Pictures and Texts/Liu Xintian
This article is published with permission from the author
Wutai Mountain, the holy land of Buddhism, has many ancient temples, among which there is a very special ancient temple, far away from the city. , hidden deep in the wilderness and unknown for more than a thousand years, but it pierced the night sky like a bolt of lightning eighty-three years ago and is still shining brightly today.
This is the most glorious monument of ancient Chinese architecture, the "Mecca" in the hearts of all those who study and love ancient architecture, the oldest and most typical civil architecture in China, built in Mount Wutai in the Tang Dynasty. Fo Guang Temple"!
The Tang Dynasty was the most glorious era in history, and its palaces, Buddhist temples and other buildings reached the pinnacle of Chinese architectural history. However, ancient Chinese buildings mostly used wood that is not durable, and they are lost over time. It would be a miracle to survive today.
The people who discovered this miracle were the famous couple Liang Sicheng and Lin Huiyin during the Republic of China. "The gentleman on the beam, the beauty on the forest floor", this talented couple left us many good stories, and the discovery of Foguang Temple is the most exciting part.
Eighty-three years ago, in the summer of 1937, Liang Lin and his party braved the scorching heat and rode donkeys and mules back into Mount Wutai to pursue the dream of "Tang Gou" that had lingered in their hearts for a long time. Previously, they had been searching for it on the land of China for three years, but still to no avail.
In fact, earlier, Japanese scholars had conducted a larger survey of ancient buildings in China, claiming that there was not a single civil structure in China that was more than a thousand years old. If you want to appreciate the Tang-style wooden structure Style can only be found in Japan.
However, during this trip to Wutai, Liang Lin still felt that there was a glimmer of hope. It turned out that they saw a newly published picture album of Dunhuang. In a mural depicting Mount Wutai in the Tang Dynasty, the "Temple of Light of the Great Buddha" stood out.
They had learned before that there was indeed a remote ancient temple called "Foguang Temple" in Doucun, a hundred miles southwest of Mount Wutai. At that critical moment when war was about to come, in order to solve the grand dream of "Tang Gou", he was fearless and went resolutely. Unexpectedly, once this happened, it would be like the sky falling apart, and a high peak rising in the hinterland of China.
Two days before the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War (July 5, 1937), the mystery of the origin of China’s oldest existing wooden building was revealed by Liang Lin and his wife. Built in the "Eleventh Year of Dazhong" (857) by Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, the East Hall with the original style of the Tang Dynasty was unveiled and emerged from the sky. It has since been known as the "Parthenon" of the East.
Eighty-three years after the discovery of Foguang Temple, we also followed the footsteps of the master and came to Foguang Temple. Foguang Temple is still like a hermit living in isolation, avoiding the hustle and bustle of the world and hiding in the mountains and forests.
Foguang Temple faces east and west, entering through the mountain gate on the west side. The three-entry courtyard in the form of steps rises upward layer by layer to the east. The platform is so high and the ancient trees in the courtyard are so tall that you cannot see the famous East Hall when you first enter.
When you first enter the courtyard, on the left is the side hall Wenshu Hall, which was built in the 15th year of Jin Tianhui (1137). Wutai Mountain is the dojo of Manjushri Bodhisattva. It is common to worship Manjushri Bodhisattva in temples, but this Manjushri Hall is unusual. It is the largest auxiliary hall among Buddhist temples in China.
The Manjusri Hall is seven rooms wide (the same width as the main hall) and four rooms deep. The space is extremely spacious. Only four pillars were used in the originally huge interior (thin pillars were added in later generations). According to reports, this hall is an isolated example of the "column reduction method" of a special architectural structure during the Song and Jin Dynasties. Fans of ancient architecture must study it carefully.
In the middle of the courtyard, there is a stone scripture building about 5 meters high. It stands gracefully and elegantly. Its base and eaves are carved with lotus patterns and images of musicians. Fu four years" (877).
This stone building from the Tang Dynasty looks a bit familiar. It turns out that I had seen a photo of Lin Huiyin working at Foguang Temple before. In the black and white photo, Lin Huiyin was standing on a ladder measuring the stone building.
I am not a devout Buddhist and I don’t understand architecture. I came to Fo Guang Temple to see the national treasure, but rather to follow the footsteps of the masters, feel their love for the national treasure, and understand their responsibility for Chinese culture.
