Guangfu Temple is located in Taihu Yuantouzhu Scenic Area. It is the earliest temple open to the outside world in Wuxi. At the junction of ‘Yuanzhu Spring Tide’ and ‘Wanlang Rolling Snow’, it faces the lake with mountains at its back and is oriented south. During the Liang Dynasty of the Southern Dynasties, there was Guangfu Nunnery built at the back of Yuantouzhu, also known as Qiaoyan Temple. The ancient temple with tall forests has experienced rises and falls. In the autumn of 1925, Monk Liangru rebuilt it on ten mu of mountain land donated by squire Yang Hanxi. Taking the meaning of ‘a vast land and numerous people ascending to the blessed land and cave paradise’, it was named ‘Guangfu Temple’. In 1980, Guangfu Temple returned to the city’s Buddhist Association. The Four Heavenly Kings, Maitreya Buddha, Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva and others were remolded. Eighteen arhats were also invited from Beijing. Zhao Puchu, president of the Buddhist Association of China, inscribed the plaque ‘Great Perfect Enlightenment’, and Wei Tianchi inscribed the plaque ‘Guangfu Temple’. Religious activities were resumed. Inside the temple, in the monk’s quarters ‘Huayan Jingshe’, there are three treasures that guard the temple: ostrich eggs, an ancient painting ‘Picture of Hundred Birds’, and the iron whip of Yang Ziyuan, a righteous man who resisted the Qing Dynasty in the late Ming Dynasty. There are also five rooms of ‘Tuilu’ by Cai Jiansan. Its architectural layout is in the traditional pattern, including bell and drum towers, Heavenly Kings Hall, Mahavira Hall, etc., supplemented by auxiliary buildings such as Taozhu Pavilion, Boyuan Hall, Huayu Pavilion, Huayan Jingshe, and Tuilu. Although there are only more than twenty rooms, the layout is proper, well-arranged, and the environment is quiet. One can overlook Taihu Lake and exclusively enjoy the beautiful scenery of the lake and mountains. To the east of Guangfu Temple is ‘Little Nanhai’ shaded by bamboo forests. It was built by Monk Pushan and is the Taoist field of Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva. Its vegetarian noodles and vegetarian dishes are famous far and wide. The specific business hours and operating status are subject to the opening situation on that day.
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