Meifeng temple in Putian

Meifeng temple is located in the middle of Shengli Road in Putian City, Fujian Province. Because plum trees were planted all over the mountain in Song Dynasty, Huizong granted "Meilin Buddhist kingdom", so it was called "Meifeng Temple". The predecessor of the temple was a Guanyin Pavilion. In recent years, with the enthusiastic support of overseas Chinese, large-scale renovation and expansion have been carried out. A new Guanyin Pavilion, tens of meters high, is the highest building in the city. From the pavilion, you can have a panoramic view of the city. All kinds of plum blossoms are still planted all over the mountain. Xiangguo snow sea is a unique landscape in the urban area.

Guangxiao Temple

synonym

Meifeng temple in Putian generally refers to Guangxiao Temple (Guangxiao temple, Putian City, Fujian Province)

Guangxiao Temple (Meifeng temple, Meifeng Guangxiao Temple) is located in the middle section of Shengli Road, Chengxiang District, Putian City, Fujian Province. In 1983, it was listed as a national key Buddhist temple in the Han nationality area by the State Council.

Guangxiao temple is located in the middle of Shengli Road in the city. In the Song Dynasty, plum trees were planted all over the mountain, and Huizong granted the "Meilin Buddhist kingdom", so it was called "Meifeng Temple". The predecessor of Guangxiao temple was a Guanyin Pavilion. In the eighth year of Yuanfeng of Song Dynasty (1085), Huang family, the mother of Li Fu, a famous local scholar, gave up more than 100 mu of land and expanded the pavilion into a temple. In the seventh year of Shaoxing (1137), it was granted the name of "Guangxiao Temple of repaying kindness". In the Yuan Dynasty, there were official lectures in the temple. In the 41st year of Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty (1562), Japanese pirates committed crimes against Pu and the temple was burned.

Guangxiao temple was rebuilt in Wanli period of Ming Dynasty. In the Qing Dynasty, more than ten additional temples were built, which rose close to the mountains and were well arranged.

Historical evolution

In the middle section of Shengli Road, Chengxiang District, Putian City, Fujian Province, there is a large-scale ancient Buddhist temple. It is Meifeng Guangxiao temple, which was listed as the national key Buddhist temple in Han area by the State Council in 1983. Together with Guanghua temple, Guishan temple and Nangshan temple, they are known as the "four jungle of Puyang". In 1983, they were announced by the State Council as the first batch of key temples in China. Meifeng, also known as meizigang in ancient times, is named after the plum trees planted all over the mountain.

In the Sui and Tang Dynasties, there was only a Guanyin Pavilion in Meifeng. In 1085, the owner of Meifeng, Li Pan Gu, begged Guanyin to have his son. More than 100 mu of meizigang mountain area was built and expanded into a Buddhist temple. In 1103, Emperor Huizong of Song Dynasty granted a plaque "Meilin Buddhist kingdom". In the following year, he was granted the "Chongning Temple". In the first year of Zhenghe (1111), the imperial edict was changed to "Wanshou temple in Tianning".

Later, master huizhao was appointed the abbot of Wanshou temple and renovated the temple.

Third casting

In 1132, the second year of Shaoxing in the Song Dynasty, the abbot Huize and others vowed to cast a large steel bell. After three casting, the timbre is not ideal. It was not until the 25th year of Shaoxing (1155) that the abbot Huai Xiu asked Cai Tong, a famous craftsman, to smelt and cast a bronze bell. The tone was clear and loud, and the sound of the clock could reach 40 miles away in the early morning.

Since then, "Mei Temple morning bell" has been listed as a scene in Putian. In 1137, Emperor Gaozong of Song Dynasty granted "Guangxiao temple for repaying kindness". In 1142, Emperor Gaozong of Song Dynasty called it Guangxiao temple. Meifeng Guangxiao temple in the Song Dynasty, with the support of the local rich Li family and the support of the Song Dynasty government, has been expanded many times and has become one of the four largest jungles in Putian. Beside the main hall, there is also Meifeng academy, where famous scholars gather to talk about scriptures and doctrines, write books and write stories. Huishen, the abbot of Meifeng temple, built a Li Gong temple on the left side of the FA hall to commemorate it.

Reconstruction period

In the Yuan Dynasty, the imperial court set up "official lecture" in the temple, which made Meifeng temple a real lecture hall. After years of disrepair, gradually decline. In the sixth year of Yongle in the Ming Dynasty (1408), master GUI Yong, the abbot, rebuilt it. Unfortunately, in 1562, the whole temple was burned down by Japanese pirates, leaving only the main hall and the bell tower. In the sixth year of Wanli (1578), the abbot Yuezhen raised money to renovate it. After that, Jialan temple, Xiangji, Fatang, Dashi Pavilion, Mountain Gate and worship Pavilion were built one after another. In the Qing Dynasty, Guangxiao temple was built on a large scale in Shunzhi, Kangxi and Yongzheng years.

In 1887, the bell tower was on fire, and the Song Dynasty bronze bell in the building was melted by the fire. In the 25th year of Guangxu period (1899), master Weijia, who came back from Nanyang, was the abbot of Guangxiao temple. He raised money from all over the world and built Dawei hall, Abbot's room, guest hall, bell and Drum Tower, Weituo hall and Zen hall. According to the size of the bronze bell of Song Dynasty, a new bronze bell was cast. The bell is 1.64 meters high, 1.04 meters in outer diameter, and weighs 1500 kg. The body of the bell is engraved with the full text of "Da Bei mantra" and "Zhong mantra", with 543 words in total For a long time. Master Weijia has many disciples, including nearly 100 people, zhuoxi, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and other countries, as well as 18 overseas nursing homes.

