Zhizhe Pagoda Temple

CHINA, Zhejiang, Taizhou

The temple is located on the northern slope of Tiantaishan (Celestial Platform Mountain). It was built in 597 during the Sui dynasty, and it houses the body relic of Chan Master Zhiyi, founder of the Tiantai school. Master Zhiyi is also known as Master Zhizhe and the temple derives its name from this appellation. It was destroyed and rebuilt a number of times. It was listed as a Provincial Cultural Heritage Site in 1982.
The principal surviving buildings are the main temple gate, main hall, Sutra Repository Pagoda, and the Heart Sutra Pagoda. The five-bay wide main hall has a single-eave hip-and-gable roof. The hexagonal stone True Body Relic Pagoda of Master Zhizhe is located within the main hall. It has two tiers and is 7 m high. There is a seated statue of Master Zhizhe inside the first tier. There are carvings of apsaras, dragons, and lotuses throughout the pagoda. Portraits of the 17 patriarchs of the Tiantai school are hung on the walls inside the hall.