Author: Alec Rongtong Donglai
Xingtai Nangong City Putong Temple is located in Beijiucheng Village, western suburbs of Nangong City, Xingtai City, Hebei Province, next to the 801 Township Road, the artificial lake Quying Lake, and is adjacent to the 10,000 mu provincial wetland protection area.
Now, Xingtai Nangong City, Putong Temple has two major areas: new and old temples, with new archways and three main halls; the old temple area was rebuilt by Master Hongchuan after more than ten years of hard work, and is divided into the main hall area and the pagoda courtyard.
"Putong", the two words originated from the explanation of the Buddhist scripture "The Lotus Sutra, the Crown and Secret Book of the Universal Door of Guanyin Bodhisattva": "The universal meaning is to take Zhou Pu as the meaning." Buddhism " savior " refers to great compassion and salvation of all sentient beings. "Tong" is red. Hours during the Eastern Han Dynasty, the palace where the Empress lived was painted red, called "Tongting". Because the Bodhisattvas were enshrined in the Putong Temple, and the body and temple were red in color, the character "Tong" was taken. So take "Pongta ".
In the early years of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Buddhism came to the east, and the first batch of eminent monks who approved the Dharma, Shemoteng and Zhu Falan personally presided over the construction of Putong Temple and Putong Pagoda in Nangong , becoming the first Buddhist temple and pagoda in China. Nangong has thus become the birthplace of the Central Plains Buddhist culture, and the Buddhist holy land in the minds of the Buddhist community and the majority of believers. Many people know that the first temple in China is White Horse Temple . In the 11th year of Yongping of Emperor Ming of the Eastern Han Dynasty (68 AD), Emperor Ming of the Han Dynasty ordered a monk's temple to be built outside Yongmen in Luoyang. In order to remember the merits of carrying the scriptures of the White Horse, it was named White Horse Temple. Putong Temple is earlier than White Horse Temple. Putong Temple is the first temple in the true sense, and White Horse Temple is the first temple built by the emperor.
In the 14th year of Chenghua in the Ming Dynasty (1487 AD), the ancient city was flooded, and the old temple was destroyed, leaving only the Putong Pagoda. The Putong Pagoda was founded in the tenth year of Yongping in the Eastern Han Dynasty (67 AD) and has a history of 1955 years. It is an early pagoda created in our country. According to the inscription of the rebuilding of the Putong Temple Pagoda in the 12th year of Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty (1886 AD), it was rebuilding in the fourth year of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty (630 AD), and was rebuilt again during the Jiajing period of the Ming Dynasty. )
In August 1984, Master Hongchuan, a well-known figure in the Chinese Buddhist community, broke through various obstacles and resolutely flew from Taiwan through Hong Kong to the mainland of the motherland. He was praised by Zhao Puchu, the former vice chairman of the CPPCC and chairman of the Chinese Buddhist Association, as "China's No. 1 patriotic monk." After the reform and opening up , people's enthusiasm for respecting and respecting Buddha was fully released. In 1992, Master Hongchuan began the difficult preparations. After more than a year of preparation, the foundation was laid in November 1993, and the Putong Temple completion and Buddha statue consecration ceremony were grandly held on September 26, 1996.
The main hall area of the old temple area has two rooms, namely the east mountain gate facing west and the north and south, namely the Heavenly King Hall, the Guanyin Hall, the Main Hall, and the East-West side hall (there are Yanshou Hall and the Fayan Hall in the east; the Zushi Hall and the Jon Hall in the west), as well as Dharma Hall, Chai Hall, living hall, ward room, legal circulation office, etc. The tower courtyard is on the west side of the main hall area.
Enter on the left side of the Heavenly King Hall. On the left side of the ear door is the kitchen and the dining hall
behind the Heavenly King Hall is the Guanyin Hall
On the right side of the Guanyin Hall, there is the Dharma Hall and the ward room
behind the Guanyin Hall is the Main Hall
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East-seating room has a living room, a dining hall and a wardrobe
Putong Tower in Putong Temple is now a key cultural relic in Hebei Province. In the west courtyard of Putong Temple, there is a nine-level solid dense-eave brick tower with an octagonal pavilion. The tower is 33 meters high, and the tower's Sumeru mount is five meters high, and there is a hole to the center of the tower. There is a brick well under the center of the tower. There are three stone Buddhas on the east, west and north sides of the brick well. This is a rare way to create Buddha niche and . The Buddha's niche is dedicated to 44 Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and worshippers.
Putong Tower is equipped with a bracket under each eaves. The eighth floor arch is not arched on the head, but a mountain bucket is placed to support the eaves of the tower, so that each side is slightly arc-shaped and the two corners are raised, with a unique shape. The tower body decreases from bottom to top, with a soft outline and a beautiful structure.Although this tower has been built throughout the ages, it basically maintains its original appearance and provides valuable information for the study of early brick towers in my country.
The first and second floors of the Putong Pagoda are provided with blind windows on the east and west sides, Buddha niches are provided with north and south sides, and Buddha niches are provided with above five floors and four sides. The "Lotus Drilling Head-Style" gourd-shaped iron tower brake has four sections, which penetrate directly into the clouds. There are corner beams at each corner of each floor of the tower, and corner bells are hung. The wind blows the bells, which are crisp and pleasant. Especially when it is late at night, you can hear it for miles away. Being in it makes people feel solemn and sacred.
In the long years of wind and rain erosion, the Putong Tower has been rebuilt and repaired by various dynasties such as Wei (Three Kingdoms), Tang, and Song dynasties. During the 15th year of Jiajing in the Ming Dynasty, a lot of funds were raised, and the construction scale was relatively large, and the maintenance was newly completed according to the architectural style of the Ming Dynasty. During the Xingtai earthquake in 1966, three bronze Buddhas were shaken off at the top of the tower, all of which were red copper statues of Bodhisattvas. The larger one was Guanyin Bodhisattva , 41 cm high and weighed 8.25 kilograms. Guanyin Bodhisattva sat peacefully on the cliff of " Sea and Sky Buddha Kingdom " (the small island of Putuo Mountain in the East China Sea), wearing Buddhist beads, holding Buddhist scriptures, chanting mantras, one foot stepped on the lotus on the shore, and one foot stretched towards the sea water. The floating lotus in the water carried it. The sea water rolled, and sea animals such as sea horses, conchs, swimming fish, and other objects, as well as Buddhist scriptures, ingots and other objects. The solemn image of Guanyin Bodhisattva is vivid. The inscription is engraved on the back: "On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month of the fifteenth year of Yongping, Moteng Zhufalan was built, and rebuilt on the fifth day of the first lunar month of the fourth year of Taihe, and rebuilt on the fifteenth day of the sea monk Jiajing Jia5Jia…"
