| Hanshan
Temple (6th century site, more recent buildings)
other
sites in Suzhou |
Suzhou, China |
Click on an image to enlarge
Hanshan Temple is just to the south of Maple bridge over the old Grand Canal. Its name means "Cold Mountain Temple," after the abbot Hanshan "Cold Mountain" who managed the temple in the Tang Dynasty. The temple was originally founded during the rule of Emperor Tianjian of the Liang dynasty (502-557) but none of the buildings survive from that era. The sights here include a hall of 500 arhats, the main Hall of Great Treasure, and a five-story pagoda that is of more recent construction than the rest of the temple.
The temple is often mentioned in ancient literature, as in the poem "Mooring to the Maple Bridge at Night" written by Zhang Ji of the Tang Dynasty. Nowadays the temple has become famous for the annual "tolling of the bells" on New Year's Eve that attracts thousands of worshippers. 108 bells are rung to pray for luck and happiness in the coming year.
Bibliography
All images copyright 2001 Professor
Kerk L. Phillips of Brigham Young University, Utah, USA.
Visit his webpage at www.pomosa.com
Boyd, Andrew. Chinese
Architecture and Town Planning: 1500 B.C. - A.D. 1911
Holmesdale Press Ltd., London.
1962
http://www.cs.wisc.edu/~hangying/suzhou/suzhou.html
http://www.travelchinaguide.com
http://www.hanshansi.sz.js.cn/english/zhuye.htm