BeihaiPark (北海公园)

Beihai Park is located in the center of Beijing，to the west of thenorth gate of the Forbidden City．It was first built more than 1，000years ago during the Liao Dynasty(916—1 125)，then continuallyrebuilt and renovated during the Jin(1115·1234)，Yuan(1279—1368)，Ming(1368—1644)and Qing(1644—191 1)Dynasties，eventually becoming the beautifully landscaped garden we seetoday．As an imperial pleasure garden built within the ImperialCity，it was built more magnificently than any other imperialcomplex outside the capital city．Now，Beihai Park is the best.preserved imperial garden in China，as well as the oldest imperial garden in the world．

   Beihai Park covers a total area of over 68．2 hectares．More thanhalf of it is taken up by the lake．which covers 38．9 hectares．Beihai Park consists mainly of two parts：the lake of Beihai and theJade Flowery Islet(Oionghuadao)．

   Beihai Park used to be an imperial garden for feudal rulers ofpast dynasties．Originally，this site was a river course of theYongding River．Later，it became a vast lake on the northeasternoutskirts of the city and was called the“Golden Sea”(at that timenorthern people called the water or a lake the“sea”)．Early in the10^th century，the Liao Dynasty(916．1 125)made Beijing their second capital．The Emperor of the Liao Dynasty liked to comehere to relax．In 938，in the middle of the lake，there was a small island called Yao Yu(Jade Islet)on which they built a temporary imperial residence then called Yao Yu Palace．

   In 1115，the Jin Dynasty drove the Liao out．took over Beijing and then renamed the capital Jin Zhongdu(central capital of Jin)．In 1 1 5 1，the Jin Emperor ordered the expansion of the central capital．The next year，they moved the capital to Yanjing，whichis Beijing today．Later in 1179，the rulers of the Jin Dynastv started to expand the size of the park by digging a lake in the present Beihai area，forming and enlarging the island in the middle of the lake，which was built of earth dug out from the lake，and then they changed the name of Yaoyu to Qiongdao and the island was called Jade Flowery Island(Qionghuadao)．They also added more palace halls，decorated the island with Taihu rocks and． subsequently，built artificial hills．The artificial hills were built on the Island by piling up the Taihu rocks that were removed from Genyue Garden in Bianliang(south—central China of the Song Dynasty)，now Kaifeng，in Henan Province．Then thev built Taininggong，as a secondary palace on the island for the Jin emperors．The Jin emperors spent four to five months here every year and also administered the state affairs here．The Hall of Vast Cold(Guanghandian)，built on the top of the was an enlargement of the Liao Palace．

In 1 264，Kublai Khan of the Yuan Dynasty，and established its capital here named Yuan DaduIsland，probablycaptured Beijing (Great Capital ofYuan)．But almost everything in the capital was burned down and destroyed，except the area of Beihai．So Kublai Khan had to stay in the Hall of Vast Cold(Guanghandian)on the Jade Flowery Islet in Beihai when he came to Beijing．Later they took Qionghuadao，the Jade Flowery Islet，as the center of Dadu and built their imperial palace here．Later，they changed the name of Qionghuadao to Long Life Hill(Longevity Hill or Dushan Hill)．The place was rebuilt three times during the Yuan dynasty．Many palace buildings and gardens were constructed here at that time，as well as the Big Jade Bowl in the Round City(Tuancheng)and the Iron Screen(Tieyingbi)on the north bank of Beihai Park．They

are legacies from the Yuan Dynasty．

  Guanghandian was where Kublai Khan used to live and many other palace buildings were built on the top of the hill．It was in this palace that Kublai Khan received Marco Polo and held ceremonies on festive occasions，received foreign diplomats and issued decrees．He also had Guanghan Palace renovated and made it the place for grand receptions and banquets．The islet became the center of Dadu(Great Capital)．Unfortunately，Guanghandian

was later destroyed．

    In the Ming Dynasty，Beihai was an imperial garden of the imperial palace，named Western Garden(Xiyuan)，as it was located outside the Western Flowery Gate of the Forbidden City．Some construction and renovation were carried out here，such as the Five--Dragon Pavilions and Nine-Dragon Screen on the north bank of Beihai Park and many halls，pavilions and galleries in Tuancheng(Circle City)．All this was done during the Ming  Dynasty.But in 1579，Guanghandian collapsed and was destroyed．

