The Tanzhe Temple is one of the major historic site under state protection and a scenic area at the 4A rank.
The Tanzhe Temple has grand palaces, halls, altars, rooms with different characteristics and towers, terraces, pavilions, and studies of unusual beauty. Ancient trees and fresh flowers spread all over the temple in delightful contrast to the man-made hills, layers of greens and winding streams. Red walls, green tiles and upturned eaves are set off by green pines and cypresses. All these scenes, together with the magnificent halls and tranquil courtyards, highlight the grandeur and orderliness of the main buildings. Mr. Zhao Puchu, the late chairman of the Buddhist Association of China, once wrote an antithetical couplet to praise the temple as “No less magnificent than Taihang Mountain and much older than the State of You (the ancient name of the area of Beijing).”
The temple was built in the first year of the reign of Emperor Huai of the Western Jin Dynasty (307 A.D.). As one of the eldest and largest Buddhist temples in the Beijing area, it already has a history of more than 1,700 years, which makes it older than the city of Beijing itself. This is proven by a popular proverb widely spread in the Beijing area which says that “Tanzhe Temple appeared first, then came the Beijing city”. In addition, Tanzhe Temple also played an important role in the history of Buddhism in China. There were numerous eminent monks coming forth from the temple in every dynasty and there were emperors going on a pilgrimage to the temple in each dynasty. No wonder there is an old saying that goes as “Linyin Temple and Tanzhe Temple are most famous temples of the southern and northern China”.
Tanzhe Temple is located at the foot of Mountain Ma'an, in the south-east of the Men Tougou district. The halls are built in accordance with the changes in the mountain's height. With its back against Baozhu Peak, the temple faces north and is surrounded by nine peaks. The huge mountains block the cold current coming from the north-west and give the seat of the Tanzhe Temple a warm and humid climate, which in turn blesses the place with an extremely beautiful natural environment marked by flourishing plants, and especially numerous ancient trees and famous flowers.
Today's Tanzhe Temple has already become a scenic spot that serves for sightseeing, eating and staying-over. Transportation to the temple is both convenient and fast. The temple opens at 8:00 in the morning and closes at 17:30 at night every day. Tourists can stay overnight in the hotels located in the scenic spot. A police station and medical center are also available.
The Hall of Sakyamuni is the most important hall in Tanzhe temple. There is a gold lacquer sitting statue of the Buddha Sakyamuni worshipped in the hall. On every first and fifth day of the Chinese lunar calendar or on major Buddhist festive occasions, a grand Buddhist ceremony is held here. Above the lintel of the door of the hall there is a horizontal inscribed board decorated by a carved figure of a dragon playing with a pearl. The four gilding Chinese characters “Fu Hai Zhu Lun” (a sacred ship taking people to the Western Paradise) which are inscribed on it were written by Emperor Qianlong.
Bodhi Trees were introduced into China from India. They are mainly distributed over the southern provinces and are rarely seen in Beijing. The two Budhi Trees in the temple have already lived for more than 600 years, which is indeed a peculiar phenomenon. It is said that this kind of tree witnessed Sakyamuni's birth, death and preaching, and therefore the tree is respected as a sacred tree in Buddhism.
Emperor Tree is a ginkgo tree with a history of more than 1,000 years. “The Emperor Tree” is a title of honor given to the plant by Emperor Qianlong.
The Floating Cup Pavilion is a decorative building with a beautiful name of “Floating Wine Caps in the Winding Stream”. Winding canals are carved in dragon shape on the white marble terrace. In ancient times people picked up floating cups from the canal and drank wine with them. The canal of this pavilion is in a special shape of “a tiger in the north and a dragon in the south”.
Besides the afore mentioned scenes, there are still other natural and historical landscapes in the temple, such as the Permission Tree for which the temple is most famous, the Pagodas, the Dragon Pool, the East and West Mother Buddha Caves, the Flesh figure of Buddha and the Stone Fish, one of the Tanzhe Temple's four most valuable treasures. These beautiful scenes will lure you to stay on with no thought of leaving. |
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