Where is the best place to pray in China?

The Spring Festival of 2022 is around the corner. Do you have any places to pray in China that are worth visiting? The famous praying places in China mainly include Mount Putuo, Mount Emei, Mount Jiuhua, etc. See below for details. let's see!

1. Worship the Buddha at Mount Putuo - the sacred mountain on the sea. If you don’t go to Guanyin

Reason for recommendation: Fusai Temple is the temple with the most Buddhist activities on Mount Putuo. During the Spring Festival, masters will join the welcome group to receive pilgrims from all walks of life and guide the specific rituals of offering Buddhist incense.

Putuo Mountain is located in the southeast of Zhoushan Islands. Together with Wutai, Emei and Jiuhua, it is known as the four famous Buddhist mountains in China. It is known as the most efficacious "Guanyin Taoist Temple" in China, named: Haitian Buddha Kingdom, South China Sea Holy Land. Temples and Zen forests are scattered throughout the mountains, including more than 30 temples such as Fusaiji, Fayu Temple, and Huiji Temple. The ancient trees in the mountains are towering, and the sounds of Sanskrit and waves are intertwined. "If you can conquer mountains and seas, you should recommend Putuo." Kang Youwei has praiseworthy poems.

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The place that best embodies the temperament of Putuo is the Purple Bamboo Forest Scenic Area. Zizhulin Scenic Area includes Zizhu Temple, Shuqu Guanyin Temple, Yinchao Cave, and Nanhai Guanyin Buddha. Zizhulin Temple is located in Yinchao Cave at the eastern foot of Shuangfeng Mountain. According to legend, it is the abbot of Guanyin Bodhisattva. It has mountains on its back and faces the sea, simple and elegant. It turns out that it refused to go to the former site of Guanyin Temple, formerly known as "Tingchao Temple".

It is said that a Japanese monk prayed to Wutai Guanyin Bodhisattva to return to Japan. When passing through Putuo Mountain, the ship was blocked by the sea. Thinking that the Bodhisattva did not want to go east, he landed and left the Buddha statue, which was worshiped by the islanders, and then built a temple, saying that he refused to go to Guanyin Temple. So the Bodhisattva refused to go to Guanyin Bodhisattva. This is the earliest temple in Putuo and a must-go place for holy monks.

In 1997, the giant open-air bronze statue "South China Sea Guanyin" was completed and became the landmark building of Mount Putuo. This statue stands on Longwan Mountain at the southern end of Putuo Mountain, south of the Zizhulin Scenic Area. The total height of the bronze statue is 33 meters, of which the lower platform is 13 meters high, the Buddha statue is 18 meters high, and the rosette is 2 meters high. The Buddha statue contains more than 6,500 grams of gold and is the largest bronze statue of Guanyin in the world today. It is said that on October 30, 1997, when the Buddha was completed and consecrated, it rained continuously. Unexpectedly, at the auspicious time, the sun shines and the Buddha's body shines. If you ask about the mystery, Buddha said: "Don't tell, don't tell." The reliefs on the walls on both sides of the Guanyin statue tell the story of Xuanzang's journey to the west and Jianzhen's journey to the east.

I don’t want to go to Guanyin Temple. It is built on a reef and the sea water laps on the reef. It is said that this is also the origin of "Haitian Buddha Kingdom".

2. Smart Emeishan—Buddhist music is unique

Reason for recommendation: During the Spring Festival, various temples in Emeishan will hold various activities such as praying, lighting lanterns, and releasing people to celebrate the New Year with tourists.

Mount Emei in Jin Yong's works is a mountain for women, gentle and beautiful, but sharp and cold. Regardless of whether there is Zhou Zhiruo or Miejie Shitai here, as long as this mountain belongs to Emei, it will always be desirable. Mount Emei is the dojo of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, and it is believed that Mount Emei is the place where Samantabhadra appears and preaches scriptures.

The development of Buddhism in the past two thousand years has left Mount Emei with a rich Buddhist cultural heritage and the achievements of many eminent monks and great virtues, gradually making Mount Emei a far-reaching Buddhist holy place in China and even the world. Buddhism in Mount Emei belongs to Mahayana Buddhism, and most of the monks and nuns are disciples of Linji Sect and Caodong Sect. The Buddhist music in Mount Emei is colorful and unique.

