Longmen Temple

Longmen temple is a national key cultural relic protection unit, 65 kilometers northwest of Pingshun County, Shanxi Province. The mountain ranges here are towering, with cliffs and cliffs. There are rocks in the valley, and the shape is like the head of a dragon. Therefore, it is called Longmen Mountain. The temple was built here, and its name is also because of it. It was founded in the Tianbao period of the Northern Qi Dynasty, changed to its current name in the Qiande period of the Northern Song Dynasty, and partially repaired in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Longmen Temple

Longmen temple, located 65 kilometers northwest of Pingshun County, is located in the Longmen mountainside of Yuanyuan village, Shicheng Town. Here, the mountains are towering, the cliffs are steep, and the rocks are raised in the valley, which is like the head of a dragon, so it is called Longmen Mountain.

Longmen temple is surrounded by three mountains and one water, with elegant scenery. Longkou spits water, shigu Longmen, Jindeng liuyou, Fangan shengnao, Wutan naohuai, touling stele, Bodhisattva Yingbin, cliff stone Buddha and other scenic spots, known as "eight treasure Longmen". In addition, Pengshan Longmen temple in Sichuan Province has the same name.

Historical records

Longmen temple, a national key cultural relics protection unit, is located 65 kilometers northwest of Pingshun County, Shanxi Province. The mountain ranges here are towering, with cliffs and cliffs. There are rocks in the valley, and the shape is like the head of a dragon. Therefore, it is called Longmen Mountain. The temple was built here, and its name is also because of it. It was founded in the Tianbao period of the Northern Qi Dynasty, changed to its current name in the Qiande period of the Northern Song Dynasty, and partially repaired in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

According to historical records, during the Tianbao period of the northern and Southern Dynasties and the Northern Qi Dynasty, monk Facong traveled here through Mount Wutai. He suddenly felt that this place was quiet, elegant and elegant, so he presented it to the emperor and sent a decree to build a temple, which was originally named "fahua Temple". In the later Tang Dynasty, there were more than 50 temples, and in the Song Dynasty, there were more than 100.

Zhao Kuangyin, the song Taizu, granted the temple the amount of "huiriyuan in Longmenshan", also known as huiriyuan. Because Longmen Mountain is like a dragon head, it was renamed "Longmen Temple" in Qiande period of Northern Song Dynasty. The number of monks in the temple has increased to more than 300. In the Yuan Dynasty, the temple was located in Qili mountain, and the temples at the top and the bottom of the mountain belonged to the temple, without secular houses. At the end of the Yuan Dynasty, most of the buildings were abandoned and rebuilt in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

The origin of the temple's name

Longmen temple is 65 kilometers northwest of Pingshun County in Shanxi Province. It was founded in the Tianbao period of the Northern Qi Dynasty, renamed in the Qiande period of the Northern Song Dynasty (963-968), and partially repaired in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Layout structure

Longmen temple, the existing hall veranda, strict layout. The central axis, the courtyard with three entrances, the eastern and Western Zen halls, and the Sutra houses are divided into one area. Among them, the west side hall of the front courtyard was built in the third year of Tongguang (925) of the late Tang Dynasty, with three Bay hanging mountain style. There are no columns in the hall, and the beams are simple and regular, which still retains the Tang style.

This is only one example of the Five Dynasties' wooden buildings. The main hall was built in the fifth year of Shaosheng (1098) of the Northern Song Dynasty. It has three broad and three deep rooms. Its plane is nearly square. It has a single eaves and nine ridge roofs. The five pavilions of the Dou Gong are used to make a single copy and a single lower elevation. The Dou Gong and the beam frame structure bear the roof load together.

The glass ridged beast on the top of the hall, with ancient shape and simple color, was fired in the Yuan Dynasty. The structure of Tianwang hall is flexible, and the section of Liang Fang is inconsistent with each other. It is obviously a gold structure. There are three back halls, which are of the hanging mountain style and the shape of Yuan Dynasty. Other halls were rebuilt in Ming and Qing Dynasties. The temple is a collection of wooden buildings of the later Tang, song, Jin, yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties, which is the only one in China's existing cultural relics.

Block north to South

Longmen Temple Longmen Temple block north to south, the overall layout is divided into three axes, namely the middle, East, west line. Each axis is divided into front and back into the courtyard, climbing along the winding mountain stone steps in the southeast of the temple, you can directly reach the temple. The central line can be divided into four courtyards. From south to north, there are Jingang hall, Tianwang hall, Daxiong hall, dengdeng Buddha Hall and Qianfo Pavilion.

The East and west sides are equipped with stele pavilions, veranda, Guanyin hall, dizang hall and wing rooms. Among them, the diamond hall, stele Pavilion and Thousand Buddha Pavilion have been destroyed for a long time, and only the ruins remain, while the rest of the halls are basically intact. The west line can be divided into five groups of courtyards. The latter three courtyards are all in the form of quadrangles, most of which are monk houses and storehouses in the Qing Dynasty. The east line is divided into three courtyards. The main buildings are the holy monk's hall, water and land hall, shrine, monk's house and other ancillary buildings, most of which were built in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties.

The earliest preserved wooden structure hall in the temple is Guanyin Hall (west side hall) on the west side of the central axis. It was built in the third year of Tongguang (925) of the late Tang Dynasty in the period of Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. There are no gold pillars in the hall. The beams are simple and regular. The column heads are paved with Chinese arches and there is no patching room. It is in the architectural style of the Tang Dynasty.

architectural style

In the Five Dynasties and the later Tang Dynasty, there is a unique example of the suspended mountain style wooden structure architecture in the existing ancient buildings of the same period in our country. Located in the center of the central axis, the main hall (main hall) was built in the fifth year of Shaosheng in the Northern Song Dynasty (1098). It is the highest grade single building in the temple. The base of the hall is high, with three rooms wide and three rooms deep. The plane is nearly square, and five brackets are paved for single copy.

Single eaves nine ridge top, hall top glass ridge beast, simple shape, thick color, firing for the Yuan Dynasty. The structure of Tianwang Hall (Mountain Gate) is flexible, beautiful and harmonious, the proportion of components is moderate, the section of beams and beams is not consistent, and the suspended mountain roof, especially the 45 ° inclined arch between the Ming and Qing Dynasties, shows the architectural style of Jin Dynasty. The back hall on the central axis is the lamp burning Buddha Hall, with three wide faces and a single eaves hanging on the mountain. The beam frame is made of raw materials, which is full of natural streamline shape. The bucket arch is sparse and thick, and the pier is solid. The structure of the main components is simple, which has significant architectural characteristics of the Yuan Dynasty. The other halls were rebuilt in Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Accessory cultural relics

Most of the statues, murals, ancient books, sacrificial vessels and other ancillary cultural relics in the temples have been destroyed and scattered, leaving only three stone Buddha bodies and Buddha seats in the later Tang Dynasty and the remaining murals in the yuan and Ming Dynasties. Fortunately, there are also 20 stone tablets in the temple, including one Jingchuang (955) built in the third year of Qianyou reign of the late Han Dynasty, and the "pagoda of guru" (967) built in the fifth year of Qiande reign of the Northern Song Dynasty. There is one ancestor tomb in Xigou outside the temple, more than 10 monk tombs and four tombs of song and Ming Dynasties on the southeast slope of the temple.

There is also a large iron bell cast in the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty and the inscriptions of the past dynasties preserved in the temple. These precious cultural relics have become a strong evidence for the study of the historical evolution, scale, organizational system, temple economy and Buddhist culture of the temple. Longmen temple, with its superior environment, unique natural landscape and cultural landscape, long-term historical records, vast Temple scale and simple local architectural style, attracts tourists and pilgrims from all over the world to visit and worship here. It is also famous for its wide age of existing buildings, many roof shapes, and a collection of buildings in the later Tang, song, Jin, yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties In the world, it is the only one in China, which has extremely precious historical research value and cultural relic tour value. The eight natural landscapes around the temple are still for people to enjoy.

Xipeidian

Located in the west of the front courtyard of the middle line, the xipeidian is the oldest building in the temple. It was founded between the third year of Tang Tongguang (925) and the second year of Qing Tai (935) in the Five Dynasties. Three wide, deep four rafters, single eaves hanging peak. In the Ming Dynasty, there was a board door, and in the second time, there were vertical windows. There were no columns in the hall, and the four rafters connected the inside and outside. The column head does not use Pu Paifang, and the appendix does not protrude. The bucket is directly seated on the column head, bearing a small Gong, and jumping out of the bucket mouth. The jumping head is made of four rafters and two ends of the bucket. Dougong four shop to make a single copy, no patching between shop, patching only hidden Dougong. The beam frame is simple, with four rafters straight through the front and rear eaves. The top of the hall is lifted and folded gently, and the eaves are only covered with round rafters without flying rafters. Simple structure, with the architectural heritage of the Tang Dynasty, is China's existing known Five Dynasties hanging mountain architecture.

Central Hall

The main hall is located in the center of the central axis. Founded in the Northern Song Dynasty Shaosheng five years (1098). The plane is nearly square, with single eaves resting on the top of the mountain. The platform base is 1.40 meters high and there is no platform in front of it. The door is set in the open room, and the window is set in the double room. Only the door is set in the open room on the back, which can pass through the front and back. The outer eaves and the mountain surface share 10 columns, and the inner eaves only have two columns. The four eaves columns of the front eaves and the two corner columns of the back eaves are all stone columns with plaster corners, on which there are inscriptions of chuangxiu and the name of the benefactor. The Dougong on the head of the column is made of the single copy and double copy of the six pavilions, and the bottom is made of the high weight Dougong, and the inside is made of the double copy and steal the heart. There is no patching. In the hall, the beams are four rafters, and then the milk rafters. The animals on the top of the hall are all made of yellow green glazed tiles. It is made in Chenghua period. Although the temple was decorated and renovated in Ming and Qing Dynasties, it retained the architectural features of Song Dynasty from the proportion of its bay to the details of its components.

The gate of the mountain, the heavenly king's hall, is at the front of the central axis. Three wide, deep four rafters, single eaves hanging peak. Dougong five shop for double under the heavy gongs, heart made, for the false ang, carved under the false huatouzi. There is a column of central columns in the door, but the doors and windows are set on the front and rear eaves columns. The porches on both sides of the mountain gate are similar to those of the Mountain Gate in the style of Dougong and Liang Fang.

Back hall

The back hall, the lamp burning Buddha Hall, is located at the end of the central axis. Three wide, deep four rafters, single eaves hanging peak. The beam members are made of natural materials, and the cross section is very irregular.

East side hall

The East Hall is located in the east wing of the front yard, opposite to the West Hall. Three wide, deep four rafters, single eaves hard peak. The front and back porches are equipped with plate doors in the open space and vertical lattice windows in the two times. It was rebuilt from 1478 to 1504, the 11th to the 37th year of Hongzhi in Ming Dynasty.

The east line includes Shuilu hall, Tiangong hall, etc.; the west line includes two courtyards, mostly monks' houses, warehouses, etc., which were built in the late Qing Dynasty or the Republic of China.

historical significance

Longmen temple has a long history and a large scale. Among the existing ancient buildings in China, it is the only collection of Five Dynasties, Song Dynasty, Jin Dynasty, Song Dynasty

Chinese PinYin : Long Men Si