2024 Spiritual Retreat: Futo Temple

2024 Spiritual Retreat: Futo Temple, made famous by Wang Anshi Where in Hangzhou can you find traces of Wang Anshi? The answer is a thousand-year-old temple in Hangzhou, a quiet and Zen-like place, a great place for spiritual cultivation in 2024, and it is related to Wang Anshi! During the Northern Song Dynasty, Wang Anshi passed through Hangzhou on his way to Nanjing. When he was about to reach Dusong Pass, he heard from the locals that there was a hundred-year-old temple nearby called Futo Temple. So, he asked someone to show him the way and went to Futo Temple. After arriving at the temple, he deeply felt the long-lasting Buddhist charm here and his own experience, and wrote a poem: "The ancient temple is half ruined, and the tourists have broken shoes for years. It is still the old hall of the former beam, the dust is dim, the golden statue is dim, and the monument is dim." Since then, he has also left a footprint for future generations to remember. Gradually, this famous temple has gradually become known to people! Next, let me introduce in detail this thousand-year-old temple in Hangzhou that was made famous by Wang Anshi. Futo Temple, also known as Baolong Temple and Baoyan Courtyard, is named Futo Temple because it is surrounded by mountains on all sides, like a pot holder, and the middle is a depression like a pot. Looking through history, we can find that Futo Temple was founded by Monk Juehai in the second year of Liang Qianhua (912), and was initially named Baoyan Courtyard. In the second year of Song Zhiping (1065), it was renamed Baolong Temple. It was rebuilt in the early Ming Dynasty and renamed Futo Temple. In the twelfth year of Qing Shunzhi (1655), it was rebuilt and renamed Baolong Temple. In modern times, Futo Temple has gradually become a well-known Buddhist holy land relying on the mountains and rivers and the quiet scenery, and has produced the highlights of "Ten Miles of Bamboo Sea, Hundred Feet of Cloud Fir, Thousand-Year-Old Temple, and Ancient Tiaoxi"! After starting to visit the ancient temple, you can feel the deep Zen here for the first time. The ancient and expanded Futo Temple has built many innovative buildings around the Daxiong Hall, such as the Bodhi Bamboo Garden House, the Zen Painting and Calligraphy Academy, the Four Seasons Zen Hall, the Filial Piety Tower, and the Memorial Hall of the former site of the New Fourth Army Sanatorium. Walking slowly, the temple can be described as "another village in the dark willows and bright flowers", with small bridges and flowing water, and Jiangnan garden landscape. The small bridge and flowing water, the winding mountain road, the ancient architecture, and the Buddhist culture undoubtedly make people relax when they come. Whether it is hiking in the bamboo sea for ten miles, breathing fresh air, climbing the steps of the back mountain, or overlooking the whole temple of the ancient temple, it is very comfortable! Moreover, like Jingshan Temple, Futo Temple is also constantly expanding. I believe that after it is completely rebuilt in the next two years, it will be able to restore its original scale and charm! Communicating with fellow tourists, the charm of Futo Temple lies not only in the temple architecture, history, and worship of Buddha, but also in spiritual cultivation. It is a good place for spiritual cultivation in 2024! Hangzhou Futo Temple Bodhi Bamboo Garden