Come to check out some of the spiritual temples in Beijing.

1. Yonghe Palace: Men praying for marriage

Yonghe Palace is located in the northeast corner of Beijing. The yellow tiles and red walls make this place have the same specifications with the Forbidden City. During the Qianlong era of the Ming Dynasty, it was converted into a temple and became a Buddhist monastery with high specifications nationwide. The Yonghe Palace has also inherited the function of boiling the laba porridge in Buddhist monasteries, which has continued until now.

Prayer guide: There is a popular saying that "men pray at Yonghegong and women pay at Hongluo Temple". For men, it is very spiritual to go to Yonghegong to pray for good fortune.

Address: No. 12 Yonghegong Street, Dongcheng District, Beijing

2. Hongluo Temple: Girls praying for marriage and children

Hongluo Temple is located at the southern foot of Hongluo Mountain, 5 km north of downtown Huairou District. With deep historical precipitation and cultural infiltration, wonderful geographical environment and climatic conditions, the Hongluo Temple has become the "Pure Land of Buddha". Sitting on the north and facing south, Hongluo Temple was built based on the mountain, with a strict layout and majestic atmosphere. It is surrounded by mountains and water, as well as ancient trees.

Prayer Guide：

Guanyin Temple is located at the end of Hongluo Temple, and is divided into two seats in front and behind. The former one is the Guanyin Temple, where you can pray for Buddha's blessing.

Address: No. 2, Hongluo East Road, Huairou District, Beijing

3. Reclining Buddha Temple: praying for good jobs and grades

Located in the Beijing Botanical Garden, the Reclining Buddha Temple was built in the Tang Dynasty during the Zhenguan period. In the Tang Dynasty, there was a reclining Buddha carved from sandalwood, and later in the Yuan Dynasty, a huge bronze statue of Shakyamuni Buddha in Nirvana was cast in the temple. This bronze statue is the oldest surviving bronze reclining Buddha in Beijing, making the temple famous. Because the pronunciation of "Reclining Buddha" in Chinese is similar to the English word "offer", many students applying to study abroad and looking for jobs after graduating from college come here to pray.

Prayer Guide:

The temple is open on the first and fifteenth days of the Lunar New Year for visitors to worship incense. Around the Spring Festival, the temple will hold a cultural event to enjoy the plums.

Address: South foot of Shouan Mountain, Xiangshan, Haidian District, Beijing

4. Tanzhe Temple: pray for a better official career, business and scholarship

Tanzhe Temple is a historic temple in Beijing, with a history of more than 1700 years. There is a saying that " there is Tan Zhe Temple first, then there is Beijing city ". According to historical records, throughout the dynasties, from princes and nobles to ordinary people have been keen to come here to pray for good fortune, and the temple has been extremely popular. After the Ming Dynasty, more and more people came here to pray for better official career. Not only does Tanzhe Temple have a lot of legends, the scenery is also extraordinarily charming. Due to its location in the mountains, the air here is always very good. The courtyard is quiet and elegant, with flowing springs and lush green bamboo, which is quite like a garden in Jiangnan.

Prayer Guide:

During the Qing Dynasty, emperors used to come here to pay homage to Buddha, and officials also came here to pray for blessings for good official career, too. There is a post office near Tanzhe Temple where you can get the stamp of a Buddha, which is very interesting.

Address: At the foot of Tanzhe Mountain, southeast of Mentougou District, Beijing

5. Tianning Temple: pray for better business

Tianning Temple is located at the north of Guang'anmen in Beijing. It was built in the period of Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty, and then was repaired in the Ming Dynasty. In the middle of the mountain gate is a stone arch coupon door, and there are two stone coupon windows on each side of the door. On top of the coupon door is a plaque inscribed with the golden characters of "Edict built Tianning Temple". Tianning Temple has two wonders, one of which is the three-layer lotus, which has 360 lotus petals. In the past, on the eighth day of each month in the lunar calendar, monks injected oil into each lotus petal and lit 360 Buddha lamps. At this time, the lights illuminated the pagoda and reflected the stars and moon in the sky. People from far and near gathered to watch the lanterns and pray for blessings together. Secondly, there are more than 3,000 wind bells on each of the 13-layered dense eaves. Whenever the wind rises, the bells ring. The lights and the bells are the distinctive scenery of Tianning Temple.

Prayer Guide:

In ancient times, people who came to Beijing from other provinces to be officials or run businesses would first visit Tianning Temple to pray for peace or a good official career. In the old days, during the Spring Festival, the emperor would lead all the officials to Tianning Temple to light lamps for Buddha, praying for a prosperous year. On the eighth day of each month in lunar calendar, 360 lamps would be lit and people would gather to watch and pray together.

Address: No. 2, Tianningsi Qianjie, Xicheng District, Beijing

6. Wanshou Temple: praying for blessings and wishing longevity

Wanshou Temple was built during the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty. It is located on the third ring road in the west of Beijing, next to the Grand Canal, and is a national key cultural relic protection unit. It is divided into the middle, east and west, combining temples, palaces and gardens in one, known as "the small Imperial Palace in western Beijing".

Prayer guide：

This is the imperial place of praying for longevity in the Ming and Qing dynasties. Emperor Qianlong had been here three times to celebrate the birthday of his mother. The temple does not light incense, and there is no need to votive. People praying for blessings can just write down their names on the red prayer board. The Kunming Lake in the Summer Palace flows along the Changhe River to the Yongding River, presenting the shape of a dragon. The Summer Palace is located in the position of the eye of the dragon and the temple is at the position of its neck. The roof inside the mountain gate is painted with white clouds and 100 red bats to bless longevity.

Address: Northeast of Zizhu Bridge, West Third Ring Road, Haidian District, Beijing

7. Dajue Temple: Pray for peace and good fortune

This is an ancient temple of the Liao Dynasty located deep in the western mountains of Beijing. There are sublime mountains, lush forests and flowing springs, as well as 300-year-old magnolia trees and 200-year-old vine flowers. There are two springs around the temple, blessing the vitality and aura of the place. In the Sutra Building high above the temple, the presiding Zen Master Jialing of the Yongzheng period of the Qing Dynasty is enshrined.

Prayer Guide：

The peace amulets at Dajue Temple are very popular and the temple is hung with red peace amulets.

Address: Bei'anhe Township, Sujiatuo Town, Haidian District, Beijing

8. Miao Ying Temple: Unexpected Wishes

Miao Ying Temple, commonly known as "White Pagoda Temple", is located in Fuchengmennei Street, Xicheng District. It is a Tibetan Buddhist Gelugpa monastery was built in the Yuan Dynasty.

Built in the Yuan Dynasty, the White Pagoda in the temple is a very old and large scale lamasery in China. In the first year of the Ming Dynasty, the temple was rebuilt and renamed as "Miao Ying Temple" after completion.

Prayer Guide：

As the temple is called, the Miao Ying Temple will help you make your wishes come true in an unexpected way.As a royal temple of the Yuan Dynasty, Miaoying Temple enshrines Buddhist relics as well as incense pagodas, Buddhist scriptures and other holy objects.

Address: No. 171, Funei Street, Xicheng District, Beijing

9. Guanghua Temple

Guanghua Temple is located at No. 31 Ya Er Hutong, north of Shichahai, Xicheng District, Beijing. It is a large Buddhist monastery in Beijing and the seat of the Beijing Buddhist Association.

Prayer Guide:

Since its foundation, Guanghua Temple has maintained the tradition of giving laba porridge on the 8th day of each month in the lunar calendar. People believe that if they drink the porridge at Guanghua Temple, they will be able to get rid of disasters and difficulties and be healthy in both body and mind.

Address: North Ya Er Hutong, Shichahai, Xicheng District, Beijing

10.Jietai Temple: dispel disasters and safeguard peace

Jingtai Temple was built in the Sui Dynasty and is known as the "First Temple in the World" because of the large Buddhist altar built inside the temple. The temple is built based on the mountain, and the building group is quiet and simple, which is known for its "altar, strange pine and ancient cave". Since its completion, many writers and scholars have left poems and songs here, making the temple's cultural heritage more profound.

Prayer Guide:

When the Eight-Power Allied Forces invaded Beijing, the Temple became a refuge for thousands of people. Many people believed that the temple was spiritual and could bless them from the disaster.

Address: Ma' anshan, Mentougou District, Beijing

11. Tongkyo Temple: Chant for the dead

This is a nun's temple in Beijing, which was renamed "Tongjiao Zen Forest" in the Qing Dynasty, and was renovated around 1942 by the nun's monk Kaihui, and was renamed "Tongkyo Temple". The religious activities in the temple are based on the practice of the precepts, and precepts are very strict.

Prayer Guide:

This temple provides hospice care for female believers.

Address: No. 19, Zhenxian Hutong, North Small Street, Dongzhimennei, Chaoyang District, Beijing

12. Yunju Temple: praying for children and marriage

Yunju Temple is located at the foot of the White Belt Mountain, south of Shuitou Village, Dashiwo Town, Fangshan District, Beijing. The scenery here today has not changed much from a thousand years ago and is still popular today. It has a reputation as the "Great Temple in the North" as it undertakes important religious activities.

Prayer Guide：

On the sixth floor of the temple is the Hall of Great Compassion, where a thousand-armed, thousand-eyed Guanyin Bodhisattva is enshrined. On the left and right of the statue of Guanyin are many children.

On the eighth day of the fourth month of the lunar calendar is the Buddha Bathing Festival. It is amazing that it rains at Yunju Temple every time the Buddha Bathing Festival is held.

Address: South of Shuitou Village, Dashiwo Town, Fangshan District, Beijing

13. Biyun Temple: Divine Fate

Biyun Temple in Xiangshan Mountain is a beautiful temple with a history of more than 600 years. Despite its small scale, it has ten well-known scenic spots such as Huanfeng Diecui and Biyun Xiangai. After several expansions in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Biyun Temple has become a magnificent monastery among Buddhist temples in Xishan.

Prayer Guide：

People who come to Biyun Temple will go to the 500 Luohan Hall to count Luohan. Counting Luohan means choosing one Luohan at random and counting up to the age of the year oneself. The identity, expression and movement of this last Luohan indicates one' s wish.

Address: North Gate of Xiangshan Park, Haidian District, Beijing

14. Guangji Temple: Zen and Enlightenment

This is one of the famous "Eight Inner Temples" in Beijing, which was built in the Jin Dynasty. It was rebuilt in Ming Dynasty and given the name "Hongci Guangji Temple" in the second year of Chenghua era of the Ming Dynasty. It is not a very large temple, and the existing buildings maintain the Ming Dynasty pattern. However, this non-famous temple has the title of " First Temple in China". Guangji Temple enshrines many statues of Buddha from the Ming and Qing dynasties, and the temple also collects many precious Buddhist scriptures, inscriptions and other cultural relics.

Prayer Guide:

Guangji Temple is the seat of the Chinese Buddhist Association and the Chinese Institute of Buddhist Studies, and many senior monks are stationed here. It is usually a secluded place, which is a good place for meditation and enlightenment.

Address: No. 25, Fuchengmennei Street, Xicheng District, Beijing

Make a wish at these temples for good health, family happiness and good work. Each person gains a brief moment of faith in the process of praying. So, which temple do you want to visit and what wish do you want to make?

Translated by LIU Yu

Edited by WANG Jingyan