The Tanzhe Si, a typical Buddhist
temple, stands in the Tanzhe Hills on the western outskirts of
Beijing. It was the first temple that appeared in the Beijing area.
The magnificent architecture could rival imperial palaces and
halls. When the temple was built during the Jin Dynasty (AD265-
420), Buddhism began to spread in Ji (the ancient name of an area
southwest of present- day Beijing, later known as Youzhou). So
there is a saying that "First there was the Tanzhe Temple, then
there was Beijing."
Buddhism was introduced into China during the Eastern Han Dynasty
(AD 25-220). Temples were built throughout the country. The places
where images of Buddha were enshrined and eminent monks from India
stayed were regarded as sacred places like government offices. As
the saying goes, "There were 480 temples during the Southern
Dynasties. Many famous mountains were occupied by monks." Cast
during the reign of Emperor Chenghua of the Ming Dynasty, the bell
at the Tanzhe Temple is 0.47metre in height, 0.31 meter in rim
diameter and 24.8 kilograms in weight. On the waist of the bell is
an inscription of seal characters which means that the bell was
made uring the reign of Chenghua of the Ming Dynasty. It is
ecorated with fret patterns and a design of two dragons laying with
a pearl. The exquisite bell is a proof of the renovation and
extension of the Tanzhe Temple to the present cale at the end of
the 17th century.