Kaishan Temple

Kaishan Temple
The Daxiongbao Hall (Chinese: 大雄宝殿; pinyin: Dàxíongbǎo Diàn) of Kaishan Temple
Basic information
Location	Xincheng, near Gaobeidian
Affiliation	Buddhist
Province	Hebei
Architectural description
Completed	1033 CE Liao Dynasty
Specifications

Kaishan Temple (simplified Chinese: 开善寺; traditional Chinese: 開善寺; pinyin: Kāi Shàn Sì) is a Buddhist temple located in Xincheng village near Gaobeidian, Hebei Province, China. The temple was first founded in the Tang Dynasty, and grew large and important in the subsequent centuries until declining in recent centuries. In the 20th century, the most important hall of the temple, Daxiongbao Hall, dating from 1033 of the Liao Dynasty, was used as both a school and as a granary. In 2002, the hall underwent a restoration that was completed in 2007.

History

The current temple was founded in the Tang Dynasty, prior to the founding of Xincheng in 832 CE.^[1] In 929 CE, Xincheng was walled, and Kaishan Temple was located in the northeast corner of the walled town, and was known to locals as ‘Dasi’, literally, ‘Big Temple’. The oldest structure that is currently standing at the temple is the Daxiongbao Hall, which according to a date written on a beam within the temple, was built during the Liao Dynasty in 1033.^[2] By the sixteenth century, the temple had become very large, but by the early 20th century it was in decline.^[1] In 1928, the Daxionbao Hall became a Sun Yat-sen educational hall, and ceased to function as a temple.^[3] During the Cultural Revolution, many houses were built in the grounds of the temple, damaging the temple's surroundings.^[4] In 2001, a restoration project funded by the government began with the goal of returning the temple to its prior state.^[5]

Daxiongbao Hall

The Daxiongbao Hall (Chinese: 大雄宝殿; pinyin: Dàxíongbǎo Diàn) is five by three bays and measures 30.4 by 18.5 meters in size. It is built on a 1.11 meter high stone platform, and has a large yuetai in front of it which measures 27.6 by 11.4 meters.^[2] Columns implanted into square stone bases support massive eaves whose length is 55% of the columns’ height. The back and side pillars incline towards the interior of the hall, a feature that is associated with pre-Yuan Dynasty Chinese architecture.^[6] Prior to its conversion in 1928 to a school, the hall's main devotional image was probably Guanyin, with four esoteric boddhisattvas on either side, as well as luohans on the sides of the hall.^[3]

Notes

1. ^ ^{a b} Steinhardt (1997), 164.
2. ^ ^{a b} Steinhardt (1997), 165.
3. ^ ^{a b} Steinhardt (1997), 169.
4. ^ Liu (2004), 61
5. ^ Xinhua (2007).开善寺修缮完毕即将开放. Retrieved on 2010-06-25.
6. ^ Steinhardt (1997), 167.

References

• Liu Zhimin. (Chinese) "Xincheng Kaishansi Daxiongbaodian Xiushan Yuanze ji Gongcheng Zuofa," Wenwu (Issue 5, 2004): 60-68.
• Steinhardt, Nancy Shatzman. Liao Architecture. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1997. ISBN 0824818431