When I was in China a couple of years ago, the intention was to visit historical and religious significant places, like Xian (the Terracotta Army) and the city of Louyang. We made this city our base for exploring 4 temples in and around the city. We had to divide these visits over two days – two temple complexes per day. On our second day we were visiting this temple a short drive from the center of Luoyang. White Horse Temple is one out of many ancient temples you will find in this city. You can spend hours walking among the beautiful architecture, pagodas and halls that are filled with Buddha statues. Despite it’s long history, it is still intact.
It all started in the year 64 AD, when the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty desided to sent a small group of men to the western regions. He wanted them to collect Buddhist sutras and bring them back to Louyang. These men returned three yeas later with not only the sutras, but also with two Indian Buddhist monks.This was the first time Buddhism was seen in China. The Emperor was very happy to get the sutras. They were carried on a white horse and when the Emperor desided to built a temple, it was named The White Horse Temple. During the time when the temple was built, the two Indian monks spent their time translateing the sutras to Chinese. This led to an interest for the temple. Eventually the temple became a centre for Buddism. This is why the temple is believed to be the «Cradle of Buddism in China».
The Mountain Gate
Even though the temple is more than 1900 years old, it looks very much intact. But I read that it has
undergone restorations several times. But even some or maybe most of the buildings aren’t the original ones, they have been kept in the original style.
The whole complex is spread over a larger area and can be divided into three distinct areas. The first place we started after crossing the stone bridge, was at The Main Temple. This is huge, containing five halls and courtyard.
Tomb of Kasyapamatanga
Kasyapamatanga was one of the Indian Buddhist monks who came to Louyang and introduced Buddhism to China. The White Horse Temple did influence outside the borders of China. After it was constructed, Buddism spread to South-east Asia, Japan and Korea. Later it did spread to Europe and America as well.
The next area we went to was an area where you will find temples from different countries, like Myanmar, India and Thailand. These are also Buddist temples /buildings and even they are so different in styles from the ancient Chinese architecture, it will be a good idea to go there too. Because I have allready been to all of these three countries, the distinctive featrures made them easy recognizable for me.
The temple from Thailand consists of several buildings after entering through the gate.One of the first sculptures you encounter is this huge elephant.
Next to the Thai temple, you will find the Burmese temple. If you have seen the Shwedagon Temple in Yangon, you will see that is temple is built in a shape that resembles this important temple in Myanmar.
Then there is the India Temple that is modeled after the Sanchi Stupa. A famous Buddhist complex known for its Great Stupa.
Thailand, Myanmar and India built these temples in the 20th century. This makes White Horse Temple the only temple in the world with both Chinese, Thai, Burmese and Indian Buddhist architectures.
Last, but not least, The Qiyun Pagoda. It’s situated in a corner of the whole complex that felt much more quiet and peacefull than the area around the main temple. On our way to the pagoda we pass the pool and a statue of a white horse. This place was green and very inviting.
The whole complex is only a short way from the Main Temple. Beside the pagoda, there are halls and ancient buildings. There are also still nuns here. We met a few ( the ones on the photos dressed in a grey outfit). Some were doing gardening, others were just walking around the area.
The pagoda itself consists of this ancient tower, built of bricks and wood in 69 AD. It has been rebuilt and restored several hundreds of years later. In the area around Louyang, this pagoda is considered the eartliest, when it comes to existing ancient buildings. The name «Qiyun» means ‘approaching clouds’. It might be because of its hight. It does look like it's reaching for the clouds.
To me, the White Horse Temple is one of the most beautiful I visited in Louyang. I really enjoyed the beauty and the tranquility.
Sources:
Information on site and
https://www.chinadiscovery.com/henan/luoyang/white-horse-temple.html
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