Nan Chan Temple

Nan chan Temple is the oldest Han Buddhism monastery (Pure Land Sect) in Qinghai Province. It is located at the northern foot of Fenghuang Mountain (Nanshan) in Xining City. It faces each other across a distance with Bei Shan temple, so that it is called Nanchan temple,

Here, “Nan” means South; “Bei” means North

It was built in Bei-Song Dynasty (997 -1065 AD), it was originally the Guandi Temple for folk belief。

As a Buddhist monastery, it was rebuilt in Ming Yongle 8^th year (1410 AD) and formed a certain scale.Part of the palace was destroyed due to war in the second year of Tongzhi in Qing Dynasty (1863 AD). Then, after more than ten years of efforts in raising funds and donating money during the Guangxu period of Qing Dynasty, a large-scale palace complex was finally built.

This building complex centered on Guandi Temple is one of the most well-preserved ancient building complexes in Xining. It is an important place for religious activities of Chinese Buddhism believers in the local and surrounding areas. It is also the oldest Chinese Buddhist monastery in Qinghai Province.

Nan Chan Temple has five courtyards and 86 houses. The main buildings include the Great Hall of Thrones, Thousand Buddha Hall, Jade Buddha Hall, Three Deities Hall, Skanda (Wei Tuo) Hall, Maitreya Hall, and Kṣitigarbha Hall. In May 1986, it was listed as a provincial-level cultural relics protection unit by Qinghai Province Government。

The gate of Nanchan temple is a two-story pavilion at the foot of the mountain. Below is the gate to the temple, and above is the stage, maintaining the characteristics of the temple gate of folk faith.

The Buddhist temple complex is halfway up the mountain, and the temple model maintains the style of the Han Buddhist temple. During the Ming Wan-li period, Taoist priests came to retreat here, and Taoist palaces were added to the complex. After continuous expansion, by the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, the three coexisted religion building groups with different styles were built on the mountain and centering around the Guandi Temple

There are Buddhism’s Temple of Protection, Taoist’s Zhenwu Temple, and folk belief’ Temple of Wealth. There are many people who believe in these three beliefs.

Address & Contact

Add : No.93, Nan Shan Road | 西宁市城中区南山路93号
Contact : +86 971 858-6071

How to get there

This site is central located in Xining city, it can be reached easily by Bus or Taxi
By bus : line 116, 21, 43, 103, 105, at bus stop “Nan-Shan-Shi-Zhan | 南禅寺站”