旅游英語景點介紹—上海玉佛寺 Shanghai the Jade Buddha Temple

　　【簡介】1882年(清光緒八年)，玉佛寺始建。玉佛寺現(xiàn)址由可成法師于1918年開始修建，供奉普陀山慧根法師從緬甸請回的兩尊玉佛，故名玉佛寺。兩尊玉佛一尊是釋迦坐像，另一尊是釋迦臥像。1952年，上海佛教界在寺內啟建“祝愿世界和平法會”，恭請?zhí)撛品◣熤鞣ā７〞A滿后，虛云法師又留寺主持禪七。1955年，第十世班禪來寺訪問。十年動亂，玉佛禪寺受到巨大沖擊，所幸兩尊玉佛和許多珍貴文物都完好無損，是上海唯一完整保存下來的佛教寺院。1978年，玉佛禪寺恢復開放。

ladies and gentlemen, today we are going to visit a famous buddhist temple---the jade buddha temple. before visiting the temple, i’d like to say a few words about the religious situation in shanghai. our constitution stipulates that every chinese citizen is ensured the freedom of religious belief. there are four major religions in practice in shanghai, namely, buddhism, taoism, islam, and christianity, which is sub-divided into the catholic church and the protestant church. when it comes to buddhist temples in china, they are usually classified into three sects, i.e. temples for meditation, for preaching and for practicing buddhist disciplines. the jade buddha temple is a temple for meditation, and is well-known both at home and abroad.

the temple was first built during the reign of emperor guangxu of qing dynasty, when a monk named hui gen went on a pilgrimage to burma and brought back five jade statues of sakyamuni. on his way back to mount putuo via shanghai, he left two jade statues here, one in sitting posture and the other, reclining. he had a temple specially built as a shrine for these two statues in 1882. later the temple was partly destroyed by fire and in 1928 a new temple was completed on the present site.

just opposite the temple gate, there stands a giant screen wall. various designs, such as dragon, phoenix, elephant, crane and peony are carved on it. in chinese legend, all these things are considered the symbols of fortune, wealth, longevity and auspiciousness. chinese people used to set up a wall in front of the house so as to keep the evils away.now ladies and gentlemen, please turn around. here we can see the temple gate. it is also called the sanmen gate, or say, the gate of three extrications. the door in the middle is called the door of emptiness, to its right is the door of non-phenomenon, and to its left, the door of non-action. sanmen gate is also called the mountain gate because most famous temples in china are found deep in mountains. but the sanmen gate does not open except on the first and the fifteenth of every lunar month. now this way to the entrance.

ladies and gentlemen, the first hall is the heavenly king hall. we will use the rear door, please follow me.

(in the heavenly king hall next to the southern entrance)

here we can find the statue of a fat and smiling monk with bared belly. he is bodhisattva maitreya. his smile is so contagious that you will smile with him and forget all your worries. so he is also called the laughing buddha. according to buddhist scripture, he is now practicing buddhism in the tusita heaven. after 4000 years, which is equal to 5.67 billion years on the earth, he will become successor to sakyamuni under a long hua tree in hualin garden. hence another name the future buddha. but this statue we see here is not the real image of bodhisattva maitreya, it is just his incarnation.. it is said that during the five dynasties period, 1000 years ago, there lived in fenhua in zhejiang province a monk named qi ci, who always carried a wooden staff with a cloth sack on his shoulder. he often went around towns and in streets to beg alms. therefore he became known as “the cloth sack monk”. he always smiled and laughed, looking as happy as ever. when he was dying, he left the message saying that he was the incarnation of bodhisattva maitreya. so his image is enshrined in the buddhist temple as the incarnation of bodhisattva maitreya.(on the eastern side of the heavenly king hall)

on the two sides of the hall are enshrined four statues. they are so-called four heavenly kings. in the buddhist legend, there is in the center of the world a highest mountain called mount sumeru. halfway on it is a mountain called mount ghandara with four peaks. on each peak lives a heavenly king protecting the buddhist heaven. the first one is the southern king---king of developing merits. his duty is to educate all living creatures and develop king-heartedness. he is holding a sword in his hand which can emit a ray to chop off the enemies’ heads. the one next to him is the eastern king---king of protection for buddhism. he is holding in his hand a pipa, which is somewhat like a guitar. with this pipa, he offers music to the buddha. meanwhile this pipa is a magic weapon. it can send out a musical rhythm to defeat the enemy by tormenting brain and causing him to lose combatability. now ladies and gentlemen, please come over to this side.

(on the western side of the heavenly king hall)

the first one on this side is the northern king---king of virtue. he is so called because of his virtue. he is holding a parasol-shaped stela in his hand. the parasol can be opened into a canopy in buddhist processions. it is at the same time a magic umbrella. once it is opened in the battle field, the sky turns dark and a wind-storm rises, defeating the enemy with a dizzy spell and then it closes up capturing all the enemies. next to him is the western king---king of far sight. he observes the world with his penetrating eyes. he is holding a dragon-shaped silk rope. the rope is actually a net, with which he converts people to buddhism just like catching fish with a net. this dragon also has a magic power. it can spurt water from its mouth and drown the enemy in floods.(in the heavenly king hall next to the rear door)

the statue facing the rear door is bodhisattva skanda. he is always dressed in armour with a worrior’s club in his hand. originally he was one of the eight heavenly generals under the southern king of developing merits. later he has been enshrined here because of his bravery. he is also a god of message, a fleet-foot runner, so when visitors come to the temple, he will immediately report to the buddha in the grand hall.

now ladies and gentlemen, that’s all for the heavenly king hall. please follow me and look out the threshold and the steps.

now we can see a giant tripod in the courtyard. it is actually a giant incense burner. it was donated by some buddhist laymen who believed that by donating something the buddha they can help purify the souls of their dead relatives from sins and relieve them from purgatory.

now this is the main hall, known as the grand hall or grand hall of the great sage. it is the main structure in every buddhist temple, where the statue of sakyamuni, the founder of buddhism is enshrined.

(in the grand hall)

ladies and gentlemen, in the middle of the hall is the statue of sakyamuni, the founder of buddhism. on his right is medicine buddha and on his left is amitabha buddha. each is seated on a lotus blossom and has a back halo. sakyamuni’s original name was siddhartha gautama. he was a contemporary of confucius. he was born to a warrior’s family in the himalayan foothill in ancient india, or say, in present-day nepal. he spent his youth in great luxury. but he renounced the human world at the age of 29 in search of an ultimate solution to the problems of human sufferings. after six years of spiritual discipline he got enlightened at the age of 35. he spent the remaining 45 years of his life teaching his religion and establishing a community for monks to continue his work. he was entitled “sakyamuni”, which means “the great sage of the sakya clan”. he died at the age of 80.on his chest there is a sign that resembles a swastika but it has nothing to do with hitler’s fascism because it is in an inverted order. it is actually a religious talisman used in ancient orient, symbolizing the concentration of happiness and auspiciousness.

the medicine buddha is responsible for the eastern bright world. since he can relieve people of all pains and sufferings, he is called the medicine buddha. he is holding a wheel, which signifies the unremitting effort of converting people to buddhism just like turning a wheel.

amitabha buddha is in charge of the western paradise. he is holding a golden lotus blossom stand with which he extradites buddhist believers to the western pure land, therefore he is also called the buddha of guidance.

in front of the medicine buddha is a hollow wooden fish. it is actually an instrument used by the monks to accompany the chanting of their prayers. but do you happen to know why it is in the pattern of a fish? now let me tell you about it. the monks think that fish is the most diligent animal in the world because it never closes its eyes, therefore the image of the fish is used to advise people that they should practice buddhism as diligently as the fish.

on both sides of the hall stand 20 heavenly gods, all protectors of buddhist laws. they all bend slightly as if they are listening attentively to sakyamuni’s preaching.

the first one on the right side is brahma, the chief god of brahmanism in ancient india. it was believed in ancient india that all living creatures in the world, including gods and men, were created by him and he was thus honored as the great creator. next to him is yamaraja, the god of hell, who is in charge of the nether world.