The first Kaiyuan Temple was built in 738 AD in the 26th year of the reign of Emperor Xuanzong. So the site is about 1,200 years old. The complex has been redesigned or reconstructed ten times since then. The present building that is made of wood and stone is about 200 years old. It looks similar to the Todai-ji Buddhist Temple in Nara, Japan. The present temple building is made of wood and stone. The framework has tenons that lock into each other and brackets that help to support the weight of the building. The top of the temple is decorated with glazed tile. The building looks run-down. The temple is important for Buddhist scholarship in China because a complete set of Buddhist scriptures is housed there. After a thousand years of wars and natural calamities like typhoons, the Kaiyuan Temple has ancient Tang Dynasty and Song Dynasty architectural styles, and artifacts from dynasties as far back as the Tang Dynasty are housed there.
It is large-scale, solemn and magnificent. Originally covering 100mu (now 20.3mu, about 13516 Square meters). It is a relatively complete palace quadrangle architectural complex of the Tang dynasty. There is the stone inscription Buddhist Heaven and Incense World on the wall outside of the temple. Inside of the temple there are four courtyards, the first one is Jingang Hall, the second one is Tianwang Hall and the third one is the main part, Daxiongbaodian Hall and the last one is the Cangjinglou where Confucian classics are stored. The east and west corridors are over 60 meters vertically, where Guanyin Pavilion, Liuzu Hall, Dicang Attic and Abbots Room were built.
Kaiyuan Temple is unsophisticated and tasteful, filling with the workers intelligence. In 1980, after large-scale rebuilding, the ancient temple shined dazzlingly again. Every day, there are uncountable tourists at home and abroad coming to worship and visit.
In 1987, the State Bureau of Cultural Relics and State Bureau of Publication granted approval to publish the Dragon Store. In order to find a complete version of the Dragon Store, people exerted a lot of effort and found a complete copy there. In the 1700s, Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty had ordered a part of the scriptures in the Dragon Store copies destroyed as well as other religious books.
Special Characteristic
The Kaiyuan Temple is Chaozhou s biggest ancient temple complex. It is the biggest temple complex in the area.
Location
The Kaiyuan Temple is at 32 Kaiyuan Road in Chaozhou
Transportation
Passengers can take Bus No. 3 to go there.
