Charity Temple

Beijing Charity temple, also known as "Tiantai Temple", was built in the late Ming Dynasty. It has a history of more than 400 years. It is a temple integrating Buddhism and Taoism. The whole temple is built in the form of the Big Dipper.

In addition, the temple was the former residence of general Feng Yuxiang during the Anti Japanese war.

Charity Temple

Charity temple is located in Tiantai Mountain, Shijingshan District, Beijing. Charity temple is located on the roof, so it is also called Tiantai temple. Charity temple was built in the early Qing Dynasty. It is divided into three roads: the Middle Road, the East Road and the west road. The Dabei hall is mainly located in the west road. There are three couplets in the Dabei hall. In the middle of the hall is a statue of Guanyin carved in gold lacquer wood. On both sides are eight statues, such as Bixia Yuanjun. This kind of temple where Buddhism and Taoism work together is rare in the suburbs of Beijing.

Brief introduction

Charity temple is a temple integrating Buddhism, Taoism and folk gods in the west of Beijing. It is also a witness of the history of the Republic of China

In the early years of the Republic of China, Mr. Zhang Henshui reviewed and compiled the Beijing tourism guide, which said that "after entering the mountain gate, there are seven small temples, No. 7 temple, which were built by Emperor Qianlong when he visited the temple, and are arranged according to the orientation of the Big Dipper." On the eve of liberation, the charity Temple burned down some buildings. During the cultural revolution, most of the buildings were damaged by human activities. Since the 1980s, this ancient temple hidden in the mountains has gradually attracted people's attention.

The reputation of charity temple is related to the patriotic general Feng Yuxiang. According to textual research, during the period of the Republic of China, general Feng Yuxiang, a patriotic general, went to Tiantai Mountain charity temple three times from May 1912 to January 1925.

geographical position

Charity temple is located in Tiantai Mountain, northeast of Tanyu village, Shijingshan District, Beijing. Take bus 336 from Fuchengmen (or Pingguoyuan subway); take bus 747 from Beijing west station to wulituo station, about 5 miles to the East, about 40 minutes' walk, or rent a small three wheeler. There are signs.

Architectural composition

executive summary

There is a Tibetan tower on nanshanpo, about 10 meters high, which is said to be the Almighty tower of the devil monk. On March 15 every year, it is the time for the devil monk to become a Taoist. The charity Temple opens for three days, which can be called the most prosperous temple in the west of Beijing. The hall of charity temple was basically intact, but most of the statues were destroyed. There are many stone carvings inside and outside the temple, among which the one left by general Feng Yuxiang is the most eye-catching. There are regular script characters such as "diligence and thrift is treasure", "true hardship", "farming and reading", "indifference", "modest hexagram" and "spiritual realm", which are engraved on the East hillside outside the mountain gate and the North hillside behind the temple. There are more than 200 words of "baguaqian" extracted from Zhouyi near "farming reading" and "indifference".

Detail

The charity temple, built on the mountain, is composed of five parts: the main courtyard (West courtyard), the East Cross courtyard, the back cross courtyard, the east hill slope and the hall outside the gate. From the main peak or from the sky, it looks like the Big Dipper. The gate of the charity temple is in the south of the cliff. There is a Wenchang temple on the gate tower. After the introduction, there is the Jieyin Buddha Hall, in which there is a Jieyin Buddha. There is a brick wall beside the gate, forming an independent courtyard. From the mountain gate to the main temple, one mile away, it is connected by a winding path, which is quite quiet. There is a row of halls in front of the main temple. From south to north, there are Guanyin Pavilion, Lingguan hall, wangsangrandma hall, Maitreya hall, Niangniang hall, Huoshen hall, Longwang temple, luzu hall and Mawang hall. The main courtyard is divided into the East and the West. The Buddhist halls on the West Road are the first entering Weituo hall, the second entering Dabei Hall (worshiping Avalokitesvara) and the third entering demon king hall. The left supporting hall is the Dharma hall and dizang hall, and the right supporting hall is the Yulan Hall and Yuantong hall. At the back of the hall of great sorrow is the Sutra collection building (also known as the hall of the devil), which is a two-story building. The lower floor is dedicated to the legendary sitting statue of Qing Shunzhi. Facing the South and East, it looks at the direction of the capital, which means that it will never forget the capital. Hanging on the west wall of the hall is a 308 character poem "Shunzhi returning to the mountains", which is said to have been written by Shunzhi. The east road is the Taoist temple, followed by the hall of wealth, the hall of three emperors and the hall of fasting. There are mountain temple, Tianqi temple and jade emperor hall on the east slope.

At the back of the temple, dongkua temple, named "Lingjing", is the former residence of general Feng Yuxiang. Five North rooms and wing rooms have been renovated, and now it is called "exhibition room of general Feng Yuxiang's deeds" as a patriotic education base. The contents on display in the exhibition room are very rich, which are divided into five parts: on the land of the motherland, commanding the northern expedition, military experts, general's days in charity temple, and physical display. In the exhibition room, there are hundreds of relics and old photos (including reproductions) of general Feng Yuxiang's bedding, tables and chairs, inkstones, stone mills, Autographed wills, general clothes and so on. There is a group photo of general Feng and Zhang Xueliang in the temple. The pictures and texts show the general's loyal and patriotic life. The historical value is very precious. There are two densely growing Sophora trees in the courtyard, which are called "couple tree". One was planted by general Feng and Li Dequan after they married in 1924.

