Home>>China Travel Guide>>Hanghzou Travel Guide>>Lingyin Temple
Lingyin Temple
Located at the foot of the Lingyin Hill northwest of the city, Temple of Inspired Seclusion (Lingyin Temple) was built in the Eastern Jin dynasty (317-420). The 33.6-metre-high main hall (Sakyamuni Hall) is a masterpiece of ancient buildings with one story and doubled eaves. The two nine-storied octagonal pagodas in front of the main hall and the two stone towers containing the Buddhist sutras in front of the Lokapala Hall were all built in the Five dynasties (907-960). In the caves on the Feilai Hill, there are some 300 Buddhist stone carvings dating back to the Five dynasties, the Song dynasty (960-1279) and the Yuan dynasty (1271-1368). The elegant stone carvings are of high artistic value.
The temple itslef is one of the most famous Buddhist temples in the whole China. The Indian Monk Huili thought Hangzhou was so beautiful that it must be a place that gods had lived. Hence he founded this temple in honor of the beauty and spiritual richness of the place, and named it "the place where gods rest in seclusion", or Lingjin.
This is a huge place so it's best to just choose a few of the most interesting areas. On entering the temple, there is a huge stone statue on your left that is reproduction of famous Buddhist statues located all over China, such as the Buddha at Leshan. Slightly behind the temple is a group of lovely stone-caved Buddha, who sit in the niches of the cliffs. The most impressive of the these is a huge, fat "laughing Buddha". In the temple there are various gold statutes of Buddha, posing in different ways and adopting a warrior stance. The temple is filled with incredible statues and monuments to Buddha-laughing, standing and sitting!
