Jinghai Temple
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Jinghai Temple () is a 15th-century
temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a place of worship, a building used for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. By convention, the specially built places of worship of some religions are commonly called "temples" in Engli ...
located in
Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...
,
Jiangsu Jiangsu is a coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province in East China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its capital in Nanjing. Jiangsu is the List of Chinese administra ...
,
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
, to the southwest of Shizi Mountain (). It was built to commemorate the voyage of
Zheng He Zheng He (also romanized Cheng Ho; 1371–1433/1435) was a Chinese eunuch, admiral and diplomat from the early Ming dynasty, who is often regarded as the greatest admiral in History of China, Chinese history. Born into a Muslims, Muslim famil ...
in the
Ming Dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...
."静海寺"
accessed in November 2011. The terms of the
Treaty of Nanking The Treaty of Nanking was the peace treaty which ended the First Opium War (1839–1842) between United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Great Britain and the Qing dynasty of China on 29 August 1842. It was the first of what the Chinese ...
were discussed in the temple. It was destroyed and rebuilt thrice, during the
Taiping Rebellion The Taiping Rebellion, also known as the Taiping Civil War or the Taiping Revolution, was a civil war in China between the Qing dynasty and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. The conflict lasted 14 years, from its outbreak in 1850 until the fall of ...
and the
Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War was fought between the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the Empire of Japan between 1937 and 1945, following a period of war localized to Manchuria that started in 1931. It is considered part ...
. In 1988, it was rebuilt on its original site. In 1990, the temple became home to the Historical Exhibition Museum of the Treaty of Nanking. After two expansions in 1996 and 2005, it is now the Nanjing Jinghai Temple Memorial, with material related to both Zheng He's voyage and the Treaty of Nanking. It is a National 4A Level Scenic Spot, as well as part of the National Patriotism Education Base, and the Nanjing Relic Protection Unit.


History

Jinghai Temple (Temple of the Calm Sea) was built in 1416 by the
Yongle Emperor The Yongle Emperor (2 May 1360 – 12 August 1424), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Chengzu of Ming, personal name Zhu Di, was the third List of emperors of the Ming dynasty, emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1402 to 142 ...
of the Ming dynasty to honor
Zheng He Zheng He (also romanized Cheng Ho; 1371–1433/1435) was a Chinese eunuch, admiral and diplomat from the early Ming dynasty, who is often regarded as the greatest admiral in History of China, Chinese history. Born into a Muslims, Muslim famil ...
, a court eunuch, explorer, and envoy, who traveled to
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
and sailed as far as the east coast of Africa several times. It was one of Nanjing's largest and most lavishly decorated temples, originally built as a dedication to the Goddess of the Sea, Tianfei. It was named by the Emperor after a young woman from the
Fujian Fujian is a provinces of China, province in East China, southeastern China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capital is Fuzhou and its largest prefe ...
province who miraculously rescued sailors whose boats had gone adrift on the high seas. In June 1840, Great Britain declared war on China, the First Opium War, and in 1842, British troops invaded Nanjing. The Qing government discussed a treaty with the British government four times in Jinghai Temple. On August 29, the Qing government signed the ''Nanjing Treaty'', which is the first unequal treaty in modern Chinese history, on a British navy ship. Therefore, Jinghai Temple became a symbol of the beginning of Chinese modern history. By the time of the Republican Period, after the Taiping Rebellion and the destruction of traditional architecture during the Cultural Revolution, the temple had almost disappeared. The only remaining part of the original temple is a stele which was built and inscribed by the Yongle emperor himself. The museum was built next to a large outcropping rock known as ''Sansuyan'' (Three Night Crag) where the Southern Song general Yu Yunwen moored his fleet for three nights on his return trip after defeating the Jin army in Anhui province. It is also a place that offers the Arhat portraits of Buddha, relics of the Buddha and jade wares, etc. ''Jinghai'' literally means "peace and ocean" in Chinese, which indicates blessings for the people who are at sea. During the past five centuries, Jinghai Temple has undergone disasters and warfare. In 1987, it was rebuilt to 628 square meters in the style of the Ming dynasty. Since it could not be the same as the original one, Jinghai Temple was called ''Old Jinghai Temple Site''. In 1990, the Nanjing government decided to make it a public place, Nanjing Treaty Historical Exhibition Museum, in order to remind the Chinese people to not forget the history. At the end of 1996, to celebrate Hong Kong’s return, the local government invested a significant amount to rebuild it a third time. It was expanded to 2800 square meters, emulating the Jiangnan garden style. In 1997, Jinghai Temple was honored as one of 100 National Patriotism Education Bases.


References


External links


静海寺纪念馆

静海寺历史
" {{Nanjing Buddhist temples in Nanjing Ming treasure voyages