and Mahasthamaprapta. All seven Buddha statues are tall, dignified, and exquisitely crafted, seated in lotus positions atop Sumeru pedestals. The level of sculptural artistry is extremely high—even the eight small yaksha figures on the Sumeru pedestals are vividly portrayed, and the delicate decorations on the halos and the intricate patterns on the Buddha bases are all masterfully carved. One of the four attendant standing statues has been damaged, but the remaining three are also exquisitely made, truly breathtaking.

This set of sculptures, the only remaining ones from Qingliang Temple, was created in the 16th year of the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty (1537) by Duan Zhongneng, a folk artist from Dapu Village in the county. He led his son Duan Zhe and grandson Duan Tianhua to create this group of once-in-a-millennium artistic treasures. From this, we can also appreciate how the rapid economic advancement of the Pingyao merchant group during the Ming and Qing periods served as a strong economic foundation for driving the creation and development of outstanding culture and art.

Under the corridor of the west hall, there was originally a rare Buddhist relic: a stele from the 1st year of the Putai era of the Northern Wei Dynasty (531). It was a national rarity and could be considered a priceless treasure. Unfortunately, due to poor management and lack of security measures by the Pingyao cultural relics authorities, it was stolen by car thieves in the autumn of 1999. Although the case has since been solved by Pingyao authorities, the stele was sold for 500,000 RMB and transferred to Taiwan. “Oh, when will you return? The sea is vast and boundless!”

The existence of the Northern Wei Buddhist stele may push the original construction date of Qingliang Temple back by 1,000 years. It is also possible that the stele originated from another temple, but at the very least, it indicates that Yongcheng Village already had a thriving Buddhist culture as far back as the Northern Wei era.

A bodhisattva head from the Seven Buddhas Hall was also stolen in 1999, which is truly regrettable.

Scenic Spot Location

Yongcheng Village, Buyi Township, Pingyao County, Shanxi Province

Yongcheng Village: Yongcheng Village in Buyi Township is located 15 kilometers south of Pingyao County. It is traversed by the Changdong County Road, making transportation convenient. The village borders Fancun to the north, Zaoshuping Village to the south, Xibuyi to the west, and is closely connected to Junzhai Village to the northeast and Duan Village in Duan Town to the southeast.

I. Basic Population Information: The village has a total of 407 households and 1,390 residents. Among them, there are 650 rural employees, 1,263 participating farmers, and 46 people receiving minimum living allowances.

II. Main Agricultural Products: The village has a total of 989 mu of cultivated land, including 96... (details on grain crops). More detailed information about Yongcheng Village ++

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units