The 1,500-year-old Nanhua (South China) Temple was enveloped by incense and Buddhist chants Sunday morning as thousands of Buddhist believers from all over the world inundated the temple to mark its founding anniversary.
One of the most important Buddhist temples in China, the Nanhua Temple was set up in Shaoguan City, south China's Guangdong Province, 1,500 years ago.
One of China's most revered monks, Huineng, the founder of Zen Buddhism, began his monkhood in the temple in 670, which made it renowned all over the country. It was from the Nanhua Temple that Zen spread its influence to Japan and some southeast Asian countries.
"It is an important day for the Buddhist society to carry forward the power of Buddha and the Buddhist culture," said Yang Tongxiang, deputy director of the State Administration of Religious Affairs.
According to monks with the temple, around 100,000 people made a pilgrimage to the Buddhist shrine for its anniversary.
(People's Daily November 11, 2002)
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