灵隐寺 Lingyin Temple (Temple of Inspired Seclusion)

    Situated at the foot of Lingyin Mountain, aside from the West Lake，Lingyin Temple(Temple of Inspired Seclusion) is one of the ten most famous ancient Buddhist temples in China. Its ancestor is monk Huili from west India and has a history of 1600 years. Lingyin has been repaired many times after P. R. China was founded. Now Lingyin temple covers an area of over 100 mu which is composed of tianwang hall, daxiong hall, apothecary hall, Buddhist hall, huayan hall, Arhat hall, Master Daoji hall, liandeng room, dabei building, abbot room, east & west scripture room and east & west stele rooms etc. There is a statue of Sakyamuni Buddha in daxiong hall, with 24.8 meters in height, which imitates the Buddha statue of Zen in the Tang Dynasty. Lingyin temple has been a famous place attracting great number of hierarchs and literators for Buddhist and cultural communications.Furthermore, there are a lot of timehonored figures of Buddha, Buddhist tools, stone towers, steles, calligraphies and paintings and other historical cultural treasures. Lingyin Temple is listed as the national key cultural treasure protection unit for those costful Buddhist cultural treasures. Now with the world entering a new century, Lingyin Temple is attracting vast visitors both at home and abroad to learn Buddhism, look around, pray for blessings, and relax there with it’s rich Buddhist culture, magnificent hall buildings, and beautiful natural scene.

    灵隐寺，又名云林寺，创建于东晋咸和元年（公元326年），当时印度僧人慧理来到杭州，看到这里山峰奇秀，认为是“仙灵所隐”之地，所以就在这里建寺，取名“灵隐”。灵隐寺深得“隐”字的意趣，整座雄伟寺宇就深隐在西湖群峰密林清泉的一片浓绿之中。寺前有冷泉亭、飞来峰等名胜。天王殿正中面朝山门的佛龛供奉弥勒佛像，袒胸露腹，趺坐蒲团，笑容可掬；背对山门的佛龛供奉的是佛教护法神韦驮雕像，像高二米半，以香樟木雕造，是南宋留存至今的珍贵遗物。天王殿两侧是四大天王彩塑像，俗称四大金刚。 大雄宝殿为单层三叠重檐，殿正中，佛祖释迦牟尼像高踞莲花座之上，妙相庄严，令人敬畏。这是我国最高大的木雕坐式佛像之一。后壁为《五十三参》彩绘群塑，共有姿态各异的大小佛教塑像一百五十尊，表现的是佛经中善财童子历经磨难参拜五十三位名师，终于得证佛果的故事。这座壁塑的主像是足踏鳌背，手执净瓶的观世音菩萨，她正在接受善财童子的参拜。 药师殿为近年重建，殿中供奉药师佛像，药师佛的左胁侍为日光遍照菩萨，简称日光菩萨，右胁侍为月光遍照菩萨，简称月光菩萨，合称“东方三圣”或“药师三尊”。殿左，有重建的罗汉堂，陈列五百罗汉像线刻石。天王殿前左右各有石经幢一座。两经幢都有“天下兵马大元帅吴越国王建，时大宋开宝二年已巳岁闰五月”题记。大雄宝殿前月台两侧各有一座八角九层仿木结构石塔，塔高逾七米，塔身每面雕刻精美，经古建筑专家梁思成生前考定，两石塔也是吴越末年雕造的。灵隐寺珍藏的佛教文物，有古代贝叶写经、东魏镏金佛像、明董其昌写本《金刚经》、清雍正木刻本龙藏等等，都是弥足珍贵的宝物。