There are about 300 monks and nuns in the mountain and nearly 30 temples, including eight famous temples: Guobao Temple, Khufu Temple, Qingyin Pavilion, Hongchunping, Xianfeng Temple, Xixiangchi Scenic Area, and Jinding Huazang Temple , Wannian Temple. The monasteries where Zhongni practiced include Khufu Temple, Leiyin Temple, Shanjue Temple, Chunyang Temple and Shuisheng Pavilion. The Buddha statues in the temple include clay sculptures, wood carvings and carvings

The golden statues of Samantabhadra of the Ten Directions on all sides of Mount Emei are the tallest golden Buddhas in the world and the first artistic model of Samantabhadra of the Ten Directions. One of the 'ten directions' is a metaphor for Samantabhadra's ten wishes, and the other symbolizes the ten directions of Buddhism, namely east, south, west, north, southeast, southwest, northeast, northwest, up and down. It is a metaphor for the immeasurable vows of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, covering three generations of sentient beings. The ten portraits of Samantabhadra are divided into three layers with different expressions, representing the ten kinds of mentality in the world.

If you don’t visit Mount Emei, many people think that your trip to Mount Emei is in vain. Therefore, whether on foot or by car, Golden Summit is a must. In Mount Emei in winter, the Golden Summit is even more majestic, because whether it is sunset, sunrise, or the magnificent sea of ??clouds, you can only see it here.

Transportation

From the scenic passenger transportation center at the foot of Mount Emei, you can take a bus directly to Dong Leiping in Mount Emei, walk from Dong Leiping to Jieyin Temple, and take the cableway to the Golden Summit.

3. Jiuhua Mountain in Lotus Zen

Reason for recommendation: During the Spring Festival, Jiuhua Mountain will launch the "Praying for Blessings in the Year of the Dragon" Buddhist tourism activities and the "Year of the Huns and the Year of Vegetarians" on New Year's Eve Folk experience activities.

It is said that Jiuhua Mountain has nine peaks, shaped like lotus flowers. They are born with wonderful beauty, keep pace with the times, and possess immortal souls. The scenery of Jiuhua Mountain is a natural landscape painting hanging in the clouds, with the flowing brush and ink telling the nature of Zen Buddhism. The Buddha said that floating life is like dust, and the nine lotus flowers are used to scattered life. Many people come here to cultivate their dreams and imagination in the Zen of lotus flowers, and often forget their confusion as passers-by.

Jiuhua Mountain is the dojo of Bodhisattva Bodhisattva, a great wish that 'all living beings have fully realized Bodhisattva, and hell will never become a Buddha'. The famous eminent monk Jin Qiaojue climbed Mount Jiuhua and practiced in secluded places for decades. He died at the age of 99.

Three years later, his physical body came to life. Many monks traced his birth year and many signs and determined that he was the incarnation of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. Therefore, a stone pagoda was built and the physical body was enshrined inside. It was revered as the "Golden Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva" and Jiuhua Mountain became the dojo of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. For thousands of years, the incense in the temple has been very prosperous.

Huacheng Temple

The sun sets, the white clouds return to the cave, and the night bell of Huacheng rings the long chanting sound. Many people who go to the mountain to petition will listen here The Sanskrit sounds of "Sad Wishes" and the Zen rhythm echoing in the mountains will cleanse their bodies and minds.

It is located on the west side of East Cliff, under Furong Peak. In front of us is a circular square. In the middle of the square are the 'Empress Tower' and the Crescent Pond that is stored underground. There are four entrances at the front and back of the temple, including the foyer, the main hall, the rear entrance and the sutra collection building. These four halls gradually increase with the terrain and have a natural structure. Doors, windows, brackets, beams and columns, and the footstones of steps are all engraved with exquisite and beautiful patterns.

Points of Attention

Jiuhua Mountain, the oldest main mountain temple, is the dojo of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva and the "general jungle" of Jiuhua Mountain.

Sasuke

The eminent monk Beidu of the Eastern Jin Dynasty once built a monastery here. It was rebuilt during the reign of the Tang Dynasty and was named Huacheng Temple.

The origin of the temple name: "Flower City" originated from the Buddhist story in the Lotus Sutra. Legend has it that Muni and his disciples were preaching in the countryside at the right time, but they were suddenly blocked by dangers in the mountains. The disciples were hungry and thirsty and sat on the ground unable to afford it. Shakyamuni pointed to the front and said, "There is a city ahead." Go get some fast food. Xiaodun was excited. The so-called city is the enlightenment of Buddha.

