Tielu Temple

Tielu Temple

Tielu temple is located in Hanhui village, Laodaohe Town, Changsha County, Hunan Province. It is 15 li away from Changsha City. In the early 1950s, there were two ancient tea trees with luxuriant branches in the courtyard in front of the temple. It is said that the tea trees were planted by Yue Fei himself when he went to the area of Dongting Lake during the uprising of Zhong Xiang and Yang Mo from the fourth year of Jianyan reign of Emperor Gaozong of the Southern Song Dynasty to the fifth year of Shaoxing (1130-1335). According to the calculation, the temple has a history of at least 864 years. In 1959, the temple was demolished, leaving only two miscellaneous rooms. The monks and disciples of Fuchun and Zhengshun were still living here, weaving skillfully and relying on labor and a small amount of government subsidies to maintain a light life.

Temple History

Legends and historical records

Tielu temple is located in tieluchong, Hanhui village, Laodaohe Town, Kaifu District, Changsha City. There are different opinions about its history. I came to the temple to become a monk in 1983. At that time, I was only 17 years old. I remember that there was a sitting statue of Sakyamuni Buddha more than one meter high in the main hall. Next to it was a picture of the ancient people with a mirror frame and an official robe. I was very curious. I asked the Abbess in the temple about the history of the temple and the origin of this picture, and the reply was: the legend is that "there was tielu temple first, then Kaifu temple; there was Kaifu temple first, then Changsha City." As for the figure of the ancients in official clothes, it is Yue Fei, a famous patriotic general of the Song Dynasty. The Abbess also told me that there were two ancient tea trees in the courtyard of tielu temple that could only be embraced by three people. They were planted by Yue Fei himself when he was passing by Dongting Lake. Every winter and spring, thousands of double camellia on the tree are decorated on the branches, gorgeous and colorful, which can be called a great landscape. Until the 1960s, it was still luxuriant and full of flowers. Unfortunately, it was destroyed in a thunder and lightning storm night. This is the legend about the long history of tielu temple that I first got from my elders.

In 1995, tielu temple was fully restored under the leadership of master Xiaochen, and the Buddha statue opening ceremony was held. Since then, the number of pilgrims to the temple has increased. So people pay more attention to the historical origin of tielu temple, eager to get more evidence to explain in addition to legend. The contradiction of the legend itself has become increasingly prominent. Some people have verified that Changsha City existed in the fifth year of emperor Gaozu of the Han Dynasty (202 A.D.), and Kaifu temple was founded in the second year of Tiancheng of the Tang Dynasty (927 A.D.), it is obvious that the saying "Kaifu Temple first, then Changsha City" is difficult to stand on, and the legend "tielu temple first, then Kaifu Temple" is finally unfounded We accept it.

For this reason, I have consulted the general annals of Huguang and the annals of Shanhua county. I have found nothing except the word "tielu Temple" in the annals compiled in 1867. As for its founder and founding date is still unknown. Therefore, my understanding of tielu temple from historical records can only confirm that it existed six years ago. As for the origin of the name of the temple, according to the local old people, the place name of tielu temple has always existed. I carefully look at the terrain around the temple, but I can see that it is surrounded by mountains on all sides, low and broad in the west, hinterland in the middle, and the shape is similar to the iron stove used by the ancients for cooking. Therefore, I assert that the iron stove should be named because of the terrain, and the iron stove temple is named after the place name. There seems to be little doubt about this.

Vicissitudes of history

The age of the iron furnace is unknown. In the early 1950s, two ancient tea trees with luxuriant branches grew in the courtyard in front of the temple. It is said that the tea trees were planted by Yue Fei himself when he went to the Dongting Lake area during the uprising of Zhong Xiang and Yang Mo from the 4th year of Jianyan reign of Emperor Gaozong to the 5th year of Shaoxing (1130-1335). According to the calculation, the temple has a history of at least 864 years. In 1959, the temple was demolished, leaving only two miscellaneous rooms. The monks and disciples of Fu Du and Zheng Shun still lived here, weaving skillfully and relying on labor and a small amount of government subsidies to maintain a light life.

During the "Cultural Revolution", in the process of breaking the "four olds", the temple suffered a catastrophe. Monks and nuns were expelled and Buddha statues were smashed. Two ancient tea trees growing in tielu temple also fell down in a thunderstorm night. From then on, the historic sites disappeared and the temples were scattered. After the catastrophe, there is nothing to be done. The bhiksunis of tielu Temple strive for a space of survival and development for Buddhism with their strong will and plain heart of hard cultivation. After the reform and opening up, tielu temple, with only two miscellaneous rooms left, attracted the monks to live together with Zheng, di Guang, Jueming and Peiguang, and then Mingwu, Xiaochan, Peide and Xiaowu came to register their bills. On the one hand, they cultivated with slash and burn, lived together and practiced hard; on the other hand, they economized on food and clothing, developed believers, and began to dream of reviving tielu temple. In the next 16 years, no matter how hard their lives were, they did not give up their original intention. In 1993, the dream of reviving the temple came true: a mountain gate with various pictures, bright colors, simple and natural; a concrete avenue leading to the front terrace of the new main hall; in order, there are Jialan hall, Weituo hall, pharmacist hall, ancestral hall, guest hall, chanting hall, Zhai hall, Xiangji kitchen, office and other buildings, with unique layout, novelty, and well arranged Elegant and simple, it is the top of the existing Buddhist temples in Changsha City. The temple is surrounded by thousands of hectares of dense forest, and the pines whirl around. The Buddha statues in the temple are solemn and magnificent, and the sky is full of life. In addition, cigarettes are dim and wind chimes are ringing. It's really the pure realm of the world and the Buddhist palace of the world. It's a noble and clean pearl in the eyes of Changsha people.

