When tourists feel bustling in Humble Administrator's Garden, Hanshan Temple and Tiger Hill, the niche and elegance of Xiyuan are probably known only by local people-tasting a pot of Xiyuan Zen tea, making a bowl of noodle soup in the morning and meeting sticky temple cats everywhere is the time of Gusu.
/kloc-in 0/8, saionji voluntarily withdrew from the national 4A scenic spot. Four years later, can Cylons survive without 4A halo?
Saionji was founded between the Yuan Dynasty and the first year, and it was called Guiyuan Temple at that time, with a history of more than 700 years. In the eighth year of Chongzhen, Mao Lin, a lawyer, promoted the legalist thought here and renamed it Zhuangjie Fawang Temple. Because there is a release pond in the West Garden, it is commonly known as "Saiweng Temple" by Suzhou people.
On the bank of Shangtang River on one side of Qiao Feng Road, a yellow wall and a ceramic tile wall separate the noisy world. On this shore, people are living, while on the other shore, people are avoiding dust and cleaning.
Behind the city wall, Wisdom Bridge and Fude Bridge span the Shangtang River, which is said to be the blessing and expectation of the abbot of the temple to all beings. The river flows and the bridge is mottled. When entering and leaving the temple, exquisite tourists always step on different arch bridges and make small prayers in the dust.
Walk through an empty gate, an empty gate and an empty gate, and you will enter the real West Park.
In fact, the cylons are not too big. On the side of the front garden facing the river, the bell tower and drum tower stand opposite each other at the end of Bodhi Road. Every major ceremony and homework in the morning and evening, bells and drums will ring.
When the morning bell rings and Sanskrit sounds around your ears, you can also get a little peace of mind and body in saionji.
Passing through the Heavenly King's Hall dedicated to the four heavenly kings, the magnificent Hall of Great Heroes came into view. The Hall of the Great Hero is surrounded by mountains and has double eaves, with a width of seven feet and upturned cornices, which has typical characteristics of Buddhist temples in the south of the Yangtze River.
The Buddha statue in the Hall of the Great Hero is solemn and agile, and it enshrines three Buddha statues: Sakyamuni Buddha is the founder of Buddhism, leading others to feel him consciously; The pharmacist Buddha is the leader of the oriental glass world. He protects people from disasters and prolongs their life. Amitabha is the leader of the western paradise, leading all beings to get rid of their troubles.
Although Saiweng Temple is a minority temple in Suzhou, locals like to burn incense here. Candles burn for a long time, igniting hope, and falling down is prayer.
The only well-preserved and highly artistically carved group of Luohan statues in Jiangsu is the Luohan Hall in saionji. Counting arhats has also become a leisure game for tourists and pilgrims.
Choose a Lohan who is destined to start counting imaginary years, stop when counting to which Lohan, write down the Lohan number and exchange it for Lohan cards to get the corresponding poem title.
Ren Guang Release Pond is surrounded by the West Garden. The water in the pond is sparkling, sparkling, zigzag, sometimes bright and sometimes dark. The release pond is not only a place for doing good deeds, but also a place for tourists to wander around.
There used to be two spotted channel catfish in the pond, both of which were 400-year-old fish in Ming Dynasty, named Fangfang and Yuanyuan respectively. It is said that seeing spotted salamander will bring good luck and is a sign of auspicious arrival.
Although we didn't meet them when we went, we met many koi fish, pigeons and turtles. Creatures everywhere add vitality to saionji.
There is a pavilion in the center of the release pond. You can lean against the fence to watch the snow in winter and play with the fish in summer. Water corridors linger, pavilions and ponds reflect each other, gardens and ancient temples blend together, and noble and elegant scenery can only be appreciated in saionji.
Su-style noodles are very particular about ingredients, noodles and soup, such as traditional Ozao noodles, Fengzhen meat noodles, soup fried fish noodles and street food mutton noodles. ......
After years of inspection by local pilgrims, Saionji's vegetarian noodles are worth tasting in the mountains and rivers.
The vegetarian restaurant in the temple is near the Tianwang Hall, and you can see it through the narrow cloister under Ruyi Gate. On weekdays, the vegetarian restaurant provides three kinds of vegetarian noodles, vegetarian buns, some side dishes and drinks, and vegetarian biscuits. Vegetarian buffet is provided on Saturday and Sunday.
The vegetarian restaurant offers three kinds of vegetarian noodles: Jixiang noodles, Guanyin noodles and Ruyi noodles. Guanyin noodles are the signature of saionji. When we went there, we found many diners arrived early in the morning. After paying the tickets, they deliberately wanted to eat a bowl of Guanyin noodles.
/Guanyin noodles 15 yuan/
Guanyin noodle soup has bright head, sweet taste and rich toppings. As soon as the vegetarian toppings made of mushrooms, oil gluten and bamboo shoots were put out, the fragrance of fungi and bean products suddenly filled the whole booth.
Mushrooms are tender and smooth, bamboo shoots are big and crisp, and oil gluten absorbs the sweet soup in the mouth, and multiple umami flavors are transformed into rich layers in the mouth. With a chopstick and a spoonful of clear soup, an empty stomach in the morning is cured and appeased.
/Ruyi noodles 10 yuan/
If Guanyin noodles can represent the typical Soviet taste, then Ruyi and Jixiang noodles are the representative works of salty taste. Baked bran, day lily, bean sprouts and fungus are placed on the wishful noodles.
