The Yonghe Lamasery, also known as the Lama Temple, was built during the Qing Dynasty to house court eunuchs. After serving several functions, including time as an imperial residence, it was converted into a monastery to house Tibetan monks in the early 1700s. Saved from the Cultural Revolution, it opened to the public in 1981 and remains one of the most prominent Tibetan Buddhist monasteries in the world. In addition to boasting a remarkable mixture of Han Chinese and Tibetan architecture, glazed tile roofs, and Buddhist art and sculpture, the temple also houses the ritual urn used to determine reincarnations of the Dalai Lama.
Our visit to the temple was interesting and remains somewhat difficult to explain. I have visited sacred religious sites, both Western and Eastern, both with and without active worship taking place. This experience was different, and in some ways only pleasant in the way that it got both Matt and I thinking and talking about what made us ill at ease. Had I hit the limit of my cultural comfort zone? Had I viewed a religion so different from my own, witnessing activities that went directly against its tenets, and become uncomfortable? I don’t really put too much stock in either of these reasons, because I’ve had experiences that have pushed the boundaries of both much further.
I imagined a Buddhist temple to be a peaceful place with a calming energy, but the atmosphere was intense almost to the point of being frenzied. Incense billowed in thick, choking clouds, incense sellers patrolled at the front of each building, worshippers rushed from altar to altar. An elderly woman, struggling to keep up with her family, fell down a flight of stairs and thankfully, Matt caught her before her head hit the hard stone. She was most grateful and smiled in appreciation to cross the language barrier, her family nodded at us before pausing briefly to gather her and continue on. The only calm feeling came from the monks, who rather than being ominpresent, were scattered infrequently throughout the many buildings. Their silence was in great contrast to the fervor of the visitors.
I did however enjoy the beautiful colors of the buildings and the sun glinting off the gold and the yellow glazed tile roofs. There was an amazing set of shi-shi dogs (the Chinese equivalent to shisa) on either side of the entrance to the main hall, and the interiors of each building contained elaborate (sometimes eerie) and opulent statues of the many Buddhas and bodhisattva. Initially, we had rented audio guides, but the sheer mass of information at the first spot led us to turn to the well-marked signage in both Chinese and English
3 comments:
Sorry your experience wasn't a good one. I've visited several western Buddhist monestarys and find them incredibly peaceful and calming. I know Phillip has gone to some wonderful Zen monestarys on mainland Japan and found them heavenly. Buddhist art can be more representational than beautiful. For instance the dakinis are usually depicted in opposite to the feeling they portray. An angry horrible dakini would mean that particular spirit was calm and loving. It shows the duality of nature and emotions. Both are one and the same, but polar opposites. tricky! I know the Chinese have done loads to surpress Buddhism and not all of the rituals can take place. Maybe try a Japanese Buddhist monestery?
Your photos are beautiful, thanks. Glad Matt was able to help the woman who fell.
My landlady is a Buddhist from China. She says that Chinese Buddhism has become more personalized then formalized. I mean that each family has added what it means to them and there is not one pattern of worship that everyone follows. Maybe this monastery is in a region where people feel a need to do as much as possible in the temple and so rush. I guess every place of worship is different and the worshipers get what they are looking for. Thank you for sharing a place I will probably never get to see first hand.
The architecture is beautiful, sorry your experience was a little odd. Our guts have a way of telling us when something is not quite right...learn to trust it.
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