Tianqing Temple

Tianqing Temple

Tianqing Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

Tianqing Temple is located on the steep cliffs of the southwestern hillside of YanShou Temple. Originally a delicate and charming group of Liao Dynasty temples, it was first built in the fifth year of the Shouchang era of the Liao Dynasty. In the seventeenth year of the Kangxi reign during the Qing Dynasty, monks Xingwu and Xingxi raised funds to construct and maintain the site over several decades. Later, Xingxi’s disciple Haideng carried out further repairs. In 1993, shortly after the establishment of the Phoenix Mountain Administration, the temple was restored in the style of the Qing Dynasty, bringing back its former glory.

Backed by a mountain cliff and fronted by a deep ravine, Tianqing Temple is surrounded by ancient cypresses growing along the cliffs behind it, their branches leaning over to shade the temple. Outside the temple’s front wall, five-thousand-year-old cypresses cascade down toward the valley. With a diameter of about 40 centimeters, heights of 10 meters, and canopy spreads of up to 70 square meters, these majestic trees stand tall and sturdy, their gnarled trunks twisting like dragons. Set against the backdrop of this ancient cypress grove, Tianqing Temple exudes an exceptional sense of tranquility and elegance, making it one of the most delightful spots in the mountains. As the saying goes: “A sacred temple bathed in divine light, with emerald cypresses clinging to perilous cliffs; a pure and virtuous blessed land, where the jade-white Bodhisattva of Mercy embodies ultimate goodness.”