Jing'an Temple 静安寺

Jing'an Temple stands at 1686 Nanjing West Road, in the middle of one of Shanghai's busiest commercial quarters, where tall buildings crowd around a walled complex of halls, towers and courtyards. It is among the earliest Buddhist temples in the Shanghai area. Tradition places its founding in 247, when it was known as Huchong Chongyuan Temple and stood on the north bank of the Wusong River; it received the name Jing'an in 1008. In 1216 the abbot Zhongyi moved it away from the crumbling riverbank to where it now stands, and the surrounding district still carries its name.

The temple has been damaged and rebuilt repeatedly over the centuries. Its most recent large reconstruction began in 1998 and took Song-dynasty building methods as its model, which shows in the ridge ornaments, the overhanging eaves and the bracket sets, in roofs of yellow and dark grey copper tile, and in structural timber brought from Myanmar. The main hall is fitted together with mortise-and-tenon joints and holds without a single nail.

Beyond the gate, a tall inscribed pillar, bell and drum towers, side halls and a pagoda enclose a square courtyard. The collection includes paintings by Bada Shanren, a cursive scroll of Wen Zhengming's calligraphy, a great bell cast in 1369, and many stone, bronze, gilt and porcelain Buddhas. Older descriptions name eight celebrated sights, among them the Red Crow stele, the Yongquan spring and the old ferry crossing.

Don't miss

• Great bronze bell cast in 1369, still preserved
• Wen Zhengming cursive scroll and Bada Shanren paintings
• Main hall joined by mortise and tenon, without nails
• Copper-tiled roofs and Song-style bracket sets
• The Eight Scenes of Jing'an, from stele to spring

Visiting tips

Metro lines 2 and 7 stop at Jing'an Temple station, and several buses pass nearby. Arrive early in the morning, when you may hear the monks chanting. This is a working temple, so keep your voice low near halls where monks are at their devotions.