Dayun Temple

　　Dayun Temple (included in the third batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units)

　　Era: Five Dynasties to Qing Dynasty

　　Address: In Long’er Mountain, north of Shihui Village, 23 km northwest of Pingshun County

　　The temple was established in the third year of the Tianfu era during the Later Jin of the Five Dynasties (938 AD). Originally named Xianyan Temple, also known as Dayun Temple, a pagoda was built outside the temple in the first year of the Xiande era of the Later Zhou (954 AD). By the first year of the Jianlong era of the Northern Song (960 AD), there were already over a hundred halls. In the eighth year of the Taiping Xingguo era (983 AD), it was renamed Dayun Chan Temple by imperial decree. It gradually fell into disrepair later on. The existing structures, apart from the Grand Buddha Hall and the Seven-Treasure Pagoda which date back to the Five Dynasties, were all built during the Qing Dynasty.

　　The temple site faces south and features main structures including the mountain gate (also known as the Heavenly King Hall), the middle hall (Mituo Hall, also called the Grand Buddha Hall), the rear hall, and two side corridors. The Mituo Hall is the main hall of Dayun Temple. It was initially built in the fifth year of the Tianfu era of the Later Jin of the Five Dynasties (940 AD) and is one of only three surviving wooden structures from the Five Dynasties period in China. The front platform of the hall is 1.3 meters high, built with bluestone, while the other three sides rise gradually with the terrain. The front eaves of the hall have doors and windows, and there is also a passageway at the rear eaves. The hall is three bays wide and six rafters deep, with a nearly square floor plan. The column capitals are round and gently curved, and the column bases are of the inverted-bowl treasure-flower lotus style. Above the wall columns, the architrave and the girders intersect perpendicularly, and at the corners, the architrave does not protrude while the girders intersect diagonally. The bracket sets under the eaves are exquisitely crafted, using the dougong system. The roof is covered with tiles. The central bay features a more complex design, while the side bays are simpler. On the beam frames above the hall, there are multiple types of brackets of varying sizes and styles. Inside the hall, over 20 square meters of Five Dynasties murals are preserved. These murals are painted in blue, green, and ochre, with ink outlines, sharing the same style as the late Tang murals in the Mogao Caves of Dunhuang. The bracket sets and colored paintings on the beams and columns reflect the early styles of Chinese architectural decoration.

　　Inside the hall, there is a Five Dynasties stone incense burner inscribed with the text: “Xianyan Chan Temple, the second year of the Guangshun era, the 15th day of the eighth month, year of Renzi.” In front of the Grand Buddha Hall, there are stone sutra pillars from the fourth year of the Qiande era (966 AD) and the second year of the Xianping era (999 AD) of the Northern Song, as well as a stone-carved arhat statue, all of which are artistic treasures. Outside the temple to the south stands the Seven-Treasure Pagoda, built in the first year of the Xiande era of the Later Zhou of the Five Dynasties (954 AD). The pagoda is made of stone, with a double-layered, double-eaved octagonal structure, about 6 meters tall. It consists of a double-layered Sumeru base, a double-layered body, and a triple-tiered spire. The pagoda body has an elegant shape and rich, vivid carvings, still bearing the style of the Tang Dynasty.