Buddhist beauty back in spotlight
By Li Jing (Beijing Weekend)
Updated: 2004-03-11 14:16

Recent promotional activity by Beijing Municipal Culture Bureau aimed at having Yunju Temple entered on UNESCO's World Heritage List has put the ancient attraction under the spotlight.

The monastery, which boasts more than 1,000 years of religious history, is located 70 kilometres west of downtown Beijing at the foot of Baidai Mountain in Fangshan District.

Built in the late Sui (581-618) and early Tang (618-907) dynasties, the temple is particularly famous for its 14,278 stone slabs carved with Buddhist scriptures known as the Tripitaka.

Yunju Temple is a courtyard with five floors and six exhibition rooms. The Buddhist Palace is located in the middle of the temple. The temporary dwelling palace and monks'  house lie to the right and left respectively.

Two grand pagodas stand southward and northward respectively facing each other. Old cypress trees stand in the temple.

Stone Inscription Mountain, also known as  "Mini Western Paradise," is located two kilometres east of Yunju Temple.

The temple was founded for storing the scriptures carved on stone slabs by a monk named Jingwan. The name Yunju Temple was found on a stone inscription dating from 669, during the Tang Dynasty.

The scriptures in the temple are the largest collection of stone-carved Tripitaka in China. They are now housed in nine caves on Shijing Mountain.

During the Sui and Tang dynasties the temple was quite large. In the Tang Dynasty the temple was divided into the upper temple and lower temple. The upper one was on Shijing Mountain, only ruins of it survive nowadays, and the lower one is the present-day Yunju Temple. During the Liao (916-1125) and Jin (1115-1234) dynasties, the temple was also called Shijing Temple, referring to its stone carvings.

The carving work started in the Sui Dynasty, and lasted 1,039 years through six
dynasties up to the Ming (1368-1644). The 14,278 stone slabs contain 1,122 Buddhist scriptures in 3,572 volumes. They provide important material for research into China's ancient politics, economy, culture and art, especially the history of Buddhism and the Buddhist classics.

The stone-carved scriptures are imbued with great academic and cultural value.

Their academic value lies in the fact that they are the best compilation of various versions of the Tripitaka, and that the collection includes scriptures that have never been found in other versions of the Tripitaka. The cultural value of the scriptures lies in the skillful carving and beautiful calligraphy.

There are nine caves on Shijing Mountain, located one kilometre east of Yunju Temple. Only Leiyin Cave is open to the public.

The others, housing 4,196 carved stone slabs, have been sealed.

In Yunju Temple there are seven Tang (618-907) pagodas and five Liao (916-1125) pagodas, all of them well preserved. Among them, North Pagoda, dating from the Liao Dynasty, is unique. The upper part of the North Pagoda is in the shape of a bell, and the middle part in the shape of a drum.

The temple of most interest to visitors with an interest in religion, especially Buddhist culture. But if visitors have little interest in these, the ancient architecture, the grotesque mountain and 1,000-year-old pines and cypresses are worth a hiker's effort.

Only vegetable dishes, rice and bread are available in the temple. Price for per table (of eight people) is 250 yuan (US$30), excluding drinks.

Price for buffet is 30 yuan (US$4) per person.

The temple also features a teahouse which offers different styles of tea and performances.

Entrance to the temple is 30 yuan (US$4) per person.