Yunju Temple

Located at the foot of Baida Mountain in Fangshan District, the Yunju Temple is famous for the sutra-storing caves in Shijing Mountain (stone sutra mountain in Chinese meaning, also called Baidai Mountain) and the pagodas of Tang and Liao dynasties. As a famous Buddhist temple in ancient times, it is a national cultural heritage under special protection. The Yunju Temple Scenic Area is a national key scenic and historic interest area.

The Yunju Temple, founded from the late Sui Dynasty to the early Tang Dynasty, was built against the mountain. Through successive reconstruction in past dynasties, today's temple mainly consists of five courtyards and six halls. On the two sides of the temple are auxiliary halls, imperial residence and monk rooms. Two pagodas stand oppositely on the south and north sides respectively.

The Yunju Temple contains a great number of Buddhist scriptures, including stone sutra, paper sutra and wooden sutra. There are 14278 pieces of stone sutra, covering 1122 sutras and 3572 volumes. Starting in the year of 605, engraving work continued over 1039 years through six dynasties (Sui, Tang, Liao, jian, Yuan and Ming). They are truly an epic achievement in the world's cultural history, and a rare and precious cultural heritage. Now, 10082 pieces of stone sutra engraved in Liao and Jin dynasties are stored in a closed nitrogen-filled underground palace in which temperature and humidity are invariable. There are more than 22000 volumes of paper sutra printed or and written during the Ming Dynasty. Such a great number is rarely seen in China, here are over 77000 pieces of wooden sutra engraved from 1733 to 1738 (Qing Dynasty). The temple also boasts seven pagodas of Tang Dynasty, five pagodas of Liao Dynasty, and stone tablet calligraphies of Sui and Tang dynasties.

The Shijing (stone sutra) Mountain is 450 metres above sea level. There stand two fpagodas built in the early Tong Dynasty. In mountainside there are nine caves storing ft 196 pieces of stone sutra, of which, Leiyin Cave is as spacious as a hall with sutra plates inlaid on the wall. Four stone posts in the cave are engraved with 1056 figures of Buddha.