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Guangren Lama Temple

Introducing Guangren Lama Temple
Guangren Lama Temple, located in the north-west City Wall of Xi'an, is the only Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Shaanxi Province. Built in 1705 when the Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) patrolled to Shaanxi, this temple was a Xanadu for the Grand Lama of the Northwest and Tibet when he passed through Shaanxi along the road to Beijing to meet with the king. It is a witness to Tibetan and Han nationality's cultural communication and national solidification. The temple was first rebuilt in 1952. After that, the main architecture in the temple, including the Mahavira Hall, the Sutras Keeping Hall and the Bodhisattva Hall among others, were brand new. In 1983, it was cited as a National Key Buddhist Monastery in the Han nationality region by the State Council. Guangren Lame Temple was underwent extensive repairs again in 2006 and expanded to the large scale that it is at present.

Guangren Lama Temple Fast Facts
• Chinese Name: Xian Guangrensi 西安广仁寺
• Best Time to Visit: All year around
• Recommended Visiting Hours: About 1 to 2 hours
• Things to Do: Photography, Tibetan Buddhism study
• Opening Hours: 08:00-18:00
• Entrance Fee: ¥20/person
• Address: No. 152, Northwest First Road, Lianhu District, Xian, Shaanxi Province

What to expect at Guangren Lama Temple
The whole temple covers an area of 2.6 acres. When you go into the temple, the main architectural features fall into place from south to north as follows: the Mountain Gate, the Devajara Hall, the Mahavira Hall, the One Thousand Buddha Halls and the Sutra Keeping Hall, while on both sides there are flanking halls, wing-rooms and cross-yards.

The Mountain Gate
The original Mountain Gate had already been destroyed before the rebuild. Carved with beams and beautiful paintings, the new gate looks magnificent. As the entrance door is closed, visitors should enter the temple from the small eastern wicket. Inside the Mountain Gate, there is a Zhao Bi (a stone wall) engraved with the embossments of Buddha and the eighteen arhats. It is a grandiose brick-carved piece of architecture. Round across the Zhao Bi, you will see a tall hexagonal pavilion with an imperial stele of 'The Guangren Lama Temple Stele Erected under the Imperial Order' written by Emperor Kangxi who erected it. There are wells with stone rails on both sides of the stele.

The Devajara Hall & the Mahavira Hall
Go out of the pavilion and you will come to the Devajara Hall in which a statue of Thousand-Hand Avalokitesvara on the lotus throne (the supreme one in Shaanxi Province) was placed there after the rebuild. It shimmers from gilding all over the body. The hall is surrounded by a lot of gilded rotational sutra barrels outside. At the back of the Devajara Hall, there is a courtyard in which lies an Eight Diagrams. It can be infused with 54 kilograms of kerosene at a time so that it is lit day and night. Thus it is called 'Ten Thousand Year Lamp'. Then you will see Mahavira Hall behind the lighthouse. Three Buddha statues are worshipped in the Mahavira Hall the Green Tara statue stands in the middle. On its left is the statue of Manjusri and on its right is the statue of Samantabhadra. It is said that all of them were passed down from Tang Dynasty.

One Thousand Buddha Halls & the Sutra Keeping Hall
Continue to the rear part of the temple, you will find the One Thousand Buddhas Hall which was built in 2006. The statue of the Tsong Khapa who founded Gelugpa (a sect of Tibetan Buddhism) is worshipped here. In front of this hall, there is a marble lotus which came down from the Emperor Qianlong period in the Qing Dynasty. Then the Sutras Keeping Hall will come into view when you go out of the One Thousand Buddhas Hall. The reproduction statue of the 12-year-old Buddha Sakyamuni is bestowed in the middle while the statue of Prince Wencheng (a prince who was ordered to marry a minority chieftain in Tang Dynasty) is on the left. There are many precious sutras in Sutras Keeping Hall, especially the Qing version of 'Tibetan Ganzhuer Sutra' in 108 volumes and the Ming versions of 'The Heart of Prajna Paraminta Sutra' in 6,600 volumes. There are flanking halls and wing-rooms on both sides of the Mahavira Hall and the Sutras Keeping Hall. The statues of Sykyamuni, Pharma-kaya and medicine's three seniors (three very important medicine men) lie in the east flanking hall while the four-arm Avalokitesvara, Maitreya Buddha and Saghirima are worshipped in the west flanking hall.

How to get to Guangren Lama Temple

By Bus
Take bus No. 509, 703 and get off at Guangrensi Station. Walk towards north for around 300 meters to get the temple.

By Metro
Take Metro Line 1 and get off at Yuxiangmen Station (Exit D). Walk east along Lianhu Road for around three minutes and then turn north to the Lianmeng Alley, and walk for around 5 minutes to get the temple.

Additional travel advice on Guangren Lama Temple
• Do not speak loudly in the temple.
• Please dress appropriately in the temple.

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