Longhua Temple

龙华寺 Lónghúa Sì

Address: 2853 Longhua Road, Xuhui District, Shanghai.
上海市徐汇区龙华路2853号
Tel.: +86 21 6456 6085
Opening hours: daily from 7:00 to 16:30
Admission: 10 RMB
Bus: 41, 44, 733, 734, 864, 809 to “Longhua” stop
Subway: Take metro line 3 and get off at “Longcao Road” station. Then, walk about 15 minutes.

龙华寺 Lónghúa Sì means Temple of the Dragon’s Brilliance. This Buddhist temple is dedicated to Maitreya, the future Buddha who will appear when the teachings of Buddha Shakyamuni have disappeared.

It is located in the Xuhui District 徐汇区 Xúhuì qū in Shanghai.

Although most of the buildings are of late construction, the temple has preserved architectural features of the Chan (Zen) school from the Song dynasty. It is the largest and most authentic Buddhist monastery in Shanghai.

Visit of the Longhua Temple

The Longhua Temple covers an area of 2 hectares. Its main axis runs north to south and is 194 meters long. The tallest building is the Longhua Pagoda, which rises to 40.4 meters.

The Longhua Temple is built in the style of Chan (Zen) Buddhism from the Song dynasty, known as the Five-Hall Sangharama style. Five main buildings are laid out along the main north-south axis.

Starting from the entrance, the five buildings are:

The Hall of Maitreya 弥勒殿 Mílè diàn:
 

The Hall of the Heavenly Kings 天王殿 Tiānwáng diàn, which contains statues of the Four Heavenly Kings:
 

The Grand Sage’s Precious Hall 大雄宝殿 Dàxióng bǎodiàn is the main building:
 

It houses statues of Shakyamuni (the historical Buddha) with two disciples: 
 

The Hall of the Three Saints 三圣殿 Sān shèng diàn:
 

It houses the Buddha Amitabha and the Bodhisattvas Avalokiteśvara and Mahāsthāmaprāpta: 
 

The Abbot’s Room 方丈室 Fāngzhàng shì is a reading and official reception room:
 

The Longhua Pagoda 龙华塔 Lónghuà tǎ is located outside Longhua Temple. It is an octagonal pagoda made of brick and wood, six stories high. Originally built during the Three Kingdoms, the current structure dates from the Northern Song dynasty. It has undergone many modifications throughout history. The pagoda is fragile and not open to the public: