The Millennium Ancient Temple Shishi Zen Monastery

The Millennium Ancient Temple Shishi Zen Monastery is located on Daimei Mountain in Haicang District, Xiamen. According to the existing ancient stone inscriptions, it was founded in the second year of the Tang Dynasty's Chuigong era (686 AD), and is one of the ancient temples in southern Fujian that has been around for a thousand years. It has been renovated five times during the Song, Yuan, Ming, Qing, and the Republic of China periods, with the largest scale being during the Ming Dynasty, featuring 'three layers of halls and sixty-four monks' quarters'. Now only the main hall remains, which was built during the Daoguang period and renovated during the Guangxu period. The existing buildings cover a total area of about 5,000 square meters, with the courtyard inside the temple walls measuring 21.8 meters in length, 11.5 meters in width, and 12 meters in depth. The Shishi Zen Monastery faces south and is backed by the northern mountains, where the 'Youcheng Ancient Fortress' and 'Jianshan Ancient Fortress' are relics of Qi Jiguang's resistance against the Wokou pirates during the Ming Dynasty.