Huacheng Temple

Huacheng Temple is located on Jiuhua Mountain, a Buddhist resort 50 kilometers southeast of Chizhou City. As early as the fifth year of Long'an in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (401 AD), monks had built a nunnery here. In the early years of Tang Zhide (756 AD), Huacheng Temple was built. Jin Qiaojue (Jin Dizang), a prince of Silla (South Korea), who was believed to be the reincarnation of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, preached here. Huacheng Temple is the founding temple of Jiuhua Mountain with a long history. It is also the place of practice for Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. Huacheng Temple is located in the center of Jiuhua Street, the base camp for food and accommodation on Jiuhua Mountain. It is very convenient to walk to it from Jiuhua Street. There are small shops next to each other on both sides of the temple. The crescent-shaped pond in front of the gate is said to be the release pond of Ksitigarbha. The white-walled and black-tiled temple and shops are reflected in the pond, which can take beautiful photos. There is a Niangniang Pagoda near the Crescent-shaped Pond. Only the pagoda base remains. It is said to be built in memory of Jin Dizang's mother. The main buildings of the temple are arranged along the central axis, with a total of four entrances, from south to north, including the Lingguan Hall, Tianwang Hall, Daxiong Hall, and Sutra Library. The first three entrances are buildings from the Qing Dynasty, and the last entrance is a building from the Ming Dynasty. The most beautiful one is the Daxiong Hall, with flowers carved on the windows, ice patterns carved on the door lintel, and gold gilded at the right position. When entering the hall, you must look up at the roof. The colorful "Nine Dragons Playing with Pearls" carvings on the caisson are artistic treasures. As a historical and cultural relic museum of Jiuhua Mountain, the courtyard corridors of Huacheng Temple are hung with paintings and calligraphy showing the landscape of Jiuhua Mountain, and cultural relics are displayed. The fine products worth seeing include: the "Avatamsaka Blood Sutra" written by the monk Wuxia of the Ming Dynasty with a needle piercing his tongue and a pen dipped in his tongue blood. The flesh of the monk Wuxia can be seen in the Baisui Palace; the huge shoes and hat worn by Jin Dizang; the bronze Diting of the Ming Dynasty, which is the mount of Jin Dizang; the imperial handwriting of Emperor Kangxi and Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty, etc.