Sun Moon Lake : Waves and Blue Water (1)

【Xuanzang Temple】
【Sun Moon Lake Waves and Blue Water (1)】

Xuanzang Temple in Sun Moon Lake is super beautiful. If you have the opportunity to get close to Sun Moon Lake, don’t forget to go to Xuanzang Temple to worship the Buddha.
The view of the water waves from Xuanzang Temple in Sun Moon Lake is not inferior to the view from the Hanbi Tower at Shuishe Pier!

Recent news reported on the traffic jam at Sun Moon Lake, and Xuanzang Temple in Sun Moon Lake immediately came to mind.
On Guanghua Island in front of Xuanzang Temple in Sun Moon Lake, you can see two dragons grabbing for pearls. The reflection of the mountains and rivers on the pond is really beautiful, as if people were entering a painting.

Thanks for having the opportunity to learn more about Master Xuanzang of the Consciousness-only Sect online recently.
The Xuanzang Temple in Sun Moon Lake immediately popped into my mind!
I want to go to Sun Moon Lake after the lockdown is lifted!

(1) Let’s first talk about the origin of Xuanzang Temple in Taiwan

During the Sino-Japanese War, the Japanese looted the parietal bone relics of Master Xuanzang in Nanjing and enshrined them in Ci’en Temple in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. In 1955, some of the parietal bone relics were returned to the Buddhist Church of the Republic of China and temporarily enshrined there. At the Xuanguang Temple on the bank of Sun Moon Lake; in November 1965, after Xuanzang Temple was completed, the bones were welcomed into Xuanzang Temple.

Xuanzang Temple is a Tang-style building with green tiles and red pillars. It is simple and unpretentious. It has a quiet environment and has the grace and grace of a Chinese garden. It faces Sun Moon Lake in the front and Qinglong Mountain in the back. Geographic surveyors say that the temple occupies the “Qinglong” area. The treasure land of “Playing Pearls” is the best place to enshrine the parietal bone relics of Master Xuanzang.

(2) Let’s talk about the story of Master Xuanzang that shocked the past and the present
Presented with numbers!

(1) He traveled back and forth to India for 19 years to study scriptures. He passed through more than 130 countries and brought back more than 70 scriptures.
(2) He went to Nalanda Temple in India, where Buddhism was at its peak, and studied with Master Jie Xian for 5 years, especially the “Yogi Di Lun”, which later became the Consciousness-only Sect of Buddhism.
(3) As a Chinese student, after studying in India for 5 years, he fought against the 88 theory and unified Indian thought. 18 Indian kings recognized him as the first to ask him to stay, but Xuanzang still insisted on returning to the Main Hall.
(4) Returning to the Tang Dynasty, he was welcomed by nearly one million people. Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty asked him to be the prime minister, but Xuanzang said that he would only be a translator.
(5) Xuanzang originally returned to the Tang Dynasty and planned to translate scriptures at the Shaolin Temple in his hometown of Henan. Tang Taizong said that he wanted to be closer to him and built the Xi’an Wild Goose Pagoda for him to translate scriptures here. 3,000 eminent monks assisted in polishing it.
(6) Emperor Taizong, Emperor Gaozong, and Wu Zetian of the Tang Dynasty reused Xuanzang. This was also the prosperous age of the Tang Dynasty when the Han nation was shaking up the past and present.
(7) The immortal “Medicine Master’s Seven Buddhas Sutra” and “Heart Sutra”…translated by Xuanzang.

The first translation of “Hundred Dharmas of Mahayana”
As the sage said, all dharmas have no self (nature)
What are all dharmas?
What is selflessness?

(Study Abroad)
Nalanda Temple, also translated as Naluo Temple, Nalanda Temple, Alantuo Temple, free translation as Shiwuyan Temple. Nalanda, an ancient Indian place name, was located near the ancient city of Magadha, 90 kilometers southeast of Patna, the capital of central Bihar state in India. There was originally a Buddhist temple named Nalanda Temple here, which was the highest Buddhist school and academic center in ancient East India. Nalanda Temple is large in scale, with a collection of as many as nine million volumes of books. Scholars from all ages have emerged in large numbers. At its peak, tens of thousands of monks and scholars gathered here. Wikipedia

(3) The Story of Xuanzang on the Internet
In 627 AD, Chang’an, the capital of the Tang Empire.
Xuan Zang traveled to the far west to seek Buddhism. Starting from Chang’an, heading west along the ancient Silk Road, passing through the Western Regions, over the Congling Mountains, and across the grasslands of Central Asia, you can reach India.

In the desolate desert, Xuanzang went without water for four days and five nights;
In the windy canyon, Xuanzang encountered robbers…
However, with firm perseverance and wisdom, Xuanzang finally arrived in India.

In ancient India, Xuanzang not only studied day and night, but also traveled around the entire Indian land. In the religious debates in India, Xuanzang achieved unprecedented glory.

He was not only revered as a Buddhist master, but also held in the highest esteem by the supreme ruler of India. But at the most glorious time, Xuanzang still returned to his hometown – the Tang Dynasty.

After returning to the Tang Dynasty, Xuanzang began the huge work of translating Buddhist scriptures

During this period, he not only wrote the “rare book” – “The Records of the Western Regions of the Tang Dynasty”, but also translated the ancient Chinese classic – “Tao Te Ching” into Sanskrit and spread it to India.

During the period of translating Buddhist scriptures, Xuanzang built the Big Wild Goose Pagoda at Ci’en Temple in Chang’an. Today, the Big Wild Goose Pagoda has become the symbol of Xi’an, Shaanxi Province. In 664 AD, Xuanzang died. When Xuanzang was buried, the streets of Chang’an were empty and millions of people escorted him. Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty lamented: “I have lost a national treasure.”

In the history of Chinese Buddhism, Xuanzang was a great master who carried forward the past and opened up the future. He not only translated a large number of scriptures.

Xuan Zang’s influence goes far beyond religion. In the seventh century AD, he conquered the Silk Road with determination. Xuanzang was the leading traveler of the ancient world and a forerunner of modern explorers.

In the history of human cultural exchanges, Xuanzang is unprecedented and an insurmountable monument. Today, Xuanzang has become the embodiment of friendship between the two great powers of China and India.

Indian historian Ali said, “Without Xuanzang, it would be almost impossible to reconstruct Indian history.” British historian Smith said, “For Indian history, Xuanzang cannot be overestimated.”

What Xuanzang left us is a spirit that never gives up on ideals, always persists in faith, and of course a greater cultural heritage.