Fermented and steamed bran is rich in pores, soft and elastic in taste, absorbs the faint chrysanthemum fragrance of day lily, and supplements the protein and energy lacking in vegetarian noodles.
Compared with the crisp taste, the day lily soaked in noodle soup is softer and tender, and its unique fragrance adds a touch of sweetness and aftertaste to the faint broth.
/Auspicious noodles 20 yuan/
In contrast, the auspicious face is lighter. Snow-white noodles are covered with two pieces of vegetarian chicken, and pickled vegetables and edamame are added to the vegetarian chicken to enhance the flavor. Serve a bowl of auspicious noodles with lots of benefits based on fresh and tender vegetables.
Vegetarian chicken has a sense of existence both in size and thickness, and it is a little full to eat. Vegetarian chicken imitates meat with vegetarian diet, with soft skin, elastic teeth as a whole, and softness and toughness.
Surprisingly, after gently tearing the vegetarian chicken, the tofu inside is white and smooth, and the bean fragrance is mellow after soaking in the soup. Add some fresh and spicy shredded ginger, or pour a spoonful of balsamic vinegar and spicy sauce, and you will be full if you are not careful.
/Seasonal drinks, sour plum soup, red beans, coix seed, water and five-treasure tea/
The noodle restaurant also provides freshly cooked seasonal drinks. Sour plum juice is cool, sweet and sour, and half a bottle can relieve boredom and summer heat. The freshly cooked clear soup of red bean barley and red bean barley are precipitated and layered, which is light and thirst-quenching. Chaze, the five treasures of white fungus with peach gum, is made by stewing white fungus, lotus seeds, red dates, medlar and peach gum for 2 hours. Thick gum overflows and tastes slightly sweet, so it can be used as afternoon tea.
/Handmade Dim Sum/
Handmade snacks are small biscuits made by temple staff according to the situation. When we went there, we were selling cranberries and matcha flavors. Although vegetable butter is used in the formula, it is not cheap at all and very fragrant. It's the kind where you can finish a box without knowing it.
/Vegetable bag, knife-cut steamed bread, bean paste bag, vegetable bag/
There is a Xiyuan vegetarian bag for sale near Jingxiang, but it needs to be bought early. There are not many kinds, only steamed bread, bean paste bag and vegetable bag. Knife-cut steamed bread is bigger than fist, several times bigger than fist.
The inside of the bean paste bag is very delicate and the filling is solid. The taste is very special, which is different from that sold outside. The bean paste is rich in flavor and moderate in sweetness. The fillings of vegetables in vegetarian dishes are very chopped and fresh, and the overall taste is fresh and sweet.
Some people say that saionji voluntarily withdrew from the 4A scenic spot for the sake of being undisturbed in the clean land of Buddhism, while others say that it was to reduce the ticket price from 25 yuan to 5 yuan, so that all living beings could get in touch with Buddhism and Zen. I prefer the latter statement.
In fact, the biggest feeling that Siangi brought to people was not that he was at peace with the world, but that he was with the Buddha when he joined the WTO.
Saionji, located in Gusu City, is small, but there is no lack of human happiness and fireworks. Known as the "Holy Land for Cats", there are many cats in the temple, and they maintain a harmonious relationship with monks, volunteers and tourists.
You can see beaver flowers sleeping naked or big oranges patrolling bravely everywhere. Just squat down, wave and meow, and a cat will come.
Many cats in the temple also have legends. The big orange Dangdang, who once knelt on the abbot's mat, is the most Buddhist cat. Xiaohei, who has been sleeping in the corner of Luohantang for a long time, guards his home for the Buddhist holy land.
The name of this black cloud covered with snow is Qianba. It is said that when it was taken to the temple, it was very ill. Volunteers from the whole temple raised 1800 yuan for it, and took it to the pet hospital for treatment and careful care before it recovered.
In spring, "snow cats play with the wind and flowers", and in winter, "I don't go out with raccoons" is also a pleasant life.
Qi Fei, a pigeon in the West Garden, landed on the cornice; Koi fish plays in the release pond, and the little turtle swims around; The cat snores in the shade and the breeze is chirping.
Tips: Although saionji is open to all living things, abandoning animals does not mean releasing them! ! )
After a visit, if you want to know more about Zen and Buddhism, you can also pour a cup of Xiyuan Zen tea, choose a scripture in the teahouse and sit quietly and copy it.
The teahouse provides antibacterial hand gel. Before copying, clean your hands, choose a Buddhist scripture, meditate in your heart, and copy carefully until it stops naturally.
The teahouse is dark and quiet, the lights are dim, and the old fan rotates with the creaking sound, silently chanting scriptures and drinking a cup of Zen tea, and the whole person's mood becomes clear and quiet.
Zen tea is made of acacia vine leaves, Siraitia grosvenorii flowers, Chrysanthemum morifolium, etc. The entrance is slightly bitter and slightly fragrant with tea. After entering the throat, rich plant saponins and xylitol bring wonderful and persistent obvious sweetness, and the entrance is very refreshing.
"Bamboo shadows sweep the street dust, and the moon wears the bottom of the pool without a trace."
Although saionji is in the world, it is a real temple. Monks can be seen everywhere, cats are at your fingertips, tourists who attend Buddhist ceremonies and worship incense can be seen everywhere, and Buddhism can also be seen everywhere. ......
Just like this, leaving mortal dust and returning to mortal dust created a temple with extraordinary temperament in Gusu.
Includes driving directions and accommodation, tickets and local snacks