Jing An Temple 靜安寺
one of the most established and oldest temples
around ShangHai and even Jiang Nan 江南 district
the histrory can be traced all the way
1700 years back, 247 A.D.
can’t help being hit by
a bang of disappointment
entrance charge of 50 RMB to a temple
usually promised something great
yet was greeted by a sight of
under-renovation-scenes
it went through hard times
war back in 1860 and cultural revolution
at times it feels kinda sad
the fate of these cultural relics
external and internal threats of invasion
franking speaking
i am still under disappointment
the fusion elements permeate
the main Buddha statute is of
Theravada influence
i.e. more of the Siamese, Indian-origin art
and the structure of the building
doesn’t look too centrally Chinese either
it reminded me of the North
DunHuang, Silk Road, desert
I hope you get what I mean
and those golden pagodas
surrounding the temple
is definitely Tibetan
yet occasionally
element of classic Chinese architecture
can be found at corners
at the back entrance of
the main hall
I see the most amazing painting? mural?
which makes the trip totally worth it all
it consists of three frames
each telling a significant tale of Buddhism
Centre:
the life-journey of Buddha
from birth to nirvana
left:
how Buddhism comes to impact the people
and the group of monks being
strategically crafted in the middle
as they shoulder the responsibility of
defending and spreading the knowledge of Buddhism
right:
Heaven, the ultimate pursuit of life
every single piece
inlaid with stones, gems,
closed-up views
every single tiny detail
crafted to perfection
you see the tail of the flag
not exactly a flag.. we call it a “fan”
it’s exactly flying in the wind
and water being poured into the pond
i supposed this is a heaven with
and these are the Bodhisattva(s)
the angling of the fence,
every character is looking in a different direction
if you happen to notice
how to they even create water ripple
carved on solid stone
and the lotus leave
death bed
coin-tossing
I am not sure it’s the right thing to do
but they seem to have loads fun
How to get here:
Metro Line 2 (Green Line)
Jing An Temple station 靜安寺
right across the street
so, this is the essence of ShangHai
melting pot where East meets West
the new and old co-exist harmonically
no I was “abstinent” from entering
even if it’s just across the street
and A&F is just around the corner, oh yeah
no I mean.. hell no
no.. Steph
you are not supposed to use “hell” word
after a visit to the temple
Jing An Temple 靜安寺
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