These ancient trees are the only remaining feature of the former Dajian Temple, Shaoguan, Guangdong. The front hall seems to have been created from an apartment building; the small new main hall is the only one that looks like a temple. This is where Huineng is said to have given the Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch.
Posted to Reddit and Bluesky, July 21, 2025
This statue commemorating Master Xuyun (1840?-1959) presides over its own hall at Yunmen Temple in Shaoguan, Guangdong, one of the many temples he rebuilt. Master Xuyun is considered one of China's "four eminent monks" of the 20th century along with Masters Yinguang (1862-1940), Hongyi (1880-1942), and Taixu (1890-1947).
Posted to Reddit and Bluesky, June 29, 2025
The Nine Dragon Spring at Nanhua Temple in Shaoguan, Guangdong. Legend says it was created when Huineng, the Sixth Patriarch of Chan (Zen), tapped the ground nine times with his staff; nine dragons (like the nine that bathed the newborn Shakyamuni) flew out of the ground and the spring began to run.
Posted to Reddit and Bluesky, June 7, 2025
These stairs lead up to Zhaoyin Temple in Shaoguan, Guangdong, located in an open-faced cave at the top. It lies in a cliff on the side of Lion's Crag, where the Maba Man Site (300,000 to 130,000 bp) was found. It is speculated that Huineng, the Sixth Patriarch of Chan, may have meditated here.
Posted to Reddit et al, May 15, 2025
Yuehua Temple, in an industrial area near the Pearl River in Shaoguan, Guangdong, was a landing site for visitors to Nanhua Temple. Master Xuyun restored it; the Red Guards destroyed it; it was being restored in 2012. (Xuyun also restored Nanhua, Dajian, and Yunmen Templin the area, among many others.)
Posted to Reddit et al, April 25, 2025
These amusing "jade" (marble) Arhats are three of the eighteen that grace the Main Hall of tiny Wujin Nunnery on the grounds of the larger Nanhua Temple in Shaoguan, Guangdong.
Posted to Reddit et al, April 3, 2025
