Jingtu Temple

　　   Jingtu Temple is situated in Liuzhuang Town, Dafeng City. Commonly known as the Liuzhuang Chastity Temple (a retirement home for chaste women in the Pure Land tradition), it was established in 1921 by lay Buddhist Gao Henian, who built it on the foundation of his own residence with funding from various donors. The temple complex includes a mountain gate, front hall, main hall (Dharma hall), Yan Shou Hall, Ancestral Hall, Nourishing Heart Hall, Gui Yuan Hall, Merit Hall, guest hall, dining hall, east and west meditation rooms, totaling 110 rooms, covering an area of over 8 mu.

　　   Gao Henian, whose given name was Hengsong, also went by the courtesy names Yincheng and Yeren, and had the art names Zhongnan Shizhe, Yunshan Daoren, and Yunxi Daoren. He was born on September 14, 1872, originally from Guichi, Anhui, later moved to Xinghua, and eventually settled in Liuzhuang. After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, he served as a council member of the first executive board of the Buddhist Association of China and as a deputy to the first Jiangsu Provincial People’s Congress. He passed away on January 2, 1962, at the age of 91. He was a renowned lay Buddhist in modern times, dedicating his life to attaining enlightenment and helping all beings. Gao Henian had a deep love for China's magnificent landscapes and undertook several journeys across the country. Wearing straw sandals and a straw raincoat, he braved both cold and heat, hunger and thirst, traveling north to Youyan and south to Yunnan and Guizhou, sustaining himself with alms from thousands of households while journeying alone across vast distances for 35 years. He visited 116 famous mountains, documenting each one, and compiled his accounts into “Record of Visits to Famous Mountains.” Due to its detailed historical records and illustrations, the work has become a valuable resource for researching geography, landscapes, customs, and local culture. He is often referred to as the “Second Xu Xiake.”

　　   The fourth-phase project, the “Memorial Hall of Lay Buddhist Gao Henian,” is currently under planning. Gao Henian’s direct disciples, Wang Guangyue and Sun Qin, serve as the abbot and vice-abbot of Jingtu Temple, respectively. Surrounded by water on all sides and connected to the outside world by a bridge called the Nine-Lotus Bridge, it is a well-known female monastic practice site in northern Jiangsu.