Jokhang Temple(大昭寺)

Hello，everyone!Welcome to Jokhang Temple! It is a must see during your tour of Lhasa，because this temple has long been eulogized as“the holiest of all temples”.Here the life-size gilt statue of Jowo Sakyamuni，brought to Tibet at the age of 12 by Princess Wencheng，is niched in the main hall.

History

“Jokhang”，in the Tibetan vernacular，means“the temple of Jowo Sakyamuni”.It is believed that King Songtsen Gampo's Nepalese Princess Bhrikuti had wanted a temple to be built for the holy purpose of enshrining the Buddha's statue.There is an interesting legend regarding the temple's present location.It is said a body of water used to be here.Princess Wencheng used Chinese Yin-Yang Astrology in fortune-telling to discover that this water was really a hag's heart，whose evils could be suppressed by having a temple erected over it.Thus，Songtsen Gampo，to fulfill her wish，decreed that a temple should be built at this location and it was completed in 647，during the 21^st year of the Tang Dynasty Zhenguan Period.However，in later dynasties，particularly in the Fifth Dalai Lama's reign，much expansion and renovation was done on the temple.This work increased the temple's size to its present area of 25，100 square meters.More than 20 palaces proudly stand here，and they can accommodate thousands of pilgrims coming here to participate in religious ceremonies.

All throughout its 1，300 years' history，the Jokhang Temple has been a holy place for Buddhists.Huge numbers of pilgrims clad in white scarves(Hada) have come here great distances to worship deities and hum sacred mantras to obtain blessings.Every year the spectacular Great Prayer Festival，which was inaugurated in 1409，is held on the third day of the first month on the Zang calendar in the temple.Another grand ceremony is the rites of Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama's initiation into Lama hood.

On the square in front of the temple stands a stelewhich records an alliance between the king of Tibet and the emperor of the Tang Dynasty(618–907 A.D.)，an extremely important historical event，and willow trees，believed to have been planted by King Songtsen Gampo and Princess Wencheng.These trees have been turning green year after year，as if to bear witness to this royal couple's glory.The temple's interior remains in good condition and contains many invaluable cultural relics.One is the previously mentioned statue of the Buddha.This statue is flanked by altars dedicated to Songtsen Gampo，Princess Wencheng，and Bhrikuti，who introduced Buddhism into Tibet.Another must see sight is the nearly 1，000 meters of murals rendered in the Tibetan style.These murals depict Princess Wencheng's arrival in Tibet，detail how the Jokhang Temple was built，and portray Jataka stories.Two perfectly preserved thangkas portraying Yamantaka and Chakrasamvara are fine representatives of the high level of craftsmanship attained in Ming Dynasty(1368-1644 A.D.) embroidery.And many other rare valuables，bespeaking the splendor of Tibetan history，are also on display here.

Architectural Features

The Jokhang's architecture is distinguished by an accomplished combination of Han，Tibetan and Nepalese styles.The temple is a four stories high giant complex，crowned with a gilt top，and its basic structure is a bow-bracketed frame，while its turrets and sculptured crossbeams feature a Tibetan style.Mingled into the general tone of the Tang Dynasty(618–907 A.D.) are outlandish wooden carved prostrate beasts and 103 sphinxes located under the second and third eaves of the main hall，which are emblematic of Nepalese or Indian fashion.Some 20 large columns stand in the main hall，whose supporting crossbeams are decorated with swans and elephants in relief，exquisite and lifelike to the eye.In addition to its religious significance，this temple complex is the earliest practical and aesthetic exemplar of Tibetan wood structure buildings.

As one of Buddhism's most holy shrine，the Jokhang Temple is highly esteemed beyond Tibet; large masses of worshipers and visitors from outside Tibet have been coming here every day.

各位朋友，大家好!歡迎光臨大昭寺!來到拉薩而不一睹大昭寺的風采，那將是終生的遺憾，因為大昭寺是“圣地中的圣地”，是供奉釋迦牟尼金像的佛地。

歷史

藏語稱大昭寺為“覺康”，即“釋迦牟尼之寺”。大昭寺始建于公元647年，相傳是松贊干布為迎文成公主進藏而修建。原址為一片湖水，文成公主施用陰陽之術，測出此湖為魔女之心所在。為驅(qū)魔祈福，松贊干布填湖造寺，三年建成。后經(jīng)歷代修葺擴建，規(guī)模宏大，氣勢壯偉。大昭寺占地2.51萬平方米，殿堂20余處，可容數(shù)萬僧人做法事。

大昭寺建成至今，一直是西藏佛教的圣地，法事活動的中心，僧人和信眾頂禮膜拜的大廟名剎。1409年，黃教祖師宗喀巴創(chuàng)立拉薩大法會，此后經(jīng)五世達賴擴充其規(guī)模，并定立每年藏歷正月初三至廿五日為大法會期，朝拜者如云，使大昭寺成為名副其實的黃教的“根本道場”，佛名遠播。

在大昭寺前，作為重大歷史事件的見證，立著“唐蕃會盟”碑，而松贊干布與文成公主合植的唐柳依然垂綠，令游人不禁遐想當年盛況。大昭寺內(nèi)藏有珍稀文物，璀璨奪目。主殿供奉著釋迦牟尼12歲時的等身鎦金像，栩栩如生;配殿上佇立著松贊干布、文成公主和尼泊爾尺尊公主等塑像;墻上的藏式壁畫長近千米，一幅為《文成公主進藏圖》，另一幅是《大昭寺修建圖》;寺內(nèi)有兩幅明代的刺繡護法唐卡，一為《勝樂金剛》，一為《大威德金剛》，是藏傳佛教格魯派所膜拜的密宗佛中的兩尊，繡工精美，雖經(jīng)數(shù)百年歲月磨礪，至今色彩明艷，畫面完好無損，實為稀世藝術珍品。

建筑特色

大昭寺的建筑風格也獨樹一幟，融漢、藏、尼泊爾、印度風格為一體，于宏偉中見精細，粗獷里顯雕琢。殿高四層，金頂臨空，漢式斗拱為整體基調(diào)，碉樓、雕梁為西藏特色，而主殿二、三層檐下103具木雕伏獸和人面獅身依序而列，呈尼泊爾和印度異國情調(diào)。正殿有20根大木柱，斗拱架梁，飾有天鵝、白象等浮雕，精致而生動。作為西藏歷史上最早的土木結(jié)構建筑，大昭寺創(chuàng)立了藏式平川式的寺廟布局典范，具有很高的審美價值。

千年大昭寺不愧為藏傳佛教的最高殿堂，將密宗理義關于宇宙的理想模式--壇城(曼陀羅)再現(xiàn)于氣勢恢弘的建筑群中，成為虔誠的信徒們的靈魂寄托之處。