Lingyin Temple

Lingyin Temple (simplified Chinese: 灵隐寺; traditional Chinese: 靈隱寺; pinyin: Língyǐn Sì) is a Buddhist temple of the Chan sect located north-west of Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, China. The temple's name is commonly literally translated as Temple of the Soul's Retreat. It is one of the largest and wealthiest Buddhist temples in China, and contains numerous pagodas and Buddhist grottoes.

The monastery is the largest of several temples in the Wulin Mountains (Chinese: 武林山; pinyin: Wǔlínshān), which also features a large number of grottos and religious rock carvings, the most famous of which is the Feilai Feng (飞来峰; literally: "the peak that flew hither").

According to tradition, the monastery was founded in 328 AD during the Eastern Jin dynasty by an Indian monk, named Huili in Chinese. From its inception, Lingyin was a famous monastery in the Jiangnan region. At its peak under the Wuyue Kingdom (907-978), the temple boasted nine multi-story buildings, 18 pavilions, 72 halls, more than 1300 dormitory rooms, inhabited by more than 3000 monks. Many of the rich Buddhist carvings in the Feilai Feng grottos and surrounding mountains also date from this era.

During the later Southern Song dynasty, the monastery was regarded as one of the ten most important temples of the Chan sect in the Jiangnan region. However, its prominence has not saved the temple from marauders. It has been rebuilt no less than sixteen times since then. The current buildings are modern restorations of late Qing buildings. During the Cultural Revolution, the temple and grounds suffered some damage at the hands of Red Guards. However, they escaped large scale destruction partly because of the protection of Premier Zhou Enlai.

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