Pu Tuo Shan
(By Tsem Rinpoche)
[Source listed below]
About Pu Tuo Shan
Pu Tuo Shan, also known as Mount Putuo is located on an island southeast of Shanghai, in the Zhoushan prefecture of Zhejiang province in China. Pu Tuo Shan is believed to be the bodhimanda (place of awakening) of Avalokitesvara, more familiarly known as Guan Yin in China. Due to this believe, Pu Tuo Shan gained its place as one of the five holy mountains in Buddhism and flocks of pilgrims visit this place all year round to get blessings.
During the Tang Dynasty, Pu Tuo Shan became the center of Chinese Buddhism solely for Guan Yin, while the silk road was being constructed and developed. Ever since then, Pu Tuo Shan has been the main destination for all Guan Yin worshipers. Guan Yin (or Chenrezig, or Avaloketishvara), resides as the patron Bodhisattva on Mount Putuo.
Pu Tuo Shan consists of many temples and monastic institutes, besides being a place of study for the holy Dharma, it is also a place where many people visit for geological, marine and forestry studies.
Buddhist Practice in Putuo Shan
The monks in the monasteries start their day as early as 3.40 am daily. The sound of wood knocking will be their wake up call, and not long after, the 108 morning bells will start to ring. During this time, the monks will enter the hall to perform sutras and mantras, a session they call “Morning Lesson” which should be done before dawn. During this time, visitors are allowed to join prayers with the monk, however strict orders are given and must be adhered to.
While it is still dark, only the ‘ever-lit lamp’ can be seen shining on the gold-colored Buddha statue. Silence is one of the spiritual discipline practiced during this time. The abbot will lead all of the monks and visitors through the sutra recitation which is done in a rhythmic tone. After the sutra recitation is over, the abbot will light incense and pass them to everyone for them to circumambulate around Lord Buddha. The monks will then continue to recite the sutras from memory while the visitors follow behind the monks with their palms together, holding the incense. After circumambulating the Buddha, all who are present will prostrate to the Buddha again before ending the session. This morning lesson lasts for about one and a half hours and finishes just before sunrise.
The monks at Mount Putuo are served three meals a day. No wastage of food is allowed, and after supper the evening lessons begin. The evening lessons are similar to the one in the morning, however the difference is the sutra recited. These morning and evening lessons are held everyday, and the monks are not allowed to be exempted except when ill or on leave.
These lessons have a deep history behind it. It started from Jin Dynasty (317 – 420), and has been the common practice since the Song Dynasty (960 – 1279). These rituals are the most important duty of the monks, and is also the most important daily religious activity of the temples. When the last drum rolls in the evening, it is time for the monks to call it a day. This routine has been followed exactly the same for the past one thousand years.
Puji Temple
Puji Temple is one of the biggest temples in Pu Tuo Shan, and is located at the west end of the beach. Puji Temple was constructed during the Song Dynasty under Emperor Shen Zong’s reign. It was also repaired and reconstructed during the Qing Dynasty by both Emperor Kangxi and Emperor Yongzheng.
There are a total of 200 structures, including the Hall of Heavenly Kings, Hall of Yuantong, Building of Buddhist Scriptures, Hall of Abbot and many more. The construction is magnificent and large in scale, covering an area of 14,000 square meters! The main building in Puji Temple is the Hall of Yuantong, where a 8.8 meter high bronze statue of Guan Yin is placed. In this hall, both sides of the walls are the 32 reincarnations of Guan Yin. In the main hall also sits a magnificent grand Buddha, flanked by statues of the 18 Mystical Disciples. The temple can hold more than a thousand visitors at the same time.
History
| 916 A.D. | The enshrining of Guan Yin |
| 1080 A.D. | Emperor Shenzong from the Song Dynasty donated lands to the temples, and new monks are ordained yearly. The monks studied Buddhism and the temple slowly prospered. |
| 1214 A.D. | Pu Tuo was designated by the imperial decree to perform Buddhist rites especially enshrining Guan Yin by Emperor Ningzong from the Song Dynasty. |
| 1298 A.D. | The temple was repaired and more land (2.7 km) was given to the temple. |
| 1313 A.D. | Emperor Renzong’s mother made offerings of 868 metal bars and land. |
| 1386 A.D. | Duke Tang ordered the burning of 300 temples on Putuo Shan and moved the large statue of Guan Yin to a temple in the mainland, now known as Qita temple in Ningbo. |
| 1515 A.D. | The Buddhist community began to recover through donations and alms. |
| 1553 A.D. | The Ming government under the Jiajing Emperor moved the monks and destroyed the temples once again. |
| 1572 A.D. | A monk named Zhen Song came to Putuo Shan to help rebuild it to its former glory |
| 1574 A.D. | A monk named Zhen Biao ascended the mountain to locate the old sites that was destroyed 200 years ago despite restrictions. He managed to locate the old temple and rebuild a small monastery but it was destroyed by a military commander, and Zhen Biao and a group of nuns was punished. Four years later, Zhen Biao was made abbot, during this time, he built the Hall of Heavenly Kings. |
| 16th and 17th Century | Japanese pirates and Dutch traders ravaged the island, robbed the population and destroyed the temples. |
| 1929 A.D. | There were 88 small cloisters and 128 hermitages under the direction of the monasteries |
| 1949 A.D. | About two thousand monks and nuns lived on the island, except at pilgrimage times, when six to seven thousand additional monastics would come. During the Cultural Revolution, many of the structures on Putuoshan were further devastated by the Red Guards. Presently the 3 main temples still exist, but the nunneries are diminished to 30 nunneries, including Dacheng, Meifu and Zizhu. Today’s Putuoshan is also a navy base. |
Pu Tuo Shan grounds
1) Fayu Monastery
Entrance fee: RMB 5
Located at the foot of Fodingshan, at the north end of 1000 step Beach.
2) Huiji Monastery
Entrance fee: RMB 5
Transport: Cable car (RMB 40) or Bus (RMB 8) or walk (1 hour climb)
Located near the top of Fodingshan. More active visitors and pilgrims take the concrete steps from near Fayu Temple. It takes about 1 hour to climb the mountain. If your interest is old military installations, turn right soon after the start of the stair ascending up to a smaller set of stone steps. After 10-15 minutes, this continues through a series of anti-ship and anti-aircraft gun emplacements with gunner accommodation and ammunition stowage built into the cliffs. Everything is in very good condition, there is no impediment to access, and looks like the PLA continues to take an interest. Also being off the beaten path, there is a complete absence of other visitors. You can then continue to the summit of Fodingshan on earthen paths, using common sense navigation because nothing is signposted in this area. But is less interesting.
Puji Monastery
Entrance fee: RMB 5
Located at the center of the island, is the most accessible and famous monastery on Putuoshan. Nearby are are hotels, restaurants and various shops. A public ritual is performed by the monks runs from 4:30AM to 7AM. It is crowded at this time, so unless you are interested in the ceremony, it best to visit the temple outside these hours.
Northern Village
Accessible by walking north up the hill from the lower cable car station, past the large new development on the coast (which is on the right). After about 2 km of pathway, at the end of the road, is the start of a footpath that leads through an historic village in various stages of disrepair. While some residents remain, the majority of villagers were re-settled in new dwellings with services back south of the ferry terminal. Continue on via a PLA training area to the northern tip of the island, but staying on the earthen path may be good advice. You have to walk back to the cable car station to exit the area.
Fanyin Cave
It is a place that is accessible from Fayu Monastery by taking a 15 Min. busride. From there you can walk 20 Min. through the forest to the quite Shancai Cave.
Chao Yindong
Cliffs carved with “Chao Yindong” three words, the Department of the Qing Emperor Kangxi handwritten. Here the original legend inscribed “appeared at the” ancient believers Kouqiu Guanyin appeared among those who worship here.
Directions:
By air:
Putuo Shan airport is located on Zhujiajian island, a very short ferry ride to Mount Putuo.
By land:
From Port of Shenjiamen, take a ferry or speed boat to Mount Putuo. It takes 15 minutes to reach.
Alternatively, one can go to Zhujiajian from Shenjiamen by a connecting bridge.
By sea:
From Shanghai (Lucao harbour) to Mount Putuo – 3 hour ride
From Shanghai (Port Wusong) to Mount Putuo – 12 hour ride
From Ningbo (Daxie harbor) to Mount Putuo – 1 hour
From Shenjiamen (Bansendong dock) to Mount Putuo – 15 minutes
Photos of Pu Tuo Shan
Pu Tuo Shan in China
Chinese New Year celebrations
Practitioners burning money for the after-life
Huiji temple’s entrance
The famous rocks at Pu Tuo Shan
Fan Ying Temple entrance
Fanying Cave
Inside Fayu
Fayu Temple Entrance
The endangered species, Pu Tuo Hornbeam
One of the many temples of Pu Tuo Shan
Kuan Yin, full of compassion
Map of Pu Tuo Shan
Puji Temple Entrance
Purple Bamboo Hotel
Pu Tuo Resort
Pu Tuo waterfall
Pu Tuo lake
View from the top
Pu Tuo beach
Sunset at Pu Tuo
Pagoda in the mountains
(Source:
http://www.putuoshan.net/English/Algemeen/history.php
http://www.putuoshan.net/English/Seeings/Puji%20temple.php
http://www.mtputuo.com/Destination/History.html
http://www.mtputuo.com/Thing%20to%20do/Ecological.html
http://www.mtputuo.com/Thing%20to%20do/Religious.html
http://wikitravel.org/en/Mount_Putuo)
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Putuoshan located on an island in the East China Sea, is one of the Four Sacred Mountains of Chinese Buddhism. It is also home to the most famous Guanyin Temple in all of China. There are a number of temples and monasteries on Mount Putuo. It is a tourist site for those in search of rare mountain beauty and tranquil walks among historical and religious relics. Thousands of locals and practitioners visited this beautiful place as it is surrounded by the sea, beautiful scenery, and unique landscape. Legend has it that Guanyin once showed her bodily presence here and left a number of historical sites. The temples and shrines on the island are full of colourful sculptures depicting the deity in her various forms. I haven’t been to this beautiful place , hoping I could oneday.
Thank you Rinpoche for this sharing.
Pu Tuo Shan looks like and exciting place to visit for a pilgrimage trip. Hope i have the merits to visit this place someday. Thank you Rinpoche and blog team for sharing these wonderful place a pictures. 🙏😍
China has an incredible amount of history, Thank you for this interesting sharing of Pu Tuo Shan. I understand this Mount Pu Tuo is renowned for its scenery and as one of the four sacred mountains of Buddhism, which once attracted pilgrims from throughout East Asia.
It will be extremely wonderful to visit Pu Tuo Shan to experience the lovely combination of beaches, mountains, and lush forests, and explore a rich culture in the temples of the island. I enjoyed seeing the beautiful photographs shared.
Mount Putuo is an island southeast of Shanghai, It is a renowned site in Chinese Buddhism, and is considered the bodhimanda of the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara. Putuoshan Mountain is the abode of Guanyin and one of the four sacred Buddhist mountains in China. The island’s scenic beauty meant it was the perfect setting for temples and other religious buildings and later it is known as the ‘Heaven of the Sea and Kingdom of the Buddhists’ to many of the Buddhist. Amazing just the island alone had eighty-two temples and nunneries together with some one hundred and twenty-eight shelters that between them housing 4,000 Buddhist monks and nuns. Even today visitors to the island, one will come across monks in their traditional robes along the many paths. There are many temples dated from the AD’s. The centre of the island is covered with rich green forests where the famous one-thousand-year-old camphor tree and the protected hornbeams are. The sandy shores of the island are also attractive to tourists and this island is famed for having such a beautiful combination of mountain scenery and seascapes.
Thank you Rinpoche for this wonderful sharing.
It is just amazing how many pilgrimage sites China has. Adding the fact that the China does make the effort to maintain all these places and preserve them is just incredible. The photos are just amazing. Thank you Rinpoche for allowing us to have this available on the website.
Thank you for compiling all the information and transforming the information into an easily digestible article. It is very interesting to see that China has such a beautiful cultural Buddhist pilgrimage site. I really want to visit Pu Tuo Shan and any of the other holy mountains of China with Mama. 😉
Thank you for this article. It’s interesting that China has so many Buddhist pilgrimage sites. I hope to visit Wu Tai Shan and Pu Tuo Shan sometime. It’s great to see the photos of the temples and read about the sangha’s daily routines. The monks must be very disciplined and it is good to know that these practices have endured for a thousand years.