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Typical Chinese Monastery

From Tibetan Buddhist Encyclopedia
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e Chinese Buddhist monastery or temple is fashioned after the palaces and bears very little resemblance to that of temples in India or any other Buddhist countries. Generally there are three groups of buildings separated by courtyards. e monastery, like other Chinese structures, normally faces south. Entering the front hall, one is confronted by four huge images, usually made of wood, two on each side. ese are the Four Heavenly Kings or Devas, the Guardians of the four Directions, and the hall is named after them as the ‘S T W T’. In this hall too, one is greeted at the entrance, by the lovable and kindly Buddha-to-be, Maitreya Buddha, known to the Chinese as the ‘Laughing Buddha’ or ‘Ta-pao Mi-Lei-Fwo’, who has a fat paunch, looking joyously towards the entrance. Directly behind Mi-Lei-Fwo, often separated by a wall, is the great Deva Weito, the Protector of Buddhist temples and Faith. He is depicted clad in full armour and holding either a gnarled staff or a sceptreshaped weapon of assault resting on the ground. Wei-To, who is a general under the Four Heavenly Kings, is also accorded the title of ‘Protector of Buddhist Books’. He is always facing the Great Hall known as the ‘T-H-P-T’ which is separated from the front hall by a wall or a courtyard. In the Great Hall the main altar is found along with the images of Sakyamuni Buddha and his two foremost disciples Maha kasyapa and Ananda, or other Buddhas of the past eras. e arrangement and choice of personages in this altar varies from temple to temple. Most of the time Sakyamuni Buddha is depicted in the attitude of contemplation with his disciples flanking him. Temples dedicated to Amitabha Buddha have his image at the centre, Sakyamuni Buddha and Bahaisajyaguru, better known to the Chinese as ‘Yao-Shih-Fwo’, each accompanied by two disciples. To the right and left of the main altar one usually finds the two Great Bodhisattvas, Manjusri (Wen-Shu-ShihLi) and Samantabhadra (Pu-Hsien). e placements of personages are not really fixed so that one may often find Sakyamuni Buddha being flanked by Amitabha (O-Mi Two-Fwo) and YaoShin-Fwo (Medicine Buddha), the two great Buddhas of past eras. At other times a single Buddha is seen seated between his two Bodhisattvas, Sakyamuni (Shih Jia-Mo-Ni-Fwo) between Manjusri and Samantabhadra or Amitabha Buddha with Avalokitesvara (Kuan Yin) and Mahasthamaprata (Ta-Shih-Chih). Temples dedicated to Kuan Shih Yin P’usa will have her flanked by Wen-shu-Shih-Li and P’u-Hsien. On the east and west sides of the walls of this Great Hall are often arranged the figures of the Eighteen Arhats (Lohans) who are represented as possessing various kinds of supernatural power. Along the north wall are often found the images of Janteng Fwo or Dipankara, the ancient Buddha who predicted Sakyamuni’s Buddhahood, and the popular Bodhisattvas such as Kuan Yin, Wen-shu, Pu-Hsien and Ti-tsang (Ksi-tigarbha), or other Bodhisattvas. Very often, images of Kuan Ti, the Protector of Buddhism, can also be found in this hall. It is here at the Ta-Hung-Pau-Tien that devout Buddhists offer their prayers and offerings of flowers, fruits and other gifts which are placed on the table in front of the main altar. Very often, behind the central images of this hall and facing northwards, is placed the images of Kuan Yin P’usa. e third, or Back Hall, at the back is usually divided into several smaller halls (Tien) or rooms. e central hall is generally the altar of a Buddha or a Bodhisattva, the right housing the funerary tablet of the temple founder, while the left may be the Teaching or Meditation Hall. On the side or behind these main buildings are the living quarters, the dining area and the kitchen.