Guangji Temple

　　Introduction

　　Guangji Temple is situated on Fuchengmennei Street in Xisi, downtown Beijing, and is the current site of the Buddhist Association of China. In 1983, it was designated as a national key temple in Han Chinese regions. The history of Guangji Temple dates back to the Jin Dynasty. After the ravages of war during the Jin and Yuan dynasties, the temple became ruins. During the JingTai era of the Ming Dynasty (1450–1456), someone unearthed pottery Buddha statues, ritual implements, stone turtles, and stone pillar capitals, realizing that this was the site of an ancient temple. By the early TianShun period (1457–1464), the monk Puhui from Shanxi, along with his disciple Yuanhong and others, vowed to restore the temple. With substantial donations from Liao Ping of the Shangyi Supervision Office, the temple was rebuilt on its original site. It took two years, and the sacred temple was restored to its former glory.

　　During the Qing Dynasty, due to Guangji Temple’s location along the mandatory route for imperial processions out of the city, it gained the attention of the royal family. Several emperors visited to offer incense, some even composed poems or erected steles in its honor, or bestowed plaques, greatly elevating its status and making it an important temple in the capital. In November 1931, the temple suffered a devastating fire, which almost completely destroyed the main structures. Later, under the fundraising efforts of the then-abbot Xianming, reconstruction was completed in 1935, resulting in an even more magnificent scale than before.

　　In 1953, when the Buddhist Association of China was established, it chose this temple as its headquarters. During the Cultural Revolution, Guangji Temple sustained severe damage. By 1972, due to the needs of the country’s foreign affairs, the Buddhist Association of China resumed regular operations and carried out large-scale restoration of the temple buildings.

　　Along the central axis of the temple from south to north are the Mountain Gate, the Hall of Heavenly Kings, the Mahavira Hall, the Yuantong Hall, and the Scripture Depository, flanked by the Bell and Drum Towers, stone lions guarding the gate, imperial inscribed stelae, the Guest Reception Hall, the Dharma Lecture Hall, the Library, and a jade-carved Ordination Platform. On the back wall of the Mahavira Hall is a large finger-painted artwork created in the 9th year of the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty (1744) by the painter Fu Wen, commissioned by Emperor Qianlong. Titled "The Auspicious Sound of Victory," the painting stands five meters high and ten meters wide. It is the largest surviving mural in China depicting the scene of the Buddha preaching and is also a treasured piece of Buddhist art.

　　The Scripture Depository houses many precious Buddhist scriptures. This building is now called the "Sharira Pavilion" because, after the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Buddha’s tooth relic discovered at the site of the Thousand Buddha Pagoda of the Lingguang Temple at the Western Hills’ Eight Great Sites was moved here for enshrinement, leading to the name change. To the west of the Sharira Pavilion lies a small courtyard, where the main hall contains a finely carved white marble ordination platform built in the 37th year of the Kangxi reign (1698) by the disciple Zhan You of Abbot Hengming. The platform is exquisitely crafted and well preserved, and it is the only ordination platform in Beijing. Transportation

　　Address: No. 25, Fuchengmennei Street, Xicheng District, Beijing. Buses 13, 101, 102, 103, 105, 823, 812, and 814 stop at Xisi Station.

　　Address: No. 25, Fuchengmennei Street, Xicheng District, Beijing

　　Type: Temple

　　Recommended visiting time: 2–3 hours

　　Phone: 010-66160907

　　Opening Hours:

　　7:00–16:30

　　Ticket Information:

　　Free admission.

Guangji Temple is aAAA-rated attraction

Guangji Temple is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.