James Baquet

    jamesbaquet@gmail.com

    LEAVING Shenyang’s Banruo Temple, I walked up the side of the property and, after a few wrong turns, found my next destination: Ci’en (Compassion) Temple, the 60th I would visit from my list.

    This is one of the oldest (if not the oldest) temples in Shenyang. It was first built in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), and rebuilt in the Ming (1368-1644). Abandoned again, it was built to its present size about 100 years ago. And, as history would have it, it was occupied by a factory a few decades ago, reverting to Buddhist control in 1987.

    Like many older establishments, it is the headquarters of a Buddhist association, this one the Shenyang Municipal Buddhist Association.

    The temple houses numerous treasures, including ancient scriptures (not usually on display) and a fine set of painted Arhats in the main hall. One nice surprise was that the Heavenly Kings’ Hall contained piles of foodstuffs, presumably for redistribution to the needy.

    Leaving Ci’en Temple through streets lined with vendors of Buddhist goods, a short walk took me to the small nunnery called Dafo (Great Buddha) Temple, which was under repair.

    Though the “Big” Buddha wasn’t so big, and the place was a mess, there was a pleasing quietness about it, underscored perhaps by the homey atmosphere of food being prepared and the nuns’ clothes hung out to dry.