Yunju Temple, Buddhist temple in Shuitou, China

Yunju Temple stands at the foot of Shijing Mountain in Fangshan District, 70 km southwest of Beijing. Its lower monastery, rebuilt after 1940s destruction, follows a north–south axis of halls, while the upper site on the mountain holds nine sutra caves cut into the rock. Twelve Tang and Liao pagodas and three Qing tomb pagodas survive across the grounds.

In 611 CE, a monk named Jingwan began carving Buddhist texts into stone during the Sui Dynasty, hoping to protect them from being lost. The tradition he started lasted for over a thousand years, finally stopping in 1691.

The temple is known for its stone steles covered in carved Buddhist texts, created by monks over many generations. Visitors who enter the caves can see the steles arranged in rows, giving the feeling of walking through a library made entirely of stone.

The grounds cover a wide area with halls, pagodas, and caves, so comfortable shoes are a good idea. The temple area and the stone sutra caves are accessed separately, so it is worth deciding which sections you want to visit before you arrive.

The nine sutra caves are cut into Shijing Mountain above the temple, while the later Liao and Jin steles were stored in two underground chambers dug at the foot of the mountain after the caves filled up. In 1981, repairs to Leiyin Cave uncovered a nested reliquary holding two flesh śarīra of the Buddha, donated by Emperor Yangdi of the Sui in 616 CE.