In the temple, there are horizontal plaques inscribed "Jiuhua Holy Land" written by Emperor Kangxi and "Fentuo Pujiao" written by Emperor Qianlong. Behind the main hall, there is a horizontal plaque written by Emperor Chongzhen of the Ming Dynasty reading "Zhishan".

The current Huacheng Temple, Shanmen and Sutra Library were built in the 16th century. The Main Hall and Back Hall were rebuilt in the 19th century. The Jiuhuashan Cultural Relics Exhibition Hall is located in the temple.

Transportation

Walk along Jiuhua Street

The Drunkenness of Wutai

The earliest temple built in Mount Wutai: today’s Xiantong Temple The predecessor of Dafu Lingjiu Temple was built in the 11th year of Yongping in the Eastern Han Dynasty. How big is the Buddha in Mount Wutai looking up to the sky? In 1996, a Buddha statue looking up to the sky was discovered in Gongbu Mountain (south of Puhua Temple), which is more than 3,000 meters long.

The tallest pagoda in Mount Wutai: the White Pagoda of Tayuan Temple, 56.37 meters high.

The tallest statue of Manjusri Bodhisattva in Mount Wutai: Manjusri Riding Elephant Temple Elephant, with a total height of 9.87 meters.

The tallest Guanyin statue in Mount Wutai: Thousand-Hands and Thousand-Eyes Guanyin at Jingu Temple, 17.7 meters high. The longest stone staircase road in Wutai Mountain: the large branch road on Dengdailuoding, with a total length of 508 meters and a total of 1080 stone steps.

The heaviest bronze bell in Mount Wutai: the ghost bell hanging on the bell tower of Xiantong Temple weighs 9,999 and a half kilograms. The largest copper pot in Mount Wutai: the Bodhisattva Ding copper pot, with a diameter of 2 meters and a height of 1.06 meters.

The highest peak in Mount Wutai: Beitaiding, with an altitude of 3061.1 meters.

The oldest pagoda in Mount Wutai: Beikejizu Stone Pagoda, built in the Northern Wei Dynasty.

The oldest stone lion in Mount Wutai: the stone lion of Luohou Temple built in the Tang Dynasty.

The person who wrote the most inscriptions on Mount Wutai: Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty, who wrote 20 of the more than 150 inscriptions on Mount Wutai in existence.

The person who left the most poems after visiting Mount Wutai: Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty. Among the collected poems, 39 are his poems. The tallest hall in Mount Wutai: Jingu Temple Guanyin Hall, 18 meters high.

The oldest temple in Mount Wutai: Nanchan Temple, built in the third year of Jianzhong of the Tang Dynasty (782).

The best sculpture in Mount Wutai: the lantern Manjusri in Kichijoji Temple.

The most famous mural in Mount Wutai: the murals at Yanshan Temple in the Jin Dynasty.

The oldest painted sculpture in Mount Wutai: the Tang Dynasty painted sculpture in the Buddhist Hall of Nanchan Temple.

4. Pilgrimage to Mount Wutai to pray for blessings

Reason for recommendation: During the Spring Festival, pray at Mount Lingshan. Visitors can hold a heart lantern in each hand at Brahma Square in Lingshan Scenic Area on the eve of New Year’s Eve and light it up to welcome the New Year.

When going to Wuxi Lingshan, in addition to the famous 88-meter-high Lingshan Giant Buddha, there are many scenic spots in the entire Lingshan Scenic Area, which can be simply summarized as ‘one mountain, one temple, one Buddha’.

The first mountain refers to Xiaoling Mountain, which is the mountain behind Lingshan Buddha.

The first temple refers to Xiangfu Temple, a thousand-year-old temple built in the Tang Dynasty and located in front of the Lingshan Giant Buddha.

One is the 88-meter-high Lingshan Giant Buddha.

There is also a five-character summary of scenic spots: ‘five, four, three, two, one’.

"五" refers to five squares. They are Shengjing Square, Buddha's Hand Square, Qianfu Square, Xingtan Square and Foqian Square.

The "four" refers to the four firsts at the foot of the Lingshan Buddha, namely the first wall in China, the first palm in the world, the first bell in Jiangnan, and the first tripod in China.

