Tianning Monastery  天寧寺

https://architecturasinica.org/place/000297

Names

  • Tianning Monastery (English)
  • 天寧寺 (Traditional Chinese)
  • 天宁寺 (Simplified Chinese)
  • Tiānníngsì (Pinyin)
  • T’ien-ning-ssu (Wade-Giles)
  • Tianwang Monastery (English)
  • 天王寺 (Traditional Chinese)
  • 天王寺 (Simplified Chinese)

Location

  • Coordinates:
    • Lat. 39.892833° Long. 116.339841°
  • Site Information

    The Tianning Monastery is a Buddhist monastery complex located in Xicheng district, Beijing. Although historical records usually date the Tianning Monastery to the Northern Wei period, the contemporary scholar Wang Shiren writes that the monastery was first built in the Tang dynasty under the name Tianwangsi (天王寺) and was dedicated to Vaisravana (1996, 9). The octagonal pagoda still extant today was constructed during the Tianqing reign of the Liao dynasty in 1120 (Wang and Wang 2011, 80). Later records show that the monastery was destroyed at the end of the Liao dynasty and rebuilt by Emperor Yongle (r. 1402 - 1424) of the Ming dynasty while he was the Prince of Yan. The monastery was renamed Tianningsi in the tenth year of the Xuande reign (1435) of the Ming dynasty. The buildings standing today date to another reconstruction in the twenty-first year of Qianlong (1756) of Qing with additional renovations from 1938 (Wang 1996, 12). 1

    Dynasty Tang 618-907 2

    External Links

    Works Cited

    Any information without attribution has been created following the Syriaca.org editorial guidelines.

    • 1 王. 1996. 北京天宁寺塔三题, 9-12.Link to Zotero Bibliographic Record; 汪. 2011