As the largest open Buddhist dojo in Changsha County, it attracts more and more believers. There are bhiksunis who cultivate their nature, worship Buddhism and chant sutras; there are residents who believe in Buddhism and protect religion; there are Taiwan compatriots who worship famous mountains and help their ancestors; there are Hong Kong visitors who return to their hometown thousands of miles away. The two bhiksunis in charge of tielu temple, Liao Zheng and Zheng Shun, began to restore the ancient temple and cultivate talents since 1977. Since the implementation of the policy at that time had just begun, when the temple was restored, the buildings could only be built into quadrangle farmhouses instead of classical halls. In addition to the limited economic income at that time, the monks could only accumulate the income from doing Buddhist services in the Daochang and the alms of the believers. They rebuilt the main hall, Buddha chanting hall, squatters and miscellaneous houses with civil structures, and offered the new clay Buddha statues in gold. Such a simple place for religious activities is open to the public. In the process of construction, the bhiksunis took on heavy physical work that only men could bear. During the day, he endured the invasion of the sun and rain, moved bricks and tiles, and kept sleepers and materials at night. Their actions reflect the ascetic spirit of Buddhism. At that time, Xiaochen nun, who was a little younger in her forties, almost took on all the heavy physical labor, such as purchasing materials and arranging the life of craftsmen. Interestingly, the monk Xiaowu, who didn't know a word, learned to recite the great palindrome fluently and word by word during the time of keeping materials at night.

By 1982, tielu temple, where many bhiksunis had worked hard, had nine houses collapsed because of the heavy rain. The news soon spread to people who lived in Changsha and Kaifu temple, a famous temple in Sanxiang. They immediately gave a helping hand and widely told other temple believers to help them. In particular, after hearing the news, the two Hong Kong bhiksunis from Changsha vied for help. In this way, the collapsed houses were soon rebuilt. At this time, tielu temple, though not as solemn and solemn as the ancient temple, has the simplicity and nature of the people's house, and the fragrance of a piece of soil. In their life of chopping firewood, growing vegetables, carrying water and cooking, they never forget to chant Buddhist scriptures and educate believers. Living a life of agriculture and Zen. The simple houses and the life of Qing Yan also provided the monks with the opportunity to learn and practice Taoism.

With the deepening of religious policy, the folk house style temple of tielu Temple obviously can not meet the needs of the times. In 1987, with the support of the local government and the Buddhist Association at a higher level, the construction of a great hall in the style of Ming Qing palace began. It is decorated with carved stone railings. The veranda is made of 28 imitation stone columns made of cement. A pair of stone lions in front of the hall are vivid. The surrounding environment is green and carefully designed by garden technicians. It is more solemn and magnificent. After the completion of the main hall, a new building was built in the east of the original temple, and the statues of Sakyamuni Buddha, Ananda, Kaya, thousand handed Avalokitesvara, Manjusri, Puxian Bodhisattvas and twenty-four heavenly statues were re carved in hardwood. The original old hall and houses were all converted into two-story halls. In 1993, with the help of the local government and the Bureau of land and resources, part of the civil vegetable land in the temple was expropriated according to the policy, the boundary of the temple was determined, and the mountain gate and wall were built. So far, the whole temple has taken on a new look. Mr. Zong Jiashun, a calligrapher and painter in Beijing, wrote a couplet praising "to show mercy to all things, it is a pure land and a new one.". It is commendable that the cost of tielu temple from restoration to reconstruction amounted to two million yuan, and it never asked the government for a cent. It was the result of the painstaking efforts of the bhiksunis and the generous help of the believers at home and abroad. Among them, Taiwan's FA Zhi mage and the only mage, Hong Kong's Guo Xing mage and CI mage are the most well funded.

Tielu temple is especially enthusiastic about training young monks. In 1983, two young women who were determined to become monks came to the temple to have their hair shaved. Because of their pure ambition and sincerity, they were sent to the temple for investigation. They were named nature and tranquility respectively. After several months of study, the two young nuns made rapid progress, enriched their power of doing Buddhist and chores, and became good helpers of the old bhiksuni. In 1985, there were four more young women

Chinese PinYin : Tie Lu Si