Baiyu Monastery 白玉寺

About Baiyu Monastery

The monastery stands in 白玉乡, 久治县. The 2011 Xining Evening News report says it was founded in 1857, covers more than a thousand mu and had about 140 years of history at that date, and describes it as the largest and most influential Nyingma monastery of the Qinghai–Sichuan–Gansu border region; it names the reliquary stupas of two eminent monks, gilded and silvered, as the monastery’s treasures. The heritage register of the ICOMOS International Conservation Centre–Xi’an enters 白玉寺 as a Qing-dynasty ancient-building site at 白玉村 in 白玉乡, 久治县, in its sixth batch.

On 19 December 2011 a fire broke out at the monastery at about 4:30 a.m. The report says it destroyed two assembly halls completely, caused serious loss of relics and no casualties, and was put out by 10:30 a.m. after monks and local people fought it; the burnt area was given as more than 800 square metres. A 2022 account of Jigzhi County’s cultural work over the preceding decade, supplied by the county’s publicity department and carried by China National Radio’s Qinghai channel, records conservation works on 白玉寺, 隆格寺 and 阿绕寺 as provincial-level protected units, and says the county successfully applied for 尖木达寺, 觉囊寺, 白玉寺, 隆格寺 and 阿绕寺 to be provincial-level cultural relic protection units.

The cited pages do not agree on the monastery’s protected-unit level: the county’s 2022 account places it at provincial level, while the 2011 report records a 1994 prefecture-level listing. The record carries the provincial listing and does not reconcile the two. None of the pages states opening hours, ticket arrangements or which buildings a visitor may enter, so the catalogue’s note that the open range of halls, courtyards and relic displays has to be confirmed stands.

What to look for

• The reliquary stupas of eminent monks, which the 2011 report describes as gilded and silvered and calls the monastery’s treasures
• The assembly halls (经堂), two of which the December 2011 fire destroyed completely
• The monastery’s grounds, which the 2011 report gives as covering more than a thousand mu
• The Qing-dynasty ancient-building site the heritage register enters at 白玉村 in 白玉乡, 久治县

Location & getting there

Getting to Baiyu Monastery

Check which interiors and courtyards are accessible. Active places of worship and protected monuments may have different visitor rules.

• Search for 白玉寺 with 果洛藏族自治州 and 久治县.