Caotang Temple 草堂寺Cǎotáng Sì

About Caotang Temple

Caotang Temple, at the north foot of Guifeng Peak, grew from the garden where the Later Qin ruler housed the Kuchean monk Kumārajīva from 401, and where he led the translation of Buddhist scriptures that laid the foundations of East Asian Madhyamaka thought. His relics rest in a small Tang-dynasty stupa, carved in imitation of a timber pavilion from marble and stone of eight colours and known as the Eight-Treasure Jade Stupa. Restored from 1952 and an active monastery again since 1984, the temple is laid out in five courtyards with a memorial hall to Kumārajīva.

How to get to Caotang Temple

In Caotang town in Huyi District, about 40 km south-west of central Xi'an and roughly an hour by road.

Nearby

• Datang Everbright City 大唐不夜城 30 km
  A lantern-lit, Tang-themed avenue of street performers, sculptures and evening crowds
• Big Wild Goose Pagoda 大雁塔 30 km
  A Tang-dynasty pagoda built for scriptures a monk carried home from India
• Shaanxi History Museum 陕西历史博物馆 30 km
  Tang gold and silver, original tomb murals and finds from Shaanxi's Zhou, Qin and Han past
• Small Wild Goose Pagoda 小雁塔 30 km
  A slender Tang brick pagoda, cracked by earthquakes, in the grounds of the Xi'an Museum
• Xi'an City Wall 西安城墙 30 km
  Cycle all 14 km of a Ming city wall, high above Xi'an's rooftops

Also within 20 km: Jingde Pagoda (Baolin Temple Pagoda) 敬德塔 (under 10 km), Jinlong Gorge 金龙峡 (10 km), Qinling Wildlife Park 秦岭野生动物园 (10 km), Taiping National Forest Park 太平国家森林公园 (10 km), Xiangji Temple 香积寺 (20 km).

On the map

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Learn more

• Wikipedia
• Wikipedia (Chinese)