Dhrtarashtra, one of the Four Heavenly Kings, in the then-newly-built Huayan Temple in Guangzhou, Guangdong. The Chinese call him Chi Guo for "supporting the country." His lute can bring comfort and represent harmony, but also its TWANG! can raise a wind, fanning fires which destroy the enemy camp.
Posted to Reddit and Bluesky, August 19, 2025
These three Buddhas at Dafo (Big Buddha) Temple in Guangzhou, Guangdong are just 20 feet (6 metres) high--not bad, but not really so big after all. Only a few decades old, they are located in a much older hall, the only surviving building from the temple's early days. They are, I think, the usual Amitabha, Shakyamuni, and the Medicine Buddha.
Posted to Reddit and Bluesky, July 29, 2025
Visitors relax under the remaining ancient banyan trees in a side courtyard at Liurong ("Six Banyan Tree") Temple in Guangzhou, Guangdong. Historically, the temple had many names; the current one was bestowed by the great poet and statesman Su Dongpo on a visit during the Northern Song Dynasty.
Posted to Reddit et al, May 5, 2025
The title board says "One Flower, Five Petals"; Bodhidharma is the "One Flower," and the five Chan patriarchs who followed him are the "petals." At Hualin Temple, Guangzhou, Guangdong, the first place Bodhidharma is said to have stayed upon his arrival in China from India.
Posted to Reddit et al, April 14, 2025
The Memorial Hall is new, but Haizhuang Temple, Guangzhou, Guangdong, is ancient, and has been destroyed and rebuilt many times. After secularization in 1932 it was a public park and at one point it was an amusement park. Restoration as a temple began in 1993. (I like to imagine monks riding the bumper cars there!)
Posted to Reddit et al, March 25, 2025
This small four-sided square stupa at Haizhuang Temple in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China has the Four Great Bodhisattvas portrayed in marble, one to a side.
Posted to Reddit et al, March 5, 2025
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| The stupa |
It is said that, after the Sixth Patriarch of Chan was tonsured at Guangxiao Temple in Guangzhou, his hair was placed under this pagoda. The flags allude to a story that took place there, where he told arguing monks that it was neither the flag nor the wind moving, but their minds.
Posted to Reddit et al, December 27, 2024