    Originally，the lake was called the“Lake of Taiye．”The people 1n the north habitually referred to a lake as the“sea,”so in the Ming Dynasty there were three“seas”：the North，Middle and South seas，which mean Beihai，Zhonghai and Nanhai．The three“seas” put together were actually the three lakes put together and named“Lake Taiye．”Built over the lake，was a white marble bridge  called  “Jinaoyudong”  Bridge，  which  means  “Golden Tortoise and Jade Rainbow Bridge．”

    Large-cale  construction  and  restoration  around  Beihai  were carried out under the Qing Dynasty，following the layout of the Ming palaces and gardens．In 1 65 1，during the eighth vear of Emperor Shunzhi’s reign，a Tibetan style white dagoba was erected on the ruins of the Guanghandian，which had collapsed almost 80 years before·The Temple of Eternal Peace(Yong’an Si)was built in front of the White Dagoba．  In the 18^th century，as the Qing Dynasty entered its flourishing period，construction of the imperial garden8 also reached its culmination．During Emperor Qianlong's reign(1736—1795)，further construction on Beihai took place．which lasted 30 years from 1741—1771．The project included manv pavilions，halls and terraces that made Beihai．the ImperiaI Garden,even more harmonious in design．The Tower of Ten Thousand Buddha(Wanfolou)was built at the time for the celebration of the 80^th birthday of Emperor Qianlong，s mother．When  construction  was  completed，  emperor  Qianlong  wrote 1n8cnptions for four steles，ofle for each side of the hill，describing the scenery of Qionghuadao Islet and the history of its buildings．This laid a good foundation for today’S Beihai Park，for it still looks much as it did during Emperor Qianlong’S reign．The layout of Beihai Park is based on an ancient Chinese legend，“A big pool with three hills．”According to the legend，there were supposed to be three islands called Penglai，Yingzhou and Fangzhang to the east of Bohai Bay，where people believed that the Gods lived．One of the Islands was called Penglai Island where a kind of Chinese herbal medicine grew，which was supposed to prolong people’S lives．Emperor Qinshihuang，the first emperor of the Qin Dynasty，wanted to have a long life and live forever，SO he sent lots of people to Penglai Island looking for the Chinese herbal longevity medicine，but they failed．In the Han Dynasty，Emperor Wudi also wanted to live an eternal life．After failing to find the herbal longevity medicine，he ordered people to dig a big pool at the back of his palace with three artificial hills representing the three Fairland Mountains of Penglai，Yingzhou and Fangzhang．Later，in the Sui Dynasty，these legendary hills with a big pool were built in the eastern capital of Louyang，and in the Tang Dynasty the same thing was done in Changan，the capital of the Tang Dynasty．Such a traditional legendary style of gardening was followed by one dynasty after another．Beihai Park was built just after this traditional style：Qionghuadao represents Penglai Island；Tuancheng stands for Yingzhou；Xishantai symbolizes Fangzhang．

Jade Flowery Islet or Qionghua Islet(琼华岛)

Qionghua Islet is in the center of Beihai Park with the White Dagoba standing majestically at the summit,in the center of the island，where it is beautifully mirrored in the lake．So the Islet is also known as Baita Hill(White Dagoba Hill)．Qionghua Islet is 45 meters high and 880 meters in circumference．On the southem slop of the hill on the island，there are a group of Buddhist temples descending the hillside．on the hill，there are many halls．pavilions，covered walkways and rockeries，all artificially arranged and meticulously built．The buildings on the southern slope are：the Temple of Eternal Peace(Yong’an Si)，which is the main temple built on the southern slope，the Hall of Law Wheel (Falundian)，the Hall of Universal Peace(Puandian)and the Hall of Shanyin(Shanyindian)．The bright and splendid buildings in the temple have yellow—colored glazed tiles and red walls．On the northern side of the island there is a complex of rockeries and caves；at the foot of the northern slope，is the famous Fangshan Restaurant，which serves imperial style cuisine．On the western side of the island there are several buildings such as．the Mental Pleasing Hall  (Yuexinlou)，the Hall for Night Parties

