No. 93: Roushen Dian, Jiuhuashan, Anhui

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on April 28, 2014.)

The Flesh Body Pagoda (肉身塔) at Roushendian (肉身殿) on Jiuhuashan, Anhui (安徽, 九华山),
is said to hold the uncorrupted body of the Korean monk named Jin Qiaojue (金乔觉),
who was supposed to be the rebirth of Dizang (Kshitigarbha Bodhisattva=地藏菩萨).

June 22, 2012 - A short climb up the hill behind my hotel brought me to Roushen Hall, one of the creepier stops on my pilgrimage.

No. 100: Yingjiang Temple, Anqing, Anhui

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on June 16, 2014.)

The Zhenfeng Pagoda (振风塔) is the primary attraction at
Yingjiang Temple (迎江寺) in Anqing, Anhui (安徽, 安庆市).

June 25, 2012 - The next morning, I reluctantly left Jiuhua Shan, and after a couple of bus rides, I arrived in Anqing, a former capital of Anhui province which boasts over 2,000 years of history. This would be my jumping-off point for trips into the nearby mountains, but it was also home to one of my targets, Yingjiang ("Facing the River") Temple.

No. 101: Qianyuan Temple, Qianshan County, Anhui

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on June 23, 2014.)

This pagoda (塔) holds the remains of the Third Patriarch (三祖)
of Chan (Zen=禅) at Qingyuan Temple (乾元寺), also called Third
Patriarch's Temple (三祖寺), in Qianshan County, Anhui (安徽, 潜山县).

June 26, 2012 - To reach Sanzu Temple--the next on my list--I first had to take a bus from Anqing to the county town of Qianshan, the gateway to the spectacular Tianzhu Shan ("Pillars of Heaven") Scenic Area. From there a local bus took me to the temple at the foot of the mountain.

No. 106: Baotong Temple, Wuhan, Hubei

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on September 15, 2014.)

The ancient Hongshan Pagoda (洪山宝塔) stands on the mountain
behind Baotong Temple (宝通寺), Wuhan, Hubei (湖北, 武汉市)

August 4, 2012 - After lunch in Guiyuan Temple's vegetarian dining hall, I boarded a local bus and waved out the window as I passed Wuhan's famed Yellow Crane Tower. Originally built in 232 CE, it is now a 1985 reconstruction a kilometer away from the original site.

No. 108: Wuzu Temple, Huangmei, Hubei

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on September 29, 2014.)

This is the stupa (塔) of the Fifth Patriarch (五祖) of Chan (Zen = 禅), on the
mountain behind Wuzu Temple (五祖寺), Huangmei, Hubei (湖北, 黄梅县).

August 7, 2012 - In July of 2012, I had visited most of the important sites in the life of Huineng, the Sixth Patriarch of Chan (Zen). I had been to Xinxing, where he was born and died, and where his parents were buried. I went to Dajian Temple in Shaoguan, where he preached the Platform Sutra, and to Nanhua Temple near the same city, where he taught for many years, and where his effigy remained. I also had visited smaller sites rumored to have been places where he meditated. Even before that, I had been to Guangxiao Temple in Guangzhou, where he had actually been ordained.

EXTRA: Wooden Tower, Yingxian, Datong, Shanxi

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on January 19, 2015.)

The impressive Wooden Tower (木塔) in Yingxian (应县), Datong,
Shanxi (山西, 大同市), is said to be the world's largest such structure.

August 23, 2012 - It was surprisingly easy to go from Datong to the Hanging Temple--but surprisingly hard to leave there.

No. 129: Tayuan Temple, Wutai Shan, Shanxi

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on April 27, 2015.)

The Stupa at Tayuan Temple (塔院寺) is the symbol of Wutai Shan, Shanxi (山西, 五台山).

August 27, 2012 - For a small temple, Wutai Shan's Tayuan ("Pagoda Compound") really has a lot to see.

EXTRA: Yongzuo Temple, Taiyuan, Shanxi

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on May 25, 2015.)

The Twin Pagodas (双塔) are at now-secularized Yongzuo
Temple (永祚寺), Taiyuan, Shanxi (山西, 太原市).

August 31, 2012 - Although not on my list, the Yongzuo ("Eternal Blessing") Temple was a "must see" for two reasons.

EXTRA: Bailin Temple, Zhaoxian, Hebei

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on June 1, 2015.)

The pagoda (塔) is the only ancient part of Bailin Temple (柏林寺), Zhaoxian, Hebei (河北, 赵县).

September 2, 2012 - The day after visiting Chongshan and Shaungta Temples, I moved from Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi, to Shijiazhuang, capital of Hebei, and the last stop on a long tour. The day after that I figured out how to get out to remote Zhaoxian County to visit the former home of the great Chan (Zen) Master Zhaozhou (Japanese "Joshu"), star of one of the most famous teaching stories (Ch. gong'an, Jp. ko'an) of Chan.

No. 83: Kaiyuan Temple, Quanzhou, Fujian

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on December 30, 2013.)

The Renshou Pagoda (仁寿塔) at Kaiyuan Temple (开元寺), Quanzhou, Fujian
(福建, 泉州市), is one of two pagodas on the grounds, built in the 13th century.

January 18, 2012 - I took the then-new high-speed rail from Xiamen to Quanzhou, home of Kaiyuan Temple, the largest Buddhist temple in Fujian.

No. 78: Guanghua Temple, Putian, Fujian

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on November 4, 2013.)

These small Buddhas (佛) are on the side of a small pagoda (塔)
at Guanghua Temple (广化寺), Putian, Fujian (福建, 莆田市).

October 28, 2011 - It took quite a while--over an hour--to catch a taxi from the more remote Cishou Temple, but once I did, it was a relatively short ride to my second temple of the day, Guanghua Temple.

No. 76: Wanfu Temple, Fuqing, Fujian

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on October 21, 2013.)

The seven pagodas (塔) are at the south end of the compound at
Wanfu Temple (万福寺) in tropical Fuqing, Fujian (福建, 福清市).

October 27, 2011 - Finishing up in Fuzhou, I would move to Putian to see several more temples. There was, however, one located in Fuqing, between the two cities, that I would stop and see on the way.

No. 70: Dizang Temple, Fuzhou, Fujian

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on August 26, 2013.)

This was the first of several odd, barrel-shaped stupas (塔) I saw near Fuzhou, Fujian
(福建, 福州市). This one is at Dizang Temple (地藏寺), one of the oldest in Fujian.

October 22, 2011 - My next trip took me to the area of Fuzhou in northern Fujian Province. From the airport, I took a bus into town and a taxi straight to my first temple--even before checking in at the hotel!

Dizang Temple was named for Kshitigarbha Bodhisattva, who promised to save all six kinds of beings from their respective levels of hell. Typically for a temple dedicated to this "savior of the dead," many of the halls in this small temple functioned as a mausoleum.

No. 63: The Pagodas of Zhengding, Hebei

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on July 8, 2013.)

This pagoda (塔) at Linji Temple (临济寺), Zhengding, Hebei (河北, 正定县), holds
the remains of Linji (临济), founder of the Linji sect (临济宗) of Chan (=Zen, 禅).

August 30, 2011 - I took an expensive taxi the 20 kilometers from Shijiazhuang to Zhengding. With city walls dating back to 352 A.D., Zhengding had been an important religious and administrative center for over a thousand years.

No. 48: Lingguang Temple, Beijing

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on February 18, 2013.)

The well-venerated base is all that remains of the Buddha's Tooth Relic Pagoda (佛牙
舍利塔) at Lingguang Temple (灵光寺), one of the "Eight Great Sites" (八大处=Badachu) in
western Beijing (北京). The newly-built replacement can be seen in the upper right.

July 9, 2011 - My next temple trip took place in the summer of 2011. A local businessman, a student of mine, offered to take me along on a business trip to Beijing. He put me in one of the most expensive hotels in the capital, and paid for a car and driver to take me around. A five-star pilgrim!

My first goal was Badachu ("Eight Great Sites") Park at the base of the Western Hills. I saw six of the eight that day!

The only one on my list of 142 temples was the "Sheli Ta" or Relic Pagoda located at Lingguang Temple. The new pagoda is big and beautiful; but for beauty's sake the real attraction is the pedestal of the original pagoda.

EXTRA: Guangxiao Temple, Guangzhou, Guangdong

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on December 24, 2012.)

The Hair Pagoda (瘗发塔) at Guangxiao Temple (光孝寺) in Guangzhou, Guangdong (广东, 广州市), is said to
hold the hair shaved from Huineng (惠能), the Sixth Patriarch (六祖) of Chan (禅), when he became a monk.

November 19, 2010 - From Liurong Temple's gate, turn left, then left again. Not far away, down a leafy pedestrian path, lies Guangxiao Temple. One of the area's most significant temples, it's a mystery to me why it wasn't included on the list of 142 key temples. [There is some possibility that when the list was made in 1983, it wasn't in good enough condition to be included.]

No. 43: Haibaota Temple, Yinchuan, Ningxia

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on December 3, 2012.)

Haibaota Temple (海宝塔寺) in the Hui (回族) city of Yinchuan, Ningxia (宁夏, 银川市),
is named for the unusually-designed Haibao ("Sea Treasure") Pagoda (海宝塔).

October 19, 2010 - A short hour-and-fifteen minute flight from Xi'an took me to Yinchuan, capital of Ningxia. I only had one night, so I wasted no time: I dropped my bags at my motel and headed north to Haibaota ("Sea Treasure Pagoda") Temple. The crystalline blue sky and dusty roads were sure signs that I was as close as my pilgrimage would take me to the great western deserts of Gansu and beyond.

EXTRA: Three Ancient Temples in Xi'an, Shaanxi

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on November 26, 2012.)

Ximing Temple (西明寺) in Xi'an, Shaanxi (陕西, 西安市), is another place Konghai (空海)
stayed; it is newly-built in a new location, with these shiny Three Buddhas--Amitabha
(阿弥陀佛), Shakyamuni (释迦牟尼), and the Medicine Buddha (药师佛)--on the main altar (坛).

October 17, 2010 - Numerous temples of significance--like Famen Temple--dot the Xi'an area but were not included, for one reason or another, on the list of 142 Key Buddhist Temples in the Han Area. The afternoon I visited Famen, and over the next couple of days, I visited three of these.

EXTRA: Famen Temple, Xi'an, Shaanxi

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on November 19, 2012.)

The "True Relic Pagoda" (圣真身宝塔) at Famen Temple (法门寺) in Xi'an, Shaanxi (陕西,
西安市), collapsed in 1981, and relics (舍利子), including a finger bone of the Buddha
(佛), were found there in 1987. The relic is now on display in a modern "pagoda" nearby.

October 17, 2010 - On August 4, 1981, disaster struck Famen Temple.

No. 42: Xiangji Temple, Xi'an, Shaanxi

(This article was published in the Shenzhen Daily on November 12, 2012.)

This pagoda (塔) holds the remains of Shandao (善导), a patriarch (祖) of the
Pure Land Sect (淨土宗), at Xiangji Temple (香积寺), Xi'an, Shaanxi (陕西, 西安市).

October 16, 2010 - In Xi'an near the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, I boarded a local bus for Xiangji Temple. A major north-south road runs a little over a half-kilometer west of the temple; when the bus dropped me along that road, I walked through sleepy Xiangji Village towards the grounds.