| Kaiyuan Temple | |
|---|---|
開元寺 | |
&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:Quanzhou_Kaiyuan_Temple-the_Hall_of_Mahavira.jpg) The Mahavira Hall at the Kaiyuan Temple | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Buddhism, Hinduism |
| District | Licheng |
| Prefecture | Quanzhou |
| Province | Fujian |
| Location | |
| Country | China |
&sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:China_Fujian_adm_location_map.svg)  Shown within Fujian &sq=Qlik&lang=&file=File:China_edcp_location_map.svg) Kaiyuan Temple (Quanzhou) (China) | |
| Prefecture | Quanzhou |
| Geographic coordinates | 24°55′00″N 118°34′52″E / 24.9168°N 118.5810°E |
| Architecture | |
| Style | Chinese architecture |
| Founder | Huang Shougong (黄守恭) |
| Date established | 686 |
| Completed | 686 |
| Site area | 78,000 |
| Website | |
| http://www.qzdkys.com/ | |
| Location | China |
| Part of | Quanzhou: Emporium of the World in Song-Yuan China |
| Criteria | Cultural: (iv) |
| Reference | 1561 |
| Inscription | 2021 (44th Session) |
Kaiyuan Temple (simplified Chinese: 开元寺; traditional Chinese: 開元寺; pinyin: Kāiyuán Sì; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Khai-gôan-sī) is a Buddhist temple located in West Street, Quanzhou, China, and is considered as the largest Buddhist temple in Fujian province with an area of 78,000 square metres (840,000 sq ft).[1][2] The central figures of veneration in the temple are the Five Tathāgathas from Chinese Esoteric Buddhism who are enshrined in the temple's Mahavira Hall. In 2021, the temple was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List along with other sites near Quanzhou because of its importance during the medieval global maritime trade based in Quanzhou and its testimony to the global exchange of ideas and cultures.[3] The temple is also one of few in China to contain Hindu monuments, left there by traders from Southern India. It is of Buddhist Dense-Eaves architecture and is most famous for the largest stone pagodas in the world, the twin pagodas of Zhenguo and Renshou, which were completed using stone during the Song dynasty.
- ^ Zi Yan (2012), p. 93.
- ^ "Kaiyuan Temple". Chinaculture.org. Archived from the original on 13 May 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2012.
- ^ "Quanzhou: Emporium of the World in Song-Yuan China". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. Retrieved 22 August 2021.