Puhua Temple

Puhua Temple
普ふ化か寺てら
The shanmen of Puhua Temple.
Religion
Affiliation	Buddhism
Prefecture	Wutai County
Province	Shanxi
Location
Country	China
Shown within Shanxi
Prefecture	Wutai County
Geographic coordinates	39°00′04″N 113°35′53″E
Architecture
Style	Chinese architecture
Date established	1925

The Puhua Temple (Chinese: 普ふ化か寺てら; pinyin: Pǔhuà Sì) is a Buddhist temple located in Taihuai Town of Wutai County, Xinzhou, Shanxi, China.

History

The time for the establishment of the Puhua Temple has been unable to be verified. It is also called "Temple of Jade Emperor" (玉たま皇すめらぎ庙) and "Palace of Indra" (帝みかど释宫). The present temple was completed in 1925 during the Republic of China (1912-1949).

Architecture

The Puhua Temple complex is located in the east and faces the west. With a brief layout, it includes the Hall of Four Heavenly Kings, Mahavira Hall, Hall of Jade Emperor, Hall of Lü Dongbin, and south and north annex halls. It has a building area of 15,800 square metres (170,000 sq ft).

Zhaobi

The Zhaobi (照あきら壁かべ) is built by stones and bricks. The front of the Zhaobi are engraved with the Sanxing (deities) (福ぶく禄ろく寿ことぶき三星みつぼし) and the back of the wall are engraved with Guanyin, Sudhana and Longnü.

Hall of Four Heavenly Kings

Under the eaves of the Hall of Four Heavenly Kings is a plaque with the Chinese characters "普ふ化か寺てら". In front of the hall, a wooden plaque with a couplet is hung on the two side pillars. It says "皈依三宝さんぼう极乐地ち，遵守じゅんしゅ五戒ごかい未来みらい天てん". Maitreya is enshrined in the hall and at the back of his statue is a statue of Skanda. Unlike other temples, Statues of Nryana are also enshrined in the hall. The hall are carved with openwork patterns, which show proficient skills. The patterns are Monkey King, human figures of cowboy, shepherd, oldman etc. The shrine of Maitreya are engraved with splendid and spectacular wooden dragons. In the wall of the Hall of Four Heavenly Kings are engraved with the Picture-Book of Twenty-Four Acts of Filial Piety (二十四孝にじゅうしこう图) and the Four Natural Organs (四よん位い天てん官かん).

Mahavira Hall

The Mahavira Hall enshrining the Three Saints of Hua-yan (华严三さん圣). In the middle is Sakyamuni, statues of Manjushri and Samantabhadra stand on the left and right sides of Sakyamuni's statue. At the back of Sakyamuni's statue are statues of the Three Sages of the West (西方せいほう三さん圣), namely Guanyin, Amitabha and Mahasthamaprapta. The statues of Eighteen Arhats stand on both sides of the hall.

Three Buddhas Hall

Behind the Mahavira Hall is the Three Buddhas Hall enshrining the statues of Sakyamuni, Amitabha and Bhaisajyaguru. The two disciples' statues are placed in front of the statue of Sakyamuni, the older is called Kassapa Buddha and the middle-aged is called Ananda. Statues of Indra and Brahma are placed next to the statues of Sakyamuni, Amitabha and Bhaisajyaguru. The four pillars inside the hall are engraved with dedicate and gorgeousness karavika-bhani (迦陵频伽鸟). The statues of Eighteen Arhats stand on the platform of gable wall.

Gallery

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  The Three Buddhas Hall at Puhua Temple.
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  A hall at Puhua Temple.
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  A hall at Puhua Temple.