The Shanhua Temple is located inside the southern gate of Datong City, Shanxi Province.
 |
The Shanhua Temple is also called South Temple. It was built in the Kaiyuan reign of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and first named the Kaiyuan Temple. In the 1st year of the Later Jin period, it was renamed Big Pu’en Temple. In the 2nd year (1122) of the Baoda reign of the late Liao Dynasty (1271-1368), it was mostly destroyed in the war. In the 6th year (1128) of the Tianhui reign of the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234), it was rebuilt. In the 10th year (1445) of the Zhengtong reign of Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), it got the present name. The temple occupies an area of over 15,000 square meters. The main structures are the temple gate, Three-Sage Hall and the Great Hall, which are arranged along the central axis and ascend one after another gradually. Additionally, to the east of the axis there is the Wenshu Pavilion (deserted) while to the west there is the Puxian (Samantabhadra) Pavilion. The two pavilions are symmetrical in arrangement and represent the style of Tang architectures. It is complanate within the temple full of pines and cypresses. It is the most intact and largest preserved temple of Liao and Jin dynasties in China.
The temple gate is also called Heaven God Hall. It is 5-bay wide, and 2-bay deep with a single-eaved roof. In the front there is a platform with a pair of stone lions on it. In the left and right side-rooms there are the statues of the Four Heavenly Guardians, which look majestic and furious. The 12 columns of the temple gate are in a compact order. The beam of the temple gate is moonlike and beautiful. The temple gate is the biggest extant temple gate of the Jin Dynasty.
The Three-Sage Hall is also called Passage Hall. It was built in the Tianhui and Huangtong reigns of the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234). There are statues of Vairochana Buddha, Manjusri Bodhisattva and Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, hence the name. It is 5-bay wide, 4-bay deep and has a single-eaved roof. The arch under the eaves is majestic and typical of Jin arch building. The hall is spacious. In the 2 side-rooms there are 60°inclined arches like a flower in blossom. The Three-Sage statues were made in the Jin Dynasty. There are four preserved stone tablets. In the 16th year of the Dading reign of the Jin Dynasty, an article The Record of Rebuilding the Hall of Big Pu’en Temple in Xijing in the Jin Dynasty written by the Southern Song (1127-1279) envoy Zhu Bian was engraved one tablet. Zhu Bian lived in this temple for 14 years and saw the rebuilding with his own eyes. Therefore, the article is not only elegant but also believable. It is important material for research into the Shanhua Temple.
The Great Hall was built in the Liao Dynasty (916-1125) and rebuilt in the Tianhiui and Huangtong reigns of the Jin Dynasty. The hall base is 3 meters high; the platform in front of the hall is 31 meters long from east to west and 21 meters wide from south to north. In the Wanli reign of the Ming Dynasty, 3 memorial gateways, one bell pavilion and one drum pavilion were added. The hall is 7-bay wide, 5-bay deep and has a single-eaved roof with 5 ridges. The roof is slightly gradient and typical of Liao architecture. In the center of the hall there are 2 sunk panels, inside which are 2 layers of arches. On the altar in the middle of the hall there are 5 Buddha statues sitting on the lotus throne. The Buddha statues, made of earth and gold-plated, are 4.05 meters high. The Buddhas look well dressed, decent and dignified. The 24 statues of heavenly gods on the east and west are over 3 meters high and have different expressions. On the western and southern walls are carved frescoes of Buddhist stories. The frescoes are smoothly drawn that the figure are quite lifelike. Although they are works of the early Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), they also retain the style of the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368).
The Puxian (Samantabhadra) Pavilion faces the west and has an exquisite layout. It was rebuilt in the second year (1154) of the Zhenyuan reign in the Jin Dynasty. The pavilion has a similar structure like the Wooden Pagoda in Yingxian County and is an important proof of the development history of wooden-structure architecture in China.
(Source: chinaculture.org)