(Qingxiaolou)，Linguangdian and the Chamber for Reading the classics(Yuegulou)．The eastern side boasts fewer buildings．But is thickly wooded with ancient trees forming a unique style．

    The Islet has a history which is over 1，000 years old．It Was called“Yaoyu”in the Liao Dynasty．Later，in the Jin Dynasty．It was renamed Qiongdao Islet．During the Yuan and Ming

Dynasties，me layout of Qiongdao remained almost unchanged until the Qing Dynasty．In 1651，Qing Emperor Shun Zhi had the White Dagoba built on the ruins of Guanghan Palace on the Islet．

In front of the White Dagoba，he also had the White Dagoba Temple built，which is also known as Yong’an Temple or the Temple of Eternal Peace．

Yong’an Bridge(永安桥)

．“Jicui”(Accumulated Emerald)．So the bridge is also nicknamed“Duiyunjicui Bridge”(the bridge of“Piled Clouds and Accumulated Emerald”)．The bridge iS 80 meters long with two stone lions，under the archways，guarding the Yong’an Bridge．

The Temple of Eternal Peace(Yong’an Si永安寺)

．The Bell Tower iS on the east side of the temple．While the Drum Tower iS on the west．In the middle．iS the Hall of the

Law and Wheel(Falundian)in which stands the image of Sakyamuni，flanked by his two disciples．

   In front of the temple，there are two stone lions，but they are facing the temple instead of facing out．The reason is that the stone bridge in front of the temple had been built before the temple was built．So the stone lions were built for guarding the bridge not for

the temple．

Front Gate of Yong’an Temple(永安寺山门)

   The Front Gate of Yong’an Temple has three openings with a yellow and green—colored roof and crimson walls that show solemnity and simplicity．

   Inside the Front Gate of Yong’an Temple，the Bell Tower stands on the east and the Drum Tower on the west．In the old days．when the emperor came to worship the Buddha，both the bell and drum were struck to announce the important event．In front of the gate，there are sculptures of bronze cranes and bronze turtles．symbols of longevity．

Hall of the Wheel of Law(法轮殿)

．The hall hag a single layered eave and the roof is made of yellow and green glazed tiles．The top of the roof is decorated with a small pagoda in the middle and flanked by dragons playing with a pearl，all made of glazed tiles．This kind of design is rarely seen anywhere．

    Sitting inside the middle of the Hall of the Wheel of Law，is the statue of Sakyamuni，with eight Great Bodhisattvas，the disciples of Sakyamuni，(four in each side)next to him．There are eighteen Arhats standing on each side of the hall．The hall was built in 1651 during the reign of-Emperor Shun Zhi of the Qing Dynasty．Lamas performed their daily rituals there in the old days．

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   Just north of Yinsheng and Di’ai Pavilions．there are two stones named Kunlun Stone and Yueyun Stone．They are also known as“Genyue Stones，”because they were brought to Beihai from the Genyue Garden，built by the Song emperor in Bianliang(now Sitting inside the middle of the Hall of the Wheel of Law，is the statue of Sakyamuni，with eight Great Bodhisattvas，the disciples of Sakyamuni，(four in each side)next to him．There are eighteen Arhats standing on each side of the hall．The hall was built in 1651 during the reign of-Emperor Shun Zhi of the Qing Dynasty．

Zhengjue Hall(正觉殿)

    Behind the Longguangzizhao Pailou(Archway of Purple Dragon Light)，is Zhengjue Hall，55 steps higher than the Archway．This is the second hall in Yong’an Temple，but it serves as the front gate of Baitasi(the White Dagoba Temple)．The smiling Buddha．Buddha Maitreya，is sitting in the middle of the entrance．He was a vagrant Buddhist monk in the early 10^th century and was calied“Bag Buddha，”because he collected alms with a cloth bag and donated what he got to the temples．He was also called“Smiling Buddha or Laughing Buddha，”because he kept a nice smiling face on all the time．

    In this courtyard，the west side chamber is Zongjing Hall．Which serves as an exhibition room for cultural relics today．The eastern chamber is Shengguo Hall．

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Pu’an Hall(普安殿)

   The third major hall in Yong’an Temple is Pu’an Hall，which also serves as the main hall in the Temple of the White Dagoba．There are three Buddhist Statues in this hall．In the center．there is a statue sitting on a lotus flower seat with his hands clasping in front of his breasts．This is the statue of Master Tsongkhapa，the founder of the Yellow Sect of Tibetan Buddhism．Flanking him are his two favorite disciples：Dalai Lama and Panchan Lama．Tsongkhapa was born in Qinghai Province．At the age of seventeen，he went to Tibet to study Lamaism and then became a lama there．Later，he won popular support from Lamas and created a new kind of Tibetan Buddhism called Gelupai．a sect of Tibetan Buddhism．The Lamas of this sect wear yellow hats and clothes to symbolize their sect，so this sect is also called Yellow Sect．

Shanyin Hall(善因殿)

    In front of the White Dagoba stands a square structure of glazed tiles，but the whole structure looks like it is made of wood．It has double eaves；the circular roof，on the top．is covered with bronze tiles with a gilded ball capped on the top，while the square roof is covered with green glazed tiles with yellow tiles on the edge．This shape of roof symbolizes the ancient belief that heaven is round while the earth is square．The four side walls around the square building are decorated with 455 glazed Buddhist images．Inside the hall，there is a gilded bronze Buddhist statue named“Thunderbolt Bearer of Great Power and Virtue，”with 36 hands and 36 eyes．nicknamed“thousand-hand and thousand-eye Buddha．”This statue is believed to have the power to suppress evil and protect good．His vicious-looking appearance is in the image of a cow’s head and human body．It is said that there is some water underneath the White Dagoba；people believed that only this Buddha could control the water here．SO it iS also nicknamed“Buddha of Water Contr01”

White Dagoba(白塔)

    The White Dagoba is a Lamaist dagoba，built in 1651，in the Tibetan style．It is located at the top of the Qionghua Islet on the former site of the Yuan Dynasty’S Palace Guanghandian，which had collapsed almost 80 years earlier．in the days of Yuan Emperor Kublai Khan．Since it belonged to a part of Yong’ansi，it was also called the Yongansi White Dagoba．During the 8^th year of Emperor Shun Zhi，the first emperor of the Qing Dynasty，the White Dagoba was built on the island because the emperor intended to consolidate the rule of the Qing regime by advocating Buddhism in the country．Construction of the White Dagoba was also based on

a suggestion proposed by a Tibetan Lama priest named Nur Momhan．He said that a white dagoba must be built in order to prolong the life of the country and benefit its people．Emperor。Shun Zhi was a devout Buddhist．He had the dagoba built to show his desire for the unification of China’S various nationalities and to show his gesture of devotion to the Buddhist belief．since Emperor Shun Zhl was a pious adherent of Buddhism．

    The White Dagoba was built on the top of the White Dagoba Hill，67 meters high from the ground level to the apex of the Dagoba．The Dagoba itself is 35．9 meters high and was built on a 31．1 meter igh square base of huge stone slabs．The body looks like an upturned bowl．There is a gate in the middle，on the front side of the Dagoba，and the Sutras in the Tibetan language are carved inside the gate．Fourteen copper bells hang from its copper canopy，on which a gilded ball gives the appearance of a flame on the top of the Dagoba．On the body of the Dagoba，there are 306 air vents made of brick carvings．The Dagoba was damaged by

earthquakes and reconstructed and renovated twice in the Qing Dynasty and once in 1 976．During the repair in 1 976，a small square-sized gold box was found on the Dagoba．The box，about

seven square centimeters，was found at the top of the column supporting the apex of the White Dagoba．In the Dagoba，there were two bean。sized Buddha relics surrounded by cinnabar powder

．During the Qing Dynasty，every year，on the 25^th day of the tenth month of the Chinese lunar month，there would be a big Buddhist ceremony held in the White Dagoba．The whole complex of Yong’an Temple with the main buildings built from the front gate of Yong’an Temple up to the White Dagoba，all along the central axis，gives an impression of one magnificent building after another．up to the top．Shun Zhi was a pious adherent of Buddhism．

． During the Qing Dynasty，every year，on the 25^th day of the tenth month of the Chinese lunar month，there would be a big Buddhist ceremony held in the White Dagoba．

The whole complex of Yong’an Temple with the main buildings built from the front gate of Yong’an Temple up to the White Dagoba，all along the central axis，gives an impression of one magnificent building after another，up to the top．