Ji Le Temple, Buddhist temple in Nangang District, Harbin, China.
Ji Le Temple, at No. 5 East Dazhi Street in Nangang District, Harbin, is the largest Buddhist building complex in Heilongjiang. Its buildings cover 5,186 square metres within grounds of 53,500 square metres, and the site houses the Harbin Buddhist College. It was built between 1923 and 1924.
The temple was founded in 1921 and completed within three years, making it the largest Buddhist site in the province at that time. Its establishment occurred during a period when Buddhist institutions in northern China sought to strengthen their presence.
The name Jile, "Temple of Bliss", follows the Pure Land tradition, and the temple belongs to the Tiantai school founded here by master Tanxu in 1921. It is one of the four great Buddhist monasteries of Northeast China, alongside Banruo Temple in Changchun, Ci'en Temple in Shenyang and Lengyan Temple in Yingkou. The Harbin Buddhist College is housed inside the complex.
The temple stands at No. 5 East Dazhi Street in Nangang District, in the eastern part of Harbin, and can be reached by public transport. The grounds cover 53,500 square metres, so set aside enough time to walk between the halls and the pagoda without rushing.
The temple was wrecked on 24 August 1966, when Red Guards toppled and smashed images and paraded monks before the gate; photographer Li Zhensheng recorded the scene. In 1981 the temple and its pagoda were listed among the first batch of Heilongjiang's protected cultural sites.
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