Location: Hebei Province Map
Bishu Shauzhuang: 8:30am- 6:30pm daily
Outer temples: open daily
Entrance Fee: 40 yan
Bus: 6, 12
Putuo Zongcheng Temple is a Buddhist religious complex situated in a Hebei Province in China near Chengde Mountain Resort. Construction of Putuo Zongcheng Temple began during reign of Qianlong Emperor (1735- 96) of the Qing Dynasty between 1767 and 1771. Upon its completion the temple complex measured over 220,000 square meters. It commemorated emperor's 80th birthday. It was modelled as a smaller version of Potala Palace in Tibet. Hence Putuo Zongcheng Temple represents a fusion of Chinese and Tibetan architectural styles. The temple complex covers a surface area of some 220,000 square metres (2,400,000 sq ft), making it one of the largest in China. In 1994 Putuo Zongcheng Temple was established as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Putuo Zongcheng Temple is located on the north
slope of Shizigou, north of the summer resort in Chengde City, Hebei
Province, and on the west side of the Xu Mi Fu Shou Temple . Emperor
Qianlong "Putuozongcheng Temple monument" records, the temple was
built in the Qianlong three years (1767) in March, in Qianlong
thirty-six years (1771) completed in August. The temple is Qianlong
for thirty-six years of Qianlong mother Chongqing Huang Queen Mother
eighty birthday was built to commemorate the Qianlong imperial
monument standing in the temple, "Putuozongcheng Temple monument."
Putuo Zongcheng Temple is the most splendid and largest temple in
the " outer eight temples ". This temple is modeled after the Potala
Palace in Lhasa , Tibet , so it is also commonly known as the
"Little Potala Palace", "Putuo Zongcheng" ( borrowed ) and "Potala"
(transliteration) are synonymous, meaning It is "the Holy Land of
Guanyin".
Emperor Qianlong's "Inscription on the Temple of Putuo Zongcheng
Temple" states that there are three Putuo dojos of Nanhai priests ,
one in India (Putuo Temple in the South China Sea), one in Tibet (
Potala Palace ), and one in Dinghai ( Putuo Mountain ) in Zhejiang .
Emperor Qianlong originally wanted to imitate the construction of
the earliest Putuo dojo in India by the Nanhai priests, but the
shape of the dojo is difficult to examine. The Potala Palace in
Tibet has the French formula, which is modeled on the Potala Palace.
The Wanfa Guiyi Hall is the main hall of the temple, which is used
as a place for gatherings and celebrations. Every year on the 11th
day of the lunar calendar, a Tibetan Buddhist degree examination is
held in the hall. Every year, on the 27th day of the lunar calendar
and the 14th day of the first month, ceremonial gifts are held in
the temple, and all the lamas in the temple concentrate on chanting
in the temple. In the Qing Dynasty, many Mongolian leaders came to
the temple for incense. In the thirty-sixth year of Qianlong (1771),
Emperor Qianlong met with the returning Turkast leader Wolbasi and
his party at the Hall of Returning to One Thousand Laws , and
organized a large-scale lecture and birthday celebration.
In 1932, the World Expo was held in Chicago , the United States. In
order to attract visitors, the wealthy Rockefeller adopted the
suggestion of the Swedish scholar Sven Hedin in 1930, and sent
someone to survey and draw the Hall of Oneness in One World. Hall of
the same size model. Rockefeller also collected a large number of
Buddha statues and implements in China. In 1931, they were
transported to Chicago by a special ship and exhibited in the
duplicated Wanfa Hall. From the end of the 20th century to the
beginning of the 21st century, Swedish architect Max Wu Lei and
several experts set up a foundation that has purchased all the
components of the Wanfa Normal Hall from the Indiana University in
the United States in preparation for international cultural research
in Stockholm . Center assembly and reconstruction. Max Wu Lei
visited Chengde in 1989 to negotiate with the competent authorities
to conduct an on-site inspection of Wanfa Guiyi Hall.
In 1961, the Temple of Putuo Zongcheng was listed as the first batch
of national key cultural relics protection units . In 1994, "
Chengde Mountain Resort and its surrounding temples " including the
Temple of Putuo Zongcheng were registered as a World Heritage Site
by UNESCO .
At the beginning of the 21st century, the national and religious
song and dance "Light of Putuo" was launched at the "Ancestral
Tower" on the red platform of the temple of Putuo Zongcheng, showing
the completion of the temple of Putuo Zongcheng, the emperor's
Qingshou, and the return of Tulku special department . Historical
events. The song and dance is performed for tourists every morning
in the "Medical Tower".