Qinglian Ancient Temple, a key Buddhist temple in Jiangxi Province, is located in Lianhua Mountain, 20 kilometers west of Ningdu. The 5-kilometer-long Lotus Mountain is full of majestic green mountains and winding loops, shaped like a lotus. There are towering ancient trees on the mountain, lush bamboos blocking out the sun, gurgling mountain springs, and birds singing in the empty valley. With the change of seasons, sometimes the fog disappears and the mountains are hazy; sometimes the fog disappears and the blue sky is clear; all year round, it presents a deep, elegant, quiet and confusing scenery.
The ancient temple has a long history and has numerous eminent monks. According to county annals and temple stele records, Qinglian Ancient Temple was founded by the founding ancestor, monk Qinglian (named Zhidun), in the second year of Taishi in the Western Jin Dynasty and lasted more than 1,700 years. In the Ming Dynasty, Master Wuji (whose name was Awakening) was highly regarded by the Yingzong of the Ming Dynasty. On February 22, the sixth year of Zhengtong, he was summoned by an edict and named "Wanshou Zen Master" and given half a Luanjia. In the Qing Dynasty, Master Wujiu (his sect name was Zhenhui) was highly respected and respected. In the 13th year of Qianlong's reign, he was elected as the abbot of the temple by the county magistrate and the county's gentry. His good deeds are all recorded in the "Chuan Deng Zhi Lu". After liberation, Shi Yinci, executive director of the National Buddhist Association and vice president of the Jiangxi Buddhist Association, served as abbot.
The Qinglian Ancient Temple was built at the end of Dawo, more than 200 meters away to the left of the current temple. It lasted for more than a thousand years and was destroyed in the Song Dynasty. Hundreds of years later, it was moved to its current location and the temple was rebuilt. After more than 400 years, it has been preserved to this day. During this period, natural disasters occurred, many vicissitudes of life were experienced, and many repairs were made. It is known from the existing temple stele records that the temple was rebuilt or expanded during the Jiajing and Wanli years of the Ming Dynasty and the Daoguang and Tongzhi years of the Qing Dynasty. After the "Cultural Revolution", construction continued, and the Jialan Hall, guest rooms, kitchen, guest house, abbot's room, etc. were built successively. From 1990 to 1993, Youchang built a new Buddhist scripture building and a main hall, all made of golden glazed tiles, with raised eaves and roofs, overflowing with color and gold. They complement each other and complement the simple and solemn Ming and Qing Dynasty buildings.
The temple is located in the northwest and faces southeast. The entire building is integrated into one, covering an area of ??more than 3,200 square meters. The building group is divided into three buildings and ten halls: front, middle and back. The main buildings include the Tianwang Hall, the Mahavira Hall and the Sutra Storehouse. On the right are the Three Holy Temples and the Zhaitang. On the left are Guanyin Hall, Weituo Hall, Patriarch Hall, and Jialan Hall. There is an abbot's room and guest house built next to it. The Tianwang Hall is the facade of the temple. The four official script characters "Qinglian Ancient Temple" written by ancient people above the gate are eye-catching. In the center of the front of the hall, Maitreya Buddha sits cross-legged, with a simple and kind image and a pleasant smile. The mighty and handsome Wei Tuo, holding a vajra and with his back to Maitreya Buddha, stands majestic. According to Buddhist teachings, he always guards the safety of the temple and protects the three treasures of Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. The four heavenly kings on both sides are more than ten feet tall, with dazzling armor, angry eyes, and a sense of charity, which makes people fearful and respectable. The main hall is solemn and solemn, with rich religious and cultural colors. The two large plaques in regular script "Mainxiong Hall" and "Buddha's Sun Increases the Glory" hanging high above the palace gate and hall were inscribed by Xie Yuanhan, a Hanlin calligrapher in the Qing Dynasty, and Li Weixiu, a calligrapher in the Qing Dynasty. They are masterpieces of ancient calligraphy. The tall wooden palace door is exquisitely carved and exquisite. The Three Jewels Buddha and the Eighteen Arhats remodeled after the "Cultural Revolution" are antique, solemn and kind, lifelike in heart shape, and resplendent. The Buddha's light behind the Buddha statue, the music seat under the seat and the Longquan incense table in the hall all took the artist's efforts. The characters, stories, birds and animals, flowers, fish and plants in the reliefs are vivid and ready to be seen. The embroideries that decorate the main hall - curtains, flags, and treasure covers are colorful and ingenious. The decorations and furnishings in the entire hall are all works of art with appreciation value. The Sutra Collection Building is spacious, bright, simple and elegant. Burmese jade reclining Buddhas worth more than 200,000 yuan donated from overseas and the "Sutra Collection Pavilion" are displayed in it, which adds a lot to the beauty of the ancient temple.
