Where does Baotong Temple belong?

Baotong Temple is a famous religious tourist attraction in Wuhan.

Baotong Temple, located at the southern foot of Hongshan Mountain, is one of the four Buddhist jungles in Wuhan. During the Zhenguan period of the Tang Dynasty, the temple was expanded, also known as Mituo Temple. Later, because the Buddha's foot moved from Suizhou Dahongshan to the temple, he asked the court to give him the name Chongning manjuji. During Chenghua period of Ming Dynasty, it was changed to Baotong Temple. The temple was destroyed several times and rebuilt several times.

The Buddhist buildings here, facing south, are built on the mountain, at the southern foot of Hongshan Mountain, and stacked from bottom to top along the central axis, which reflects the foresight of the designers. Enter the mountain gate, cross the holy monk bridge, and there are release ponds on both sides, pass through the bell and drum tower, reach the Maitreya Hall, climb the Prajna Gate to the Mahayana Hall, pass through the living room and meditation hall, and enter the Jade Buddha Hall and the Tibetan Scripture Building. There are Zhaitang and Xiangjiliang on the east, and Jialan Temple and abbot's room on the west. After climbing the mountain, you can see the Wanfo Building and the Fajie Palace, with Huayan Pavilion and Huayan Cave on the east. The arched cornices, painted and carved, are solemn, simple and magnificent, hidden among pine and bamboo, covering an area of about 654.38+10,000 square meters. The environment here is quiet, the air is fresh, and the surrounding trees are towering and lush. Yue Fei, an anti-gold hero in the Southern Song Dynasty, once climbed mountains and planted pines here, and it was also a place where scholars and poets of past dynasties stopped to linger. As a provincial cultural relics protection unit, it was identified as a key Buddhist temple in the State Council as early as 1982.

The existing Zen Temple was built in the fifth year of Guangxu in Qing Dynasty (1879), with a large scale and exquisite decoration, ranking first among all temples in Wuchang. The temple building is built on the mountain, with the main entrance, towering shadow walls on both sides, covered with tile ridges, and four striking Chinese characters of Baotong Temple on the lintel. There is a pair of stone lions in front of the door, carved in the Ming Dynasty, tall and vivid. After entering the door, from bottom to top are the release pond, the holy monk bridge, the Heavenly King Hall, the Ursa Major Hall, the Ancestral Hall and the Tibetan Scripture Building. At this point, the meditation hall is on the right, the abbot's room is on the left, and then the Tiefo Temple, Huayan Cave, Huayan Pavilion and Fajie Palace. There is the Baoneng Tower behind the temple.

The buildings in the temple are all brick and wood structures, rest on the top of the mountain, cornices of bucket arches and painted beams. The architectural style of Fajie Palace is unique. The pavilion on the roof symbolizes that there are many ancient trees behind the temple in the direction of the Five Buddhas. According to legend, Yue Fei, a national hero of the Southern Song Dynasty, planted pine trees when he was stationed here. His name is Song Yue, but he was cut down at the end of the Ming Dynasty. During the Tongzhi period of Qing Dynasty, he planted many pine trees in the same place, and when he grew up, he was still called Song Yue. Now there are eight trees left, which can be described as towering old trees. The whole building has proper layout, rigorous structure and patchwork. Baotong Temple was listed as a municipal cultural relics protection unit on 1959. At present, the buildings in the temple have been gradually restored, and the courtyard walls have been painted, which is now open to tourists. At the same time, there is also a vegetarian restaurant in the temple, which is delicious and famous.

Baotong Temple was built in the Southern Dynasties during the Liu and Song Dynasties (420-479 AD), with a history of 1580 years. This is the oldest existing ancient temple in our city. Originally known as Dongshan Temple, it was later renamed Mituo Temple and Chongning Manjuji, and was named Baotong Temple in the 21st year of Ming Chenghua (A.D. 1485). After several wars and reconstruction. The present scale was rebuilt in Guangxu period (A.D. 1875- 1909). Since then, it has been damaged several times. In recent years, the temple halls and Buddha statues have been repaired and maintained on a large scale to restore their original appearance. There are many holy places here, which are quite influential at home and abroad. There are eight scenic spots of Hongshan in the temple, namely Dongyan, Yunkun, Huaizun, Cuiping, Qixia, Lion Peak, Renxianshi and Shouquan. There are many precious cultural relics in the temple. For example, the ancient bell in the Song Dynasty is the oldest large-scale smelting vessel among the existing Buddhist cultural relics in our province. In addition, there are a pair of stone lions, the male lion playing hydrangea and the female lion playing cubs, which are lifelike and unique in shape, and sometimes they are a must in Jiangnan. It is worth mentioning that there is a flying boulder in the Dharma Palace, which is a unique Japanese-style building of Tantric Buddhism, adding a bit of charm to this building; The colorful sculptures of 500 arhats on the island are vivid and interesting.

Buddhist temple gate

When you come to Baotong Temple, you can see the decoration of the mountain gate. There are four gold-plated characters of Baotong Temple on the forehead of the gate, which is magnificent. It was inscribed by Mr. Zhao Puchu, Chairman of the Chinese Buddhist Association and a famous calligrapher. Entering the mountain gate, you can see the release pond, the holy monk bridge, the verdant trees in several acres of courtyards and the swaying old trees. Baotong Temple is not only a famous temple with a long history, but also has many charming scenic spots in recent weeks. For example, there are several famous springs, such as Ruquan (also known as Bailongquan), which is famous for its clear springs and frequent nipple surges. Yue Songfei is said to have been planted by Yue Fei, a patriotic celebrity in the Southern Song Dynasty, and the ancient carved cliffs such as the Eight Scenes of Hongshan carved and named in the first year of Qingyuan in the Southern Song Dynasty (1 195), as well as the big iron bell cast in the Southern Song Dynasty and the big lion carved in the Ming Dynasty.

Famous historical sites

Walking through Maitreya Hall, the bigger Xiongbao Hall, bypassing the ancestral temple, passing through Huayan Cave, going to Huayan Pavilion and climbing the Hongshan Pagoda, some scenic spots along the way have long been lost or illegible, but the majestic halls, faint cloisters, towering ancient trees, lush forests and rugged rocks can all give people great pleasure.

The most noteworthy is the Hongshan Pagoda. This pagoda stands on the top of Hongshan Mountain, formerly known as Baotong Pagoda and Jiling Pagoda, and later renamed Hongshan Pagoda. It was built around 1280 to commemorate the founder of this mountain, Master Ci Ren. The tower is 45.6 meters high, masonry structure, divided into seven floors and eight directions, and beautifully designed, which is the best in Jingchu; The top of the tower is made of 6.5 tons of red copper, which shows that the builders have long-term intentions and look forward to eternity. Entering from the arch at the grass-roots level, climbing the stairs and overlooking the top of the mountain, Chutian has a panoramic view.

Shu Qi; Hsu Kei、Hsu Chi

Especially near the Hongshan Pagoda, there are some grotesque trees: some are completely rooted in the whole rock without any gaps, and some roots are completely forked by huge stones, and the forked trunks straddle the back of the big stones like legs, which is simply God's creation.