The Yonghe Tibetan Buddhist Monastery

The Yonghe Tibetan Buddhist Monastery

Palace of Peace and Harmony, also known as The Yonghe Lamasery” or popularly known as the “Lama Temple,” It is the monastery of the Geluk school of Tibetan Buddhism. It is located in the Dongcheng district of Beijing. The building and art works of the temple are a combination of Chinese and Tibetan styles.The building of the Monastery began in 1694 during the Qing Dynasty. 

 It originally served as the official residence to the court eunuchs. It was later converted into the court of Prince Yong (Yinzhen) son of the Kangxi Emperor and himself the future Yongzheng Emperor. After Yongzheng’s ascension to the throne in 1772, half to the building was converted into a lamasery, a monastery for Monks of Tibetan Buddhism. The other half remained an imperial palace.  After Yongzheng’s death in 1735, his coffin was placed in the Temple. The Qianlong Emperor, Yongzheng’s successor, gave the temple imperial status. The temple became the residence for the large number of Tibetan Buddhist Monks from Mongolia and Tibet, and so the Yonghe Lamasery became the national center of the Lama administration.

The temple is said to have survived the Cultural Revolution due to the intervention of Premier Zhou Enlai. It was re-opened to the public in 1981.

The monastery of the Lamas is the largest and best-known Lamasery in Beijing. The structure is compiled of three principal components:  Three archways and five major halls, which stand along a north-south central axis. The total area from the South memorial archway to the North most point is approximately 66,400 square meters. The main gate is at the South end of the axis. There are five main halls, along the axis, which are separated by courtyards: The Hall of Heavenly Kings (Tian Wang Dian or Devaraja Hall), The Hall of Harmony and Peace (Yonghegong), The Hall of Everlasting Protection (Yongyoudian), The Hall of the Wheel of Law (Falundian), and the Pavilion of the Ten Thousand Happiness (Wanfuge). The Hall of the Heavenly Kings is located to the southernmost part of the main halls; it served as the original main entrance to the monastery. In the center stands a statue of the Maitreya Buddha and placed along the walls statutes of the four Heavenly Kings are arranged.

The Hall or Harmony and Peace is the main building of the temple. It houses three bronze statues of the Buddha’s of the Three Ages, the statute of the Gautama Buddha (Buddha of the Present) is in the center, it is flanked by the statue of Kasyapa Matanga (Buddha of the Past, right) and the Maitreya Buddha (Buddha of the Future, left). Along the sides of the hall, the statutes of the 18 Arhats are placed. A Mural in the hall shows the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara(according to Buddhist believe, a bodhisattva is the enlightened being. He reaches Nirvana, however, stays back to help other reach it).

The Hall of Everlasting Protection was Emperor Yongzheng’s living quarters as a prince and the place where his coffin was placed after his death. Today, a statue of the Bhaisajya-guru (healing Buddha) stands in his hall.

The Hall of the Wheel of the Law functions as a place for reading scriptures and conducting religious ceremonies. It contains a large statue of Je Tsongkhapa, founder of the Geluk School. The hall also contains the Five-Hundred-Arhat-Hill, a carving made of red sandalwood with statues of the arhats made from five different metals (gold, sliver, cooper, iron and tin).

The Pavilion of Ten Thousand Happiness’s contains a 26 meters tall (18 meter above the ground and 8 meters underneath) statue of the Maitreya Buddha carved from a single piece of White Sandalwood. This particular statue is impressive!!