Puning Temple
普宁寺
The Shanmen at Puning Temple.
Religion
Affiliation	Buddhism
Deity	Chan Buddhism–Caodong school
Leadership	Shi Zhaorong (释照荣)[1]
Location
Location	Mount Wu'an, Yushan County, Jiangxi
Country	China
Geographic coordinates	28°40′10.9″N 118°15′08.02″E / 28.669694°N 118.2522278°E / 28.669694; 118.2522278
Architecture
Style	Chinese architecture
Founder	Shi Dading (释达定)
Date established	668–670
Completed	1994 (reconstruction)

Puning Temple (simplified Chinese: 普宁寺; traditional Chinese: 普寧寺; pinyin: Pǔníng Sì; lit. 'Temple of Universal Peace') is a Buddhist temple located on Mount Wu'an in Yushan County, Jiangxi, China.

History

The temple was first established between 668 and 670, under the Tang dynasty (618–907). It was converted from the private residence donated by painter and official Yan Liben.^[2][3]

The temple had reached an unprecedented heyday in the Song dynasty (960–1279), during that time, it was about 30 mu in size with over 100 rooms and halls, and included 160 monks.

After Song dynasty, the temple declined and mostly disappeared during the late Yuan dynasty (1271–1368).

Puning Temple was restored in 1822, in the reign of Daoguang Emperor in the Qing dynasty (1644–1911).

In 1924, Puning Temple collapsed due to neglect. Then Abbot Fasen (法森) rebuilt it.

In 1933, in order to build the Zhejiang–Jiangxi railway, the government demolished the Middle Hall.

In 1942, Puning Temple turned to ashes by a devastating fire during the Japanese invasion of the Second Sino-Japanese War.

Architecture

Now the existing main buildings include Shanmen, Heavenly Kings Hall, Mahavira Hall, Buddhist Texts Library and the Tomb of Yan Liben.

Gallery

References