Dongshan Temple in Tuocheng

Dongshan Temple in Tuocheng

Dongshan Temple in Tuocheng is a cultural tourism attraction.

“The ancient temple stands first on Eastern Hill, / Why chime its bells at dusk we hear so shrill? / After one hundred and eight rings resound, / The monks then shut the meditation ground.”

This is a seven-character quatrain written by Su Shi, one of the “Eight Great Prose Masters of the Tang and Song,” during his visit to Longchuan while exiled to Huizhou. After thoroughly enjoying his tour of Dongshan Temple, he composed this poem. Dongshan Temple is located in Dongyao Village, Tuocheng Town, Longchuan, facing Aoshan Mountain and the Dong River, and backed by Dongshan Ridge, hence the name “Dongshan Temple.” It was first built in the seventh year of the Daye era of the Sui Dynasty (611 AD), making it an ancient temple with a long history.

The main gate of Dongshan Temple faces the Dong River directly, with a golden couplet carved on both sides that reads, “Majestic mountains welcome guests with beautiful scenery, temple bells and drums chant Amitabha.” As you enter through the gate, you can see plants such as willows and pines growing inside the temple. Dongshan Temple is a three-courtyard quadrangle compound, with a flush-gable roof style, covering an area of over 500 square meters. The temple houses two worship halls: the Three Treasures Hall and the Guanyin Hall, both featuring two thick and sturdy pillars. The Three Treasures Hall displays five vivid statues including those of Sakyamuni Buddha and Maitreya Buddha; the center of the Guanyin Hall features one statue of Guanyin, with nearly 20 other deities around it, all with distinct expressions and lifelike appearances.

The beams and screens inside the temple are all intricately carved with dragons and phoenixes. According to Liu Bo, the caretaker of the temple, a large bell and an evening drum were once placed in front of the Guanyin Hall but were stolen several years ago. In the past, when the bell rang in the morning and the drum sounded in the evening, their echoes could be heard within a radius of ten li. Backed by the lush and ancient Dongshan Ridge and facing the gentle river breeze, the flowing waters, and the serene green surface of the Dong River, the scene at sunset—when monks offer incense and chant scriptures, the evening drum resonates, birds return to their nests, and farmers come home leading oxen and carrying hoes—is particularly beautiful.

Dongshan Temple is listed as one of the “Eight Scenic Spots of Longchuan”—“Evening Drums at Dongshan Chanting Amitabha.” In the 30th year of the Kangxi reign during the Qing Dynasty (1691 AD), Wang Ying, then the magistrate of Longchuan County, vividly captured the majestic sight of Dongshan Temple in his poem “Poem of the Evening Drums at Dongshan”: “A mass of green hills looms far and wide, / Where amid them a Buddhist tower does bide. / Tree shadows linger faint in the sunset light, / Bell sounds drift away on the wind from height. / Wisps of smoke blend with the deep valley’s hue, / Birds fly into the distance, blue on blue. / Here lingering notes are still heard with ease, / Half lost in the dusk-enveloped trees.”

Dongshan Temple is not only a place of worship for devout Buddhists but also a site that values education and respects teachers. During his exile in Longchuan after being dismissed from office (in the third year of the Jingding era of the Southern Song Dynasty, 1261 AD), the famous statesman Wu Qian established the “Sansha Academy” here, also known as the “Dongshan Academy.” He often lectured on Taoist scriptures here together with scholars and literati, enrolling over a hundred students and playing a significant role in spreading advanced Central Plains culture.

For a thousand years, the incense at Dongshan Temple has never ceased, with many people traveling from afar to worship here in search of spiritual comfort. However, during the late Qing Dynasty and the Republican era, continuous warfare, natural disasters, and turmoil led to its gradual decline. The long-neglected temple began to show signs of aging, with roofs and rooms gradually collapsing. In 1960, Dongshan Temple suffered a devastating blow when a rare storm caused its complete collapse. Fortunately, in the 1980s, members of the public voluntarily donated funds to rebuild the temple on its original site. Though not as grand as before, the footsteps of worshippers to Dongshan Temple have never stopped, and the temple has once again become enveloped in the scent of incense all day long...

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