Location

The location of charity temple is unique. At the top of the mountain is a towering burning lamp pagoda of the Qing Dynasty. On the cliff is a huge relief Buddha head of Sakyamuni, which is 4 meters high and 3.5 meters wide. The lip of the Buddha is only half a meter thick. It is carved from a ten thousand Jin stone exposed from the mountain. It is the largest stone Buddha head in Beijing. There are three catalpa trees in the scenic area, about four or five hundred years old. The architectural style and brick carving art of the temple are very unique. The top of Dabei hall is a brick carving of dragon and Phoenix on the main ridge, with double dragons playing with pearls on the front and double phoenix playing with peonies on the back. The gables on both sides are inlaid with hollow out "wall core flowers" with exquisite carving technology and originality. On the east slope outside the gate of the temple and the North Slope behind the temple, you can see six regular script stone carvings left by general Feng Yuxiang, which are "true hardship", "diligence and thrift as treasure", "farming and reading", "indifference", "spiritual realm" and "modest hexagram". They are two or three feet square and well preserved. There is also a sundial made in the 55th year of the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty in the charity temple. Although it is in the shape of a Chinese sundial, the dial is engraved with Roman numerals, and the word "1790" is engraved in the middle of the dial. This kind of form is extremely rare, so why it is placed in the remote charity temple in the capital is still a mystery. Interestingly, the rock carvings on Luohan cliff on the hillside are one meter square, with different poses and high spirits. Some people think it's 18 Arhats, counting to 17 Arhats. Just when they were wondering, some people said with a smile: you stand up, plus you, it's 18.

Charity temple was built in the late Ming and early Qing Dynasty and has a history of more than 400 years. The whole temple covers an area of about 150000 square meters, with 38 temples and more than 100 houses, with a total construction area of more than 3000 square meters. It is basically the original objects of the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, and has high cultural relic protection value. The charity temple, which is currently being opened for repair, was completed in September. The main feature of the temple is the integration of Buddhism, Taoism and folk gods, which is rare in China.

The origin of history

Charity temple about the origin of charity temple, there is still such a legend in the Folk: during the reign of Kangxi, a crazy monk came to Tiantai Mountain to practice, and later became a positive fruit, the imperial court granted the crazy monk as "devil monk". Therefore, charity temple was also known as "devil monk Temple" in the early folk. Because the flesh fetus of the mad monk is very similar to that of Shunzhi, the emperor of the Qing Dynasty, the legend of "Shunzhi became a monk in Tiantai Mountain" is derived from the folk. Experts and scholars here believe that it is not groundless to say that Shunzhi became a monk here. This place is close to the capital and has good geomantic omen. Secondly, although the charity temple is a folk building, there are some royal regulations, such as Dragon carving and seal painting on the roof of the great mercy Hall. It is said that Kangxi also visited Mount Tiantai many times to worship, or gave plaques, or gold and silk, which seems to confirm Shunzhi's birth here The legend of home. According to the author, in his book "my life" (published by Heilongjiang People's Publishing House in March 1981), general Feng Yuxiang mentioned that when he lived in seclusion in the charity temple, he said: "there is only a dry baby in the master's temple, looking askew at Beijing. Who is this? The monk whispered in my ear, "this is emperor Shunzhi." I laughed. It was the monk who made trouble again. I didn't know where to find out that Shunzhi was a monk, so I made a rumor and fooled the people. "

Historical allusions

In 1912, Feng Yuxiang stationed troops at the foot of Tiantai Mountain. He went up the mountain on foot and visited the charity temple. He liked it very much and lived in the temple. He also commanded the troops to plant a large number of trees on the mountain, helped the people in the surrounding villages to reclaim wasteland and cultivate fields, and did a lot of practical work. The second time he lived in seclusion was in 1917, when Feng Yuxiang came to the charity temple to "recuperate" because he could not stand the actions of Wu Peifu and Cao Kun in the Beiyang government. In 1924, general Feng Yuxiang also launched the "capital revolution" here. He overthrew the bribed president Cao Kun and expelled Puyi from the palace, ending the feudal monarchy history of China for thousands of years. During his seclusion, he mainly studied and met friends in charity temple. During this period, he received Li Dazhao, Zhang Xueliang, Kong Xiangxi, Deng Baoshan and other people from all walks of life.

Temple Fair

Charity temple is one of the most popular temples in West Beijing. According to the records of the age of Yanjing, "the temple opens on March 18 every year, and the incense is very popular.". Outside the west wall of the temple, there are many stone tablets. According to the inscriptions, "the charity temple was built in March every year. It was the time when the ancient Buddha became a Taoist. Villagers, gentry and business scholars, good men and women, who burned incense and worshipped, rushed to the temple. People who felt the spirit and prayed for blessings rushed to the temple." It's a temple full of incense. " Historical data show that since the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, large-scale folk gatherings such as the Ruyi ritual money and grain holy meeting, the Shangji Ruyi old meeting, the fresh fruit holy meeting, and the fangtang holy meeting have been held in the charity temple. It is one of the famous temple fairs in the west of Beijing in the old times, and it is also the only way for the ancient incense road in the west of Beijing from Xiangshan to Miaofeng Mountain. At that time, there was an endless stream of people going to incense and play

Chinese PinYin : Ci Shan Si