The temple adheres to the strict rules of the jungle, with neat monks and strict moral conduct. The smoke lingers all year round, fumigating the mood; the melodious sound of burning touches people's hearts; the bells in the morning and drums in the evening convey sounds in the empty valley. People come to worship and offer incense all year round. In the eighth month of the lunar calendar, it is even more lively and crowded. At the peak, 2,000 people stayed overnight. The jungle system, which does not distinguish between sects and sects, attracts many Buddhist disciples, and there is an endless stream of traveling monks and nuns. This has always been the center of Buddhist activities in Ningdu and an influential ancient temple in the province. More than 40 monks, nuns and lay people who live here carry out the fine Buddhist tradition of "a day without work, a day without food", pay equal attention to agriculture and Zen, work hard, cultivate vegetables and grow tea, with a grain output of more than 30,000 kilograms, and vegetables and tea can be basically only eaten. Give.
As the ancient temple has passed through the long years, many touching legends, rare treasures, and peculiar scenic spots have been left behind. Legends such as "the lotus blooms when it encounters it", "the cassock occupies the mountain", "the tree of fortune emerges from the pool", "the beams without wedges in the palace frame", "the fairy ascends" and other legends have long been popular.
The "four treasures" - golden hairpin clock, jade incense burner, nectar tree and carp bangle that have been preserved until modern times, have unfortunately been destroyed by man-made damage or disappeared silently. According to legend, when the gold hairpin bell was first cast, it failed three times in a row. Finally, a lady took off a gold hairpin and threw it into the furnace, and the bell was cast. The sound of this bell is unusually loud, and its whole body is filled with golden light. During the Anti-Japanese War, it was forcibly taken away by the outgoing commissioner and transported by waterway. On the way, the wind and waves caused the ship to capsize and sink. The jade incense burner comes from Kyoto. It weighs more than 100 kilograms, is about eight inches high, more than a foot wide and about an inch thick. It is bright in color, fine in texture and intertwined with red veins. The incense burner was destroyed during the "Cultural Revolution", and more than 20 kilograms of fragments are left today. The nectar tree used to grow on the empty terrace in front of the temple. It has luxuriant branches and leaves and looks like a canopy. Whenever the sun is scorching, nectar will fall from the bottom of the tree. Later, pilgrims passed on to each other that peeling off the bark of the tree and boiling water to drink it could cure all kinds of diseases. During the Soviet area, all the bark was stripped off and the tree died. Its stump, which does not corrode or corrode, is still there today. The carp bang is carved in the shape of a carp, hollowed out inside, and has a clear pronunciation. It lasted for thousands of years. It is unknown when it was lost. The existing cultural relics in the temple include more than 20 inscriptions from the Ming and Qing Dynasties, a large bell cast by Daoguang of the Qing Dynasty, and a large fish-decorated wooden bang that has been used for hundreds of years. Unfortunately, during the "Cultural Revolution", a large iron statue of Maitreya Buddha, a Ming Dynasty clock and many historical inscriptions were also smashed. To my delight, there are fourteen scenic spots in Lianhua Mountain: Lotus Peak reaching the sky, immortals bathing in Tianhu Lake, high mountain scenery, everlasting sweet springs, ancient ancestral trees, mountain-preserving treasure trees, Qinglian Ancient Temple, Moon Pond with lotus fragrance, and the spiritual pagoda shining brightly. , the Buddhist temple in the middle of the mountain, the turtle worshiping the Buddha, the cave spewing spiritual wind, the Taiping strange cave, and the Shuanglong nunnery are still preserved to this day. It allows people to think about the past, trace their origins, explore wonders, and enjoy sights, attracting poets, believers and tourists of all ages.
Youyou Ancient Temple is famous not only for its history, prosperity and large scale, but also for its large scale and has become a Buddhist holy place. At the same time, the cultural landscape and the natural landscape here are organically combined and complement each other, creating a beautiful picture; the myths and legends are mysterious and fascinating; the rare contemporary "Chinese Miracle" Shi Hongqing has been incapacitated for many years and is famous at home and abroad; What’s more, the fresh air and low temperature make people feel refreshed, cool and comfortable; the sweet mountain springs and fragrant green tea make people energetic and comfortable. Qinglian Ancient Temple is another ideal tourist attraction for people.