"Three" refers to three strange trees, namely the thousand-year-old ginkgo, three sticks of incense and camphor.

"二" refers to two ancient wells with mythical color, namely the Hexagonal Well and the Octagonal Well.

"One" refers to a magical ancient pond, White Lotus Pond.

Transportation strategy:

Wuxi taxi price reference: starting from 3 kilometers, starting from 10 yuan, and 1.9 yuan per kilometer.

Wuxi Lingshan Giant Buddha Scenic Area Self-driving Route:

Adjective (abbreviation of adjective) Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway-Wuxi North Interconnection-Yishi Expressway-Land Mashan Exit-Luma Highway-Lingshan Scenic Area

B. Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway-Wuxi East Exit-Taihu Avenue-Meiyuan-Mashan-Lingshan Scenic Area.

Lingshan Scenic Area bus route:

Take bus No. 88 or 89 (South Square of Wuxi Railway Station), and the fare starts from 2 yuan directly to Lingshan Scenic Area. The starting price of a taxi is 10 yuan, and the Shanghai Transportation Card can be swiped on Wuxi buses to enjoy discounts.

5. Carrying Zen Bags in Lingshan, Wuxi

Highlights: On New Year’s Eve, pilgrims from home and abroad gather at Lingyin Temple to ring bells and burn incense. This is a tradition that Lingyin Temple has maintained for many years. . It is open to pilgrims from 10 pm on New Year's Eve to 2 am on New Year's Day, and free incense is provided.

Yin Temple is located in the northwest of West Lake, at the foothills of Lingyin Mountain between Feilai Peak and Beifeng. Along Beishan Road, follow Lingyin Road all the way to the west until you reach the end of Cold Spring. Lingyin The ancient temple is right in front of you. Here, thousands of

stone pagodas in front of the Main Hall and stone scripture towers in front of the Tianwang Hall are the relics of Wu Yueshi during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. The Buddhist cultural relics collected by Lingsi include the ancient Bay Leaf Sutra, the gilded Buddha statues of the Eastern Wei Dynasty, the Diamond Sutra of Dong Qichang of the Ming Dynasty, and the Yongzheng Woodcarving Dragon Collection of the Qing Dynasty. They are all precious treasures. On the central axis of the entire temple building, there are the Tianwang Hall, the Daxiong Hall and the Yamamoto Ryuzo Hall.

What to see: Visit Lingyin and Feilai Peak, but don’t forget: there are mountains beyond the mountains, and there is a sky beyond the sky. After appreciating the Buddhist culture, you can go to the famous "Tianwaitian" restaurant near Hejian Bridge to enjoy the fireworks again.

6. Lingyin Temple, the earliest famous temple in Hangzhou where immortals are hidden

Reason for recommendation: Every year except sunset or New Year’s Eve, Hanshan Temple will hold a bell-ringing ceremony, and the bell will ring 108 times. . Each time represents a kind of trouble. After listening to the bell, the troubles of the coming year will disappear with the wind.

Emphasis

New Year’s bells: Hanshan Temple is famous for its bells. Every year except sunset or New Year's Eve, Hanshan Temple holds a bell-ringing ceremony, with the bell ringing 108 times. Each stroke represents a trouble. After listening to the bell, the worries of the coming year will disappear with the wind. It is said that Zhang Ji, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, stayed at night in Qiao Feng and listened to the bells on the passenger ships. This was also because he repeatedly tried to follow people's advice to get rid of troubles.

Bell ringing reminder: At midnight, the master of Hanshan Temple will ring the New Year’s Eve bell 108 times, which means the end of the year and the farewell to the old and the new year, because there are 12 months in a year and 24 solar terms. , 72 waiting periods (an ancient year was 360 days, and every 5 days was a waiting period), totaling 108 times. After the master of Hanshan Temple rings the New Year's Eve bell 108 times, visitors can ring the New Year's Lucky Bell on their own. This activity is very popular because it is highly participatory.

According to Buddhist teachings, there are 108 kinds of troubles in life. Listening to the 108 bells on the first day of the New Year will bring you relief. I wish everyone happiness and good health in the new year.

Transportation

Take buses No. 33, 44, 301, 307 and 3 to the foot of Heshan Bridge, then walk on the bridge and follow the ramp to Hanshan Temple . Or take bus No. 9, 10, 45 or 3 to Qiaofeng and walk along Qiaofeng Road for 10 minutes.