Climbing up the steps of the arch, the moment your head is above the ground, a magnificent palace suddenly jumps into view.
At this glance, it is a thousand years, and the indescribable momentum of the Tang Dynasty 1163 years ago is rushing towards your face, just like Li Du's poems, although they are long ago, they make your heart rumble.
The main hall of Foguang Temple was the oldest and largest wooden building in the Tang Dynasty (now ranked second, 78 years later than the Nanchan Temple in Wutai Mountain discovered after liberation). It is tall and neat, with a single-eaves verandah-style roof. , seven bays wide, five bays in the middle with panel doors, all of which can be opened and closed, and mullioned windows in the two outer bays.
There is another Tang Dynasty stone scripture building at the entrance of the main hall, with beautiful outline and antique flavor. The total height of the building is 3.2 meters, with a girdle hexagonal base engraved with lions and beasts and overturned lotus petals. The body of the building is engraved with the Dharani Sutra, and the end of the building is engraved with the year number "Dazhong Eleventh Year".
No matter who you are, you will be shocked by the complicated, gorgeous and majestic brackets at first sight. The layers are taller than a person, and the eaves project out nearly four meters. They are much taller than the Forbidden City, the largest building in ancient times. The eaves and corners of the Harmony Hall will be nearly one meter longer. The huge brackets support the thousands of years of bones and history of Foguang Temple with a steady and solid posture.
The sun shines through the dust and shines into the temple. The Buddha is still as bright as yesterday and as peaceful as before. With plump cheeks, curved eyebrows, and straight lips, he is kind and quiet. He looks down at the world and has focused on it for thousands of years, always listening to the thoughts of all living beings. (Faces are covered by iron bars, Buddha forgives sins)
More than 30 Bodhisattvas and Vajra statues have smooth lines, plump bodies, smooth and delicate skin, and gently flowing clothing patterns. According to research, all the statues are the same age as the main hall, so they have an elegant and graceful Tang Dynasty style.
Following the guide’s guidance, I looked up at the faint ink marks on the roof beams of the dark hall, and listened to the legend of Lin Huiyin, a talented woman from a generation who, with divine help, discovered the life experience of a “national treasure” eighty-three years ago. story.
Lin Huiyin, who was farsighted at that time, looked up and found a row of blurry writing under the beam of the main hall, so he quickly built scaffolding and climbed up the beam. After brushing away the thousands of years of dust, I could see the words "The Lord of the Buddha Hall, Shangdu, sent it to the female disciple Ning Gongyu".
Lin Huiyin was a litterateur. During the survey and survey, Mr. Lin did all the text-related work such as reading the inscriptions himself. Seeing these writings, she was shocked, and she immediately remembered that the same words were engraved on the stone scripture building in front of the door. A comparison of the two sides reveals the truth.
We also deliberately returned to the stone scripture building outside the temple to find the engraved fields such as "Ning Gongyu" and "The Eleventh Year of Dazhong in the Tang Dynasty". These words and the Tang Dynasty inscriptions under the beams in the hall (listing the names of the benefactors who built the temple) are mutually supportive, becoming ironclad evidence of the dating of the hall eighty-three years ago.
Lin Huiyin’s shocking glimpse completely revealed the past and present life of Foguang Temple: Foguang Temple was built during the period of Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty (471-499). By the Tang Dynasty, it had become a world-famous " One of the "Top Ten Temples", the murals of the Dunhuang Caves depict the scenic spots at that time.
But 200 years later, in the fifth year of Huichang (845), Emperor Wuzong of the Tang Dynasty carried out a large-scale extermination of Buddhism, and the temple was completely destroyed except for a brick pagoda. Only 12 years later, Ning Gongyu, a female disciple from Kyoto, donated huge sums of money for reconstruction. The East Main Hall we see today is a relic of this reconstruction (857).
Today's Foguang Temple is almost the same as what Liang Lin saw 83 years ago. It has not changed much from when it was completed 1163 years ago. The surrounding environment has hardly changed. This is amidst the turmoil. It is a unique miracle on the land of China.
On the far right side of the Buddhist altar in the main hall, behind the tall and mighty Vajra, there is an inconspicuous statue of a woman from the Tang Dynasty, hidden in a corner of the Buddhist altar, sitting cross-legged in meditation, concentrating on the Buddha and accepting worship from everyone. , according to research, she is the life-size statue of Ning Gongyu, the benefactor of the main hall (photos are prohibited, photos are available online).
When he left Foguang Temple after the inspection, Lin Huiyin said to Liang Sicheng: "I really want to build a statue for myself, so that I can always accompany this pious lady of the Tang Dynasty and cross her legs here. Sit for a thousand years.”
The meritorious master of the East Main Hall is a woman, and her discoverer is also a woman. Is it destined in the previous life? ! Because of Ning Gongyu's good deeds, Foguang Temple was able to be rebuilt on the ruins. Because of Liang Lin's discovery, it was able to regain its glory a thousand years later. Foguang Temple is lucky!
Thousands of years of scenery, thousands of feelings. Whether you look at it as a whole or think about it in part, you can feel the aura of the Tang Dynasty flowing through it that originated thousands of years ago.
Behind the gate, there are many "graffiti" left by Tang people who visited Foguang Temple thousands of years ago, such as "I visited here in #年#月". It is because of these writings that we can infer that the main entrance of the East Hall is It has never been replaced since it was built and is an original piece from the Tang Dynasty.
Foguang Temple holds many firsts in China's architectural history, one of which is having the oldest wooden door in China. Over the course of thousands of years, how much wind, frost, rain and snow have been blocked by these two door panels!
Buddhist temples in the Tang Dynasty had the custom of painting murals in the temples. After thousands of years, only a few pieces remain. The technique and style of these paintings are exactly the same as the Tang Dynasty murals in Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, except that the white lead powder has turned into black, and the colors have lost their gorgeousness, but they have more ancient charm.
At the rear left of the East Hall, there is also an ancestral tower. Its decorative style has a clear Northern Dynasty temperament, especially the decoration of the door ticket that looks like flames and lotus petals. Mr. Liang first noticed it. .
Based on the shapes drawn in Dunhuang murals, Mr. Liang inferred that this pagoda should have been built in the Northern Wei Dynasty. It was the only building left when Foguang Temple was destroyed in Huichang in the fifth year of the Tang Dynasty. It is also the only remaining building in the country. One of the two ancient pagodas of the Northern Wei Dynasty, it is extremely precious.
This is a large bell cast during the Yongle period of the Ming Dynasty. The architectural relics of Foguang Temple span 9 dynasties, including the Northern Wei, Northern Qi, Tang, Song, Jin, Yuan, Ming, Qing, and the Republic of China. Its chronological span is so large that it deserves to be ranked first among ancient Chinese buildings.
"This is the only Tang Dynasty wooden structure we have encountered in these years. There are dozens of Tang sculptures of Bodhisattvas in the hall, there are Tang Dynasty inscriptions under the beams, and there are Tang Dynasty murals on the wall. One of these four is considered unique, and the four arts gathered in one hall are truly the first national treasures of our country!" Liang Sicheng, the discoverer of Foguang Temple, expressed his sincere admiration!
I followed the eyes of the two discoverers to once again look at this rare treasure in front of me, feeling the charm of the Tang Dynasty that has accumulated over thousands of years of history. The structure that seems too simple is actually the broad mind of the Tang Dynasty. , a symbol of grandeur and pride.
In Foguang Temple, Liang Sicheng's awkward footsteps and Lin Huiyin's thin figure kept swaying in front of my eyes, and I couldn't help but respect them. Inside and outside the palace door, the light and shadow fluctuated, as if time was flowing. I leaned in the shadow behind the door and was speechless, just feeling the passing of time in my heart.
No matter which angle I stand on, I always feel that Liang Lin stood here meditating and looking out eighty-three years ago. Wandering in Foguang Temple, I always feel that every corner is connected to the past and the future, and I am walking in the tunnel of time.
I traveled hundreds of kilometers to visit an ancient temple that survived in the wilderness. Although I only saw a lonely figure, what I felt was a prosperous age in a dream, and I was traveling through the clouds of history to bring uniqueness. The magnanimity and magnanimity.
Crossing time and space, traveling through ancient and modern times, meeting national treasures and remembering masters, this is a reunion with ancestral civilization, a pursuit of historical memories, and the most precious experience in my life.