Maha nunnery

Maha nunnery

Maha'an is located in Linglong lane, south of Balizhuang, Haidian District, Beijing, east of cishou temple tower. It was built in the 25th year of Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty (1546). This place was originally the cemetery of eunuch Zhao Zheng. Zhao Zheng raised money to build this nunnery, hoping that temple monks would burn incense for him from generation to generation. It is said that the bricks and wood used in the construction of this nunnery are the leftover materials from the construction of the Forbidden City. The whole building is quite exquisite.

survey

"Maha" is a transliteration of Sanskrit, which means "Da". The temple faces south from the north, with a total of 3 roads. The middle road is Shanmen, Zhonggulou, Shanmen hall, Daxiong hall, houdian in turn, with East and West halls and rooms, and finally Zhaozheng cemetery. Each corner of the courtyard has a corner building. The main hall is in the architectural style of Ming Dynasty. The tuanlongzaojing in the middle of the top of the hall is extremely exquisite, and there are murals of the Ming Dynasty in the hall. There are two Ming steles on both sides of the platform in front of the hall. On the inner wall of the diamond hall on the East Road, there are 61 pieces of diamond sutras carved with 32 styles of Ming Dynasty Relin seal script. Maha nunnery is famous for its openness and purity. The literati of Ming and Qing Dynasties traveled here in spring, and there were many poems about the scenery and flowers.

history

Zhao Zheng was appointed as a eunuch of the military affairs department of 3000 battalions of the Fifth Army. This was his cemetery. He was afraid of having no empress and breaking the incense, so he built an nunnery in the cemetery and let the monks burn incense for him. Although the temple is small in scale, it has a great reputation. Especially after the Wanli period, the incense became more prosperous. At that time, there were thousands of apricot trees in the courtyard of Maha nunnery, and there was an endless stream of people who came to the nunnery to offer incense and enjoy the flowers when the flowers were in bloom. In the Qing Dynasty, when Empress Dowager Cixi went to Miaofeng Mountain every spring, it became a "tea station".

layout

It is said that all the bricks and wood used in the construction of the Forbidden City are surplus materials, so the building is very exquisite. When you enter the mountain gate, the pines and cypresses cover the sky, just like entering the mountain forest. The quaint flagpole stone pedestal and the white Shangma stone stand are on both sides. The bell tower in the east corner and the drum tower in the west corner are Pavilion shaped attics with unique shapes and towering confrontation. Stepping into the front hall, the two generals of "hem ha" are awe inspiring.

Passing through the front hall, you can see a majestic hall. On the forehead of the gate, there are four gold characters shining. Outside the gate, there are tortoise bearing stone tablets, and the furnace is surrounded by smoke, which is solemn and spectacular. This is the main hall. In the hall, the carved beams and painted buildings are magnificent, and the Maitreya Buddha is made of copper in the center. It is bare chested, naked and smiling. It weighs several tons. The eighteen Arhats are arranged on both sides in vivid shape. Looking around the murals, the contents are all Buddhist stories, and the image is very vivid. There is a large caisson in the center of the top. The dragon is carved and twisted. The tap goes down and holds a hanging lamp. It is rare and expensive.

There is a diamond hall in the eastern courtyard of the nunnery. The East and west walls are made of white marble and engraved with 32 body diamond sutras. The font is simple and vigorous, which is a rare treasure of ancient calligraphy. The courtyard in the west of the nunnery, with the shade of pine and bamboo, the sound of birds and the fragrance of flowers, is very quiet. In the Qing Dynasty, Wen Zhengong and Wen Jinggong read in seclusion here in their early years. After the death of Er Gong, his descendants repaired the courtyard house and engraved characters and stones on the wall of the courtyard to record the incident. Turn around the main hall and you'll come to the backyard. It's about two or three hundred years old.

The incense burner, stone pagoda and flower bed in the courtyard are exquisitely carved and well arranged. When you reach the end of the Buddhist temple, you can see that the archway stands and the tomb is like a hill, which is the tomb of Zhao Zheng. There is a green pine on the cemetery, which is as gloomy as a cover. In ancient times, it was called the green pine pinning. At this time, looking back, you can see that the four corner building stands up, and you can climb up to the West Tower. You can see that the tower is close to the dyke forest, the distant Sichuan Plain is like embroidery, and the west mountain is forcing you to come. It's green and refreshing.

traffic

Take bus No. 121, 335, 336, 701 to Balizhuang station and walk along Beiwa Road 300 meters northbound to West Primary School

Address: Linglong lane, Balizhuang south, Haidian District, Beijing

Longitude: 116.300143

Latitude: 39.927049199097

Ticket information: no ticket required.

Chinese PinYin : Mo He An