Jing'an Temple 静安寺

About Jing'an Temple

The temple moved to this general site during the Song period and has undergone later rebuilding.

Courtyards and halls organize the visit. The Guanyin Hall contains a large camphor-wood figure, while a separate hall houses a jade Buddha. The contrast between the religious interiors and the surrounding city is part of the setting, but access to individual halls should follow the temple’s own arrangements.

According to a stele inside the temple, it was founded in 247, during the Three Kingdoms period, by the monk Kang Senghui (康僧会), under the name Hudu Chongxuan Temple (沪渎重玄寺). It was renamed Yongtai Chan Yuan (永泰禅院) during the Tang dynasty and took its present name, Jing'an Temple, in 1008, during the Northern Song dynasty. In 1216 the abbot Zhongyi (仲依) moved the temple to its present site because river erosion had made the original foundation unstable. A bronze bell cast in 1369 still survives.

In 1860 Taiping forces destroyed the temple by fire, and its last hall later collapsed, leaving the Buddha statues outdoors until the temple was rebuilt in 1880 with sponsorship from Hu Xueyan (胡雪岩). During the Cultural Revolution its statues and ritual objects were destroyed, the abbot Chisong (持松) was persecuted, and the temple became a plastics factory; the Mahavira Hall (大雄宝殿) burned down in 1972. In 1983 the State Council designated Jing'an Temple one of the national key Buddhist temples of Han Chinese areas (汉族地区佛教全国重点寺院), and it was restored and reopened in 1990.

In 1953 the monk Chisong was appointed abbot and re-established the temple under the Tangmi Buddhist tradition, enshrining the Mandala of the Two Realms within it. The temple practices this tradition. The Jing'an Pagoda, added within the grounds, was completed in 2010.

What to look for

• Successive halls and courtyards organize the Buddhist precinct.
• The camphor-wood Guanyin and jade Buddha provide distinct sculptural focuses.

Location & getting there

Getting to Jing'an Temple

Approach the temple frontage on West Nanjing Road in Jing’an and enter through the current public visitor gate.