Changchun Temple

　　  Changchun Temple, located on Changchun Street in Beijing. The temple gate faces east and includes a front hall, a main hall, and a rear building. Although some parts have been renovated, the original structures are largely intact.

　　  Built in the 20th year of the Wanli era during the Ming Dynasty (1592), it has a history of nearly 400 years. It was commissioned by Empress Dowager Xiaoding Li, the mother of Emperor Shenzong, who ordered its construction to house Monk Shuizhai. Shuizhai’s senior disciple served as the emperor’s proxy for religious practice. Emperor Shenzong bestowed the name “Changchun” (Long Spring), symbolizing his wish for his mother’s longevity. After Empress Dowager Li passed away, she was revered as the “Nine-Lotus Bodhisattva,” and a painting of the Nine-Lotus Bodhisattva has been preserved at Changchun Temple. Additionally, the last Ming emperor, Chongzhen, who missed his birth mother, Empress Xiaochun Liu, had an artist paint her portrait, which was also displayed in the temple. By the Guangxu era, only the portrait of Empress Liu remained, but it was lost during the Cultural Revolution. There was also once a gilded copper stupa of the Many Treasures Buddha in the temple, standing 1.5 zhang tall; it has since been moved to Longevity Temple.

　　  Changchun Temple was damaged by an earthquake during the Kangxi era and was later restored with funding donated by Chief Minister Feng Pu. Near the temple is the Miaoguang Pavilion, built by the early Qing scholar Gong Dingzi. The pavilion collapsed during the Qianlong era, was rebuilt in the Jiaqing era, and renamed Zhe Temple. The remains of martyrs such as Li Dazhao were once laid in state at both Changchun Temple and Zhe Temple. Zhe Temple has since been demolished. Changchun Temple is a municipal-level cultural heritage site protected by Beijing Municipality.

　　  Source: Beijing Municipal Commission of Tourism Development