The Tanzhe Temple (literally "Temple of Pool and Zhe Tree") is a
Buddhist temple situated near China National Highway 108 in the
Mentougou District, a mountainous area to the west of Beijing.
The temple is built on a hillside and consists of various
pavilions, prayer halls, courtyards and a group of pagodas dating
from the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. At one time, it was one of
the most important temples in the nation.
Built in the Jin Dynasty (265–420), it has an age of around
1,600 years. The area of the entire temple is 100 mu (6.8
hectares), and its arrangement of halls is akin to that found in
the Ming and Qing dynasties.
The temple's central hall is its Mahavira Hall. 24 metres in
length, 33 metres wide, and with a depth of 20 metres. Buddhist
monks regularly perform chanting here, to the accompaniment of
woodblocks, cup gongs, and bells.
The complex is extensive, and is said to have provided a model
for the layout of the Forbidden City. Above and to the right of the
main courtyard lies a rare stupa yard (TaYuan), with stone
monuments built in different styles over a period of several
centuries and housing the remains of eminent monks.
Tanzhe Temple also has some other features. The bed of its
former Dragon Pool, which has dried up, sits on the hill at the
back of the temple. The zhè trees (Cudrania tricuspidata or Wild
Mulberry), now few in number, are located in the temple as well.
Their number has dwindled shockingly from the original thousand or
so. There are also persimmon trees, as well as a stand of
bamboo.
Tanzhe Temple has seen numerous monks practice their Buddhist
art for the rest of their lives here, thus leaving many pagoda
tombs in different styles close by the temple. Probably the best
known is the one of Princess of Miaoyan, daughter of Kublai Khan,
of the Yuan Dynasty. In order to redeem her father from killing so
many people in battles, she converted herself to Buddhism, and
spent the rest of her life here. Her pagoda tomb is a solid brick
five-storey construction with elaborate eaves, with a smaller
pagoda on each side for company.
?
As a cultural resort with a long history, the temple always
attracts many tourists from home and abroad.
Travel tips:
Admission: 35 yuan
Tel: 010-6086-2505
Opening time: 8:00 to 17:30 in summer and 8:30-16:30 in
winter.
Website: http://www.tanzhesi.com.cn/
How to get there:
The temple is easily accessible by taking bus no. 931 from the
PingGuoYuan subway stop (at the west end of line one). Bus runs
daily 7am-5:30pm, about every 30 minutes. Journey time is about 1
hour. Once at the subway stop, take exit D, turn right and continue
straight a few minutes to the bus station; take the plain red and
beige, rather than the red and yellow zhi version of the bus.
At weekends, the no. 7 tourist bus runs from the north east
corner of QianMen (Sat-Sun 7am-8:30am, every 30 minutes; about 50
yuan), and includes a stop at the ShiHua Caves. April 15 and
October 15.
(China.org.cn August 8, 2007)