Opening to the outside world

From the end of the Qing Dynasty, the maintenance and daily expenses of Guangxiao temple were funded by overseas hospitals.

After the founding of the people's Republic of China, the people's government implemented the policy of freedom of religious belief, and Meifeng Guangxiao temple was also protected by the state as a place for Buddhist activities. However, in the "Cultural Revolution", the Buddha statues were destroyed, the monks scattered, and the halls were used for other purposes. Only the Qing Dynasty bronze bell survived. In 1979, with the full implementation of the policy of freedom of religious belief, Guangxiao temple was reopened as a place for Buddhist activities.

In 1979, with the full implementation of the policy of freedom of religious belief, Guangxiao temple was reopened as a place for Buddhist activities. Overseas believers actively donated money to rebuild the ancestral temple. With the support of the relevant government departments and the efforts of the Buddhist circles at home and abroad, after ten years of reconstruction, the hall of Guangxiao temple in Meifeng is magnificent and the statue of Buddha is solemn.

Layout structure

On the central axis of Guangxiao temple in Meifeng, there are six halls in turn: Gate archway, Tianwang hall, worship Pavilion, Daxiong hall, Dharma Hall (the upper is the Sutra Library) and Dabei hall. On the left side, there are Jialan hall, bell tower, guest hall, Zhaitang, sangshe and Gongde hall; on the right side, there are zushi hall, Gulou hall, Jingye hall, Zen hall and Abbot's room. The whole building is built in accordance with the mountain, rising in order. The whole building of Guangxiao temple is simple and elegant, majestic and spectacular, with clear layout and elegant layout. The total building area is 18000 square meters, and the whole temple covers an area of 53000 square meters.

The most striking feature of Guangxiao temple in Meifeng is the Dabei hall, which was built on the top of the mountain in the 1980s. Although the elevation of Meifeng is only 55 meters, it stands out in the city. With the 22 meter high hall of great sorrow with triple eaves and hanging columns, it is particularly magnificent. In the hall, a 14.2-meter-high sitting statue of Guanyin is the highest in Fujian. It is said that 1.5kg of gold is used for the body only.

In the hall, there is a pair of couplets written by Rodin (1904-1983): "the plum blossoms on the top of the mountain can be heard for a hundred and eight hours, and the sound can be heard; in front of the door, you can see thousands of spring colors, and the colors are all empty." At the back of the hall, there are classes who can climb the hall and walk through the corridor.

Mei Temple morning bell

The "morning bell of Mei Temple", one of the 24 scenic spots in Putian, refers to the sound of the bell in the early morning of Meifeng temple, which is loud, deep, deep and continuous, melodious and melodious, long and quiet, and has a wide range of sound. It can be heard in the land of Puyang, which can be called a major landscape of Licheng.

Meifeng temple, built in the late Northern Song Dynasty, is one of the "four jungles" in Putian. In the bell tower of the temple, there used to be a high-quality copper bell made by Cai Tong, a famous craftsman in the Shaoxing period of the Song Dynasty. The sound is loud and can be spread to hundreds of miles away. It is said that Cai Tong had only cast four big bells in his life. The first bell was very loud, which was called "divine bell", but it flew away. The second bell had excellent sound quality, that is, the Buddha bell of Meifeng temple. The third bell was hung in the bell tower of Zixiao temple, weighing 1700 Jin. The fourth bell had a very bad sound, which was used as the death knell when the county government killed people. After the bell of Meifeng temple was hung on the bell tower, the old Zen master left for Yongquan temple in Gushan, Fuzhou. Before he left, he told the monk that he would not ring the bell until he arrived in Fuzhou. The little monk didn't know the secret. When the Zen master just came out of the river and walked to the foot of Weng mountain in Fuqing, he began to ring the bell strangely and impatiently.

Related allusions

Hearing that the bell rang, the Zen master immediately returned to Licheng and scolded the young monk for disobedience and bad things. The place where Zen Master heard the bell was later called "before the bell". The sound of the bell in Meifeng temple only reaches there. It is said that wherever Zen Master goes, the bell will go there. If the little monk rings the bell after he arrives in Fuzhou according to the instructions of the Zen master, the bell will reach Fuzhou. Because the little monk is anxious and rings in advance, the bell will only reach Fuqing bell, which is only 40 miles away from Meifeng temple. This story has been spread among the people till now. Unfortunately, the bell was burned in the 13th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty due to the careless fire of the garrison.

The bronze bell of Meifeng temple was recast in the early years of the Republic of China by imitating the bell of Song Dynasty. Although it is not as magical as the former Bell, it is also very pleasant to hear: when the dawn is just beginning and the golden rooster crows, over the Xinghua plain, the bell sounds are frequent, rhythmic, round and far-reaching. It adds an elegant and fresh charm to Licheng, a thousand year old ancient city. It is known as "Meisi morning bell" and Putian The unique landscape of the city.

Traffic information

Take bus No.2, 12, 23 to Meifeng Temple Station.

Address: Shengli Road, Chengxiang District, Putian City, Fujian Province

Longitude: 119.01394546734

Latitude: 25.436452224451

Tel: 0594-2292943; 0594-22

Ticket information: Free

Opening hours: 8:30-17:00

Chinese PinYin : Pu Tian Mei Feng Si