Han style Tibetan Buddhist monastic architecture Qutan Monastery

Mondo Culture Updated on 2024-02-01

Qutan Temple, which is located in Xinlian Village, Qutan Township, Ledu County, Qinghai Province, is known as the "Little Forbidden City", 88 kilometers away from Xining, like a bright pearl, inlaid on the plateau. This temple was built by Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty in recognition of the prestige of the Sanluo Lama among the Tibetan tribes in Handong and his loyalty to the imperial court. During the Yongle period, Ming Chengzu Zhu Di expanded and added many buildings, such as Baoguang Palace, King Kong Palace, two-compartment corridor and front mountain gate, etc., to make it more magnificent and magnificent. After more than 600 years, Qutan Temple is still intact, thanks to the solidity and grandeur of its Han official architectural style. Viewed from a distance, the cornices and walls are antique, as if telling a beautiful and mysterious story. It is backed by the round and tall Luohan Mountain, in front of which there is the Qutan River like a jade belt entangled, and not far in front of the Phoenix Mountain that flutters its wings and flies high and the snow on the top of the mountain does not melt all year round, forming a treasure land of feng shui.

Qutan Temple covers an area of 4136 acres, sitting west to east, the temple layout is symmetrical, and the main buildings are located on the central axis. The surrounding low and gentle corridors show the majesty and liveliness of the building complex. The whole Qutan Temple is composed of the mountain gate, the imperial tablet pavilion, the incense tower, the King Kong hall, the Qutan hall, the Baoguang hall, the Longguo hall, the large and small bell and drum towers, and the side hall. The front area adopts the layout of "Seven Halls", while the rear area imitates the layout of the Forbidden City in Beijing. The Longguo Hall and the inclined corridors on both sides are the most magnificent buildings in the temple, and they are modeled after the Taihe Hall and the Fengtian Hall of the Forbidden City. The Great Bell Tower and the Great Drum Tower are built in imitation of the Wenlou and Wulou (Hongyi Pavilion) on both sides of the Fengtian Palace. The dougong-shaped system, detailed partition fans, fangtou, and vertical ridges of these buildings are all the same as those of the Forbidden City. Baoguang Hall is the top of the heavy eaves palace, the face is wide and seven rooms, five rooms are deep, and the corridor is out on all sides. The front eaves and the second room are respectively installed with four five wipes partition sashes, and the heart is made of "rhombic hydrangea pattern". The corridor is surrounded by thick walls, the lower shoulders are made of clear water, and there are large exquisite Buddhist murals on the inner walls. The pedestal of the Longguo Palace is the shape of the red stone carving Sumeru, and it is 2 high3 meters. The platform and the platform base are surrounded by red sandstone pillar railings. Sumeru seat Guijiao part carved three clouds, the size of the lower owl is greater than the upper owl, the girdle agate pillar carved vajra pattern. The lower part of the railing is made of begonia ponds, the part of finding sticks is made of net bottle lotus leaves, and the head of the column is made of pearls. The mural of more than 400 square meters preserved in the inclined corridor of the temple is painted with heavy color to depict the story of Buddhist scriptures, the images of pavilions and pavilions, landscape characters are vivid, and have a high artistic level.

In addition, the existing cultural relics also have a seal inscription "true cultivation is unhindered" ivory stamp, a seven-star flower treasure knife, a string of ivory and sandalwood Buddhist beads, and a bronze giant bell made in the second year of Xuande in the Ming Dynasty. There is also an elephant back cloud drum in the Longguo Palace, carved and chiseled in red sand stone, the demeanor is vivid and lively, it is the representative of many stone carving works of Qutan Temple.

There is a medicinal herb temple at the foot of the south mountain ten miles away from Qutan Temple, which was the lower courtyard of Qutan Temple in history. Yaocaotai Temple was built in the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, the scenery is beautiful, there are one of the twelve scenic spots of Ledu County nearby, "Yaotai Clear Spring" and "Nanshan Snow", which adds a bit of seclusion and beauty to Qutan Temple. Search Topic Full Time Challenge in January

Related Pages