Longquan Monastery in Beijing

Longquan Monastery in Beijing

Longquan Monastery is famous for its sangha body. Currently, there are hundreds of monks. Many of them have very high education degree from top universities in China. Longquan Monastery is also notable for creating the robot and chatbot Robot Monk Xian'er.
English Name: Longquan Monastery in Beijing
Chinese Name: 北京龙泉寺
Opening Hours: 6:00AM – 6:00PM
Ticket Price: 25 Yuan (Adults) 15 Yuan (Students)
Best Time: All year around
Recommended Visiting Hours: 1 or 2 hours
Location:No.27 Fenghuang Ling Road, Haidian District, Beijing

 

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Longquan Monastery

Longquan Monastery龙泉寺, also called Longquan Temple or Beijing Longquan Monastery is a Chinese Buddhist monastery located in the suburban area of Beijing, China. It was originally established in Liao dynasty and recently revived starting from 2014 by Master Xuecheng.

Why is Longquan Monastery So Special

Longquan Monastery is famous for its sangha body. Currently, there are hundreds of monks. Many of them have very high education degree from top universities in China. Longquan Monastery is also notable for creating the robot and chatbot Robot Monk Xian’er.

Introduction of Longquan Monastery

History

Longquan Monastery is located at the foot of the Phoenix mountain range in the westernmost portion of Beijing’s Haidian District. Founded in the Liao Dynasty (907–1125), this generations-old monastery brims with an air of modernization. On April 11, 2005, the monastery formally opened itself up to the outside and Ven. Master Xuecheng, the current president of the Buddhist Association of China, was appointed abbot.

Since opening, Beijing’s Longquan Monastery has devoted itself to developing new channels, methods, and means of combining Buddhist traditions with modern culture. This includes making its values integrated and useful to mainstream society and promoting traditional Chinese culture across the world.

“Relying on precepts to guard the Sangha, the Sangha to guard the lay community, and allow cooperation between the two to blossom” are methods to which the monastery holds fast. It uses them as a means to cultivate talented laypersons and spread the word of Dharma.

Currently, this body – – aimed at propagating Buddhist teachings – is divided into five major departments and three major centers. The five departments are Construction, Culture, Charity, Publicity, and Education. There are also three specialist Centers – Translation, Animation, and Artificial Intelligence & IT. This cooperative division of labor has allowed the monastery to develop various projects, such as the construction of infrastructure, the publishing of books and CD ROMs, charitable contributions to the public, the development of a traditional culture website, the education of lay Buddhists, the translation of Buddhist works, the creation of manga and anime, and the digitization of the monastery’s information networks.

Architecture

Longquan Temple, consisting of three courtyards and some of halls, was rebuilt according to the traditional Chinese style, including Sanhui Hall, Tiangwang Hall, Hengha Hall, and Weilaoye Hall. The most famous hall is Longwang Hall, built in the Qin Dynasty (221 – 207 BC). Entering from the temple gate, tourists can see an ancient stone bridge with 6.5 meters (7 yards) length and 4 meters (4 yards) width in the mid courtyard. The stone bridge is called Golden Dragon Bridge. It’s said that the bridge was built by the first abbot more than 1,000 years ago.
Strolling through the temples, visitors can not only explore these ancient buildings, but also the ancient plants. Two calocedrus, standing at the gate of the temples, are more than 600 years old. Besides, two tall ginkgo trees and two cypresses in the temple are over a thousand years; they are good places to take photos.

Free Lunch and Accommodation Service

Longquan Temple offers free lunch at 11 a.m. every day. Ladies sit on the first floor of the cafeteria and men need to go to the second floor. The vegetarian meal is simple, but delicious. Most of vegetables are grown by monks. No one is allowed to talk or waste food while eating. When you finish, you are supposed to wash your bowls. If you want to stay overnight in the temple, you can go to the Guest Room to apply for a room.

Useful Travel Tips

  • Travel Information
    Opening Hours: 6:00AM – 6:00PM
    Admission: 25 Yuan (Adults) 15 Yuan (Students)
  • Main Sights
    Golden Dragon Bridge, Longwang Hall, Magic Cypress
  • Transportation 
    Take bus No.346 getting off at Fenghuangling Station. Then walk 300 meters where you should arrive at Longquan Temple.
  • Avoid visiting during summer holidays and Golden Week in October.

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Edited by  Lynette Fu/付云锐