On April 2, 2026, Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou held a grand ceremony to mark the 1700th anniversary of its founding. Eminent monastic elders from Buddhist temples across the country, representatives of lay devotees and distinguished guests gathered at this millennium-old temple to jointly celebrate this historic occasion and share in the profound joy of the Dharma.
At 8:30 a.m., the Grand Ancestral Memorial Ceremony commenced at Fayun Hall. Monastic elders and lay representatives offered incense in reverent succession, while the assembly presented the Ten Traditional Offerings—incense, flowers, lamps, ointment, fruits, tea, food, jewels, pearls and robes. The hall resonated with solemn chants; fragrant clouds rose like incense offerings; and the entire assembly recited sutras with single-minded devotion. Ven. Guangquan, Abbot of Lingyin Temple, delivered the sacrificial oration—expressing deep gratitude for the patriarchs’ boundless compassion in propagating the Dharma, benefiting sentient beings, establishing this sacred monastery, and supporting the Sangha—and affirming the resolve of present and future practitioners to inherit the Buddha’s enlightenment and revitalize the Dharma lineage.
Upon concluding the main ceremony, the monastic community proceeded in formal order to the Master Li Pagoda, Patriarch Hall, Pagoda Forest, and other sacred sites to make offerings and pay homage to the patriarchs. Since the 28th Patriarch, we have honored and continued the lineage with the offering of incense; over seventeen centuries, we have been nourished by the Dharma-nourishment, symbolizing the nurturing transmission of the Dharma—limitless and unbounded. Within each hall and pagoda courtyard, resident monastics performed offerings with utmost reverence and chanted classical Buddhist hymns in heartfelt remembrance of the profound grace bestowed by Lingyin Temple’s successive abbots and by the virtuous masters throughout China who have expounded the teachings and upheld the Buddhist traditions. Their merits were dedicated for the enduring stability of the nation, the peace and well-being of its people, the long abidance of the True Dharma, and the ever-increasing radiance of the Buddha’s Luminous Teaching.
Leaders from relevant departments including the Ethnic and Religious Affairs Committee of Zhejiang Province, the Ethnic and Religious Affairs Committee of the Zhejiang Provincial Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, Hangzhou Municipal Bureau of Ethnic and Religious Affairs, as well as eminent monastic elders from the Buddhist community nationwide, were invited to attend the ceremony.
During the celebration, the newly compiled Annals of Lingyin Temple was officially unveiled. The result of years of rigorous research and collaborative effort, this volume systematically traces the temple’s 1700-year history—including its institutional evolution, architectural transformations, doctrinal developments, and the exemplary lives of its eminent monks—standing as a landmark achievement in Lingyin Temple’s cultural and scholarly heritage.
