Visit Ancient Sites on Your Trip - Nanjing Qixia Temple (National 5A)

Nanjing Qixia Temple is located on Qixia Mountain in Qixia District, Nanjing. In the second year of the Yongming period of the Southern Qi Dynasty (484 AD), the Southern Dynasty hermit and famous Confucian scholar Ming Sengshao lived in seclusion on She Mountain (now Qixia Mountain) and donated his house to be used as a temple. The Zen master Fadu used Qixia Jingshe as a foundation to formally establish Qixia Temple. During the Southern Liang Dynasty, Senglang greatly promoted the teachings of the Three Treatises here, and it became known as the ancestral temple of the Three Treatises School. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty built relic pagodas in 83 prefectures, and his edict to build relic pagodas was headed by Jiangzhou Qixia Temple. During the reign of Emperor Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty, it was called Gongde Temple, and together with Lingyan Temple in Shandong, Yuquan Temple in Hubei, and Guoqing Temple in Zhejiang, it was known as one of the four great forests in the world. During the reign of Emperor Gaozong, the Mingzhengjun Stele was made by imperial decree, and the temple was renamed Yinjun Qixia Temple by imperial decree. It was rebuilt in the 25th year of the Hongwu period of the Ming Dynasty (1392) and was given the name Qixia Temple. During the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, the emperor made five southern tours, all of which included a stay at Qixia Temple. The main buildings in Qixia Temple include the Mountain Gate, Maitreya Hall, Pilu Hall, Dharma Hall, Nianfo Hall, Sutra Library, and Jianzhen Memorial Hall. To the left of the front of Qixia Temple is the Mingzhengjun Stele, which was erected in the early Tang Dynasty to commemorate Ming Sengshao. The inscription was written by Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty, Li Zhi, and the calligraphy was done by the Tang Dynasty calligrapher Gao Zhengchen. The two characters "Qixia" on the back of the stele are said to have been written by Li Zhi himself. This is one of the ancient steles in Jiangnan and is a precious cultural relic. In autumn, Qixia Mountain around Qixia Temple is covered with colorful autumn leaves, with red, yellow, and orange colors interwoven to form a charming autumn picture.