Travel Guide

Zhihua Temple was built in 1444 during the Ming Dynasty, modeled after the "Seven Halls of the Monastery" of the Tang and Song Dynasties. It was originally the family temple of Wang Zhen, the most favored eunuch of the Ming Emperor Yingzong, and was later named "Zhihua Temple of Gratitude." It is the most well-preserved Ming Dynasty wooden structure in Beijing. The entire temple was originally Wang Zhen's old residence, which he donated to build the temple for his future retirement. In 1928, when the temples in Beiping were registered, Zhihua Temple had "an area of 26 mu and a total of 199 rooms," and "the temple had six bronze statues and 71 clay and wooden statues." The west hall is named after the octagonal revolving bookcase inside. The revolving bookcase is about 4 meters high and octagonal, consisting of a white marble Sumeru base, a wooden eight-sided bookcase, and a Vairocana Buddha sitting on top facing east. In ancient China, the Thousand Character Classic was composed of 1,000 unique Chinese characters, from "heaven and earth" to "yan zai hu ye," and ancient scriptures were often sorted and searched using the Thousand Character Classic. The revolving bookcase in Zhihua Temple starts from the "heaven" character in the upper right corner of the east side and ends with the "dong" character in the lower left corner of the northeast side, with a total of 639 characters, allowing for the storage of 639 scriptures. On the multi-layered lotus throne at the top of the revolving bookcase sits a Vairocana Buddha statue, which is the Dharmakaya Buddha among the Three Bodies of Buddha. The statue has a "wisdom fist seal," a high ushnisha, broad shoulders, a wide face, and full chest muscles, all typical features of the Yongle and Xuande court statues of the Ming Dynasty. The walls of the Hall of the Buddha are decorated with Buddha niches, each containing a small lacquered gold Buddha statue. It is said that there are 9,999 small Buddha statues in the niches and on the beams, and with the Buddha in everyone's heart, there are 10,000 Buddhas, which is why it is called the Hall of Ten Thousand Buddhas. Behind the three Buddhas hangs a Ming Dynasty wooden mural, "Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva and the Ten Kings of the Underworld," which is also a rare treasure. There are also many Buddha statues around, which can be admired up close. Every day at 10 am and 3 pm, there is a performance of Zhihua Temple's Jing Music. According to historical records, Jing Music has been passed down orally for over 500 years, with its scores remaining strictly standardized, making it one of the most well-preserved ancient music in China. Each performance lasts about 15-20 minutes, so be sure to time it right.