The Yonghe Temple (雍和宮) or Lama Temple

The "Lama Temple" is a temple and monastery of the Geluk School of Tibetan Buddhism (also called Yellow Hat Sect) located in the northeastern part of Beijing, China. It is one of the largest Tibetan Buddhist monasteries in the world. The architecture and artwork of the temple combines Han Chinese and Tibetan aesthetics. Heavily touristed, the temple sometimes seems to lack the religious devotional feeling found in other temples of China. That might might be due as much to its political origins as the constant traffic of tourists.

History

The Lama Temple was built in 1694 (Qing Dynasty) as an official residence for court eunuchs. It was then converted into the court of the Prince Yong (Yin Zhen), a son of the Kangxi Emperor who became the Yongzheng Emperor. After Yongzheng's ascension to the throne in 1722, half of the building was converted into a lamasery, a monastery for monks of Tibetan Buddhism. The other half remained an imperial palace.

After Yongzheng's death in 1735, his coffin was placed in the temple. The Qianlong Emperor, Yongzheng's successor, gave the temple imperial status and replaced its turquoise tiles with imperial yellow tiles. Subsequently, the monastery became a residence for large numbers of Tibetan Buddhist monks from Mongolia and Tibet.

During Yongzheng and Qianlong's reign China was expanding its borders. Qianlong in particular expanded China to a size greater than it had been since the Yuan Dynasty (400 years earlier). Tibet was one of the regions that was being incorporated into Qing China. So the Lama Temple played a role in this process. It was a symbol from the start of the special relationship between China and Tibet that continues to today.

Yet, this is not just a temple to signify Chinese conquest of Tibet. The issue is like so many fun ones to study, much more complex. The Qing Dynasty was ruled by the Man people (Manchu), not the Han (ethnic Chinese) Chinese themselves. The Man population is less than 5% of China's population. In order for such a small minority group to rule they needed to continue to signify their difference and incorporate other minority groups into the empire to expand their numbers. The growth of the empire was not just about conquests in new regions but incorporating other minority groups into the empire to better control China itself. So the Lama Temple was not to just to signify a new colonizing conquest but to remind the Han Chinese of the differences between them and the Man (as well as the commonality between the Man and their nomadic brethren - the Mongols & Tibetans). So politics as much as devotion was on the mind of the emperor as this temple was dedicated.

In 1792, the Qianlong Emperor set up a new administrative system to show the political as well as religious connections between Beijing and Tibet. From then on the Lama Temple would house the vase used in the lottery to decide the reincarnation of the Panchen Lama. Another identical vase was kept in Lhasa to determine the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama. The religious and political connections of this temple have been used to support Chinese claims on Tibet ever since.

Architecture and Art

The Yonghe Temple is arranged along a 480 meter north-south central axis. The main gate is at the southern end of this axis. Along the axis, there are five main halls which are separated by courtyards: the Hall of the Heavenly Kings (Tian Wang Dian or Devaraja Hall), the Hall of Harmony and Peace (Yonghegong), the Hall of Everlasting Protection (Yongyoudian), the Hall of the Wheel of the Law (Falundian), and the Pavilion of Ten Thousand Happinesses (Wanfuge).

The Hall of the Heavenly Kings is the southernmost of the main halls, it served originally as the main entrance to the monastery. In the center of the hall stands a statue of the Maitreya Buddha, along the walls statues of the four Heavenly Kings are arranged.

The Hall of Harmony and Peace is the main building of the temple. It houses three bronze statues of the Buddhas of the Three Ages, the statue of the Gautama Buddha (Buddha of the Present) is in the center, it is flanked by the statue of Kasyapa Matanga (Buddha of the Past, right) and the Maitreya Buddha (Buddha of the Future, left). Along the sides of the hall, are the statues of the 18 Arhat. A mural in the hall shows the bodhisattva Avalokitesvara.

The Hall of Everlasting Protection was Emperor Yongzheng's living quarters as a prince and the place where his coffin was placed after his death. Today, a statue of the Bhaisajya-guru (healing Buddha) stands in this hall.

The Hall of the Wheel of the Law functions as a place for reading scriptures and conducting religious ceremonies. It contains a large statue of Je Tsongkhapa, founder of the Geluk School. The hall also contains the Five-Hundred-Arhat-Hill, a carving make of red sandalwood with statues of the arhats made from five metals (gold, silver, copper, iron, and tin).

The Pavilion of Ten Thousand Happinesses contains an 18m tall statue of the Maitreya Buddha carved from a single piece of White Sandalwood. The statue is one of three artworks in the Temple which were included in the Guinness Book of Records in 1993.

Location

The Temple is easy to get to. The Yonghegong or Lama Temple subway stop is right to the north of the temple. Make sure to visit the Confucian Temple after the Lamam Temple. It is one block away (almost straight ahead from the exit of the Lama parking lot). The Confucian temple offers lots of contrasts to the Lama temple as well as a quite spot to get away from the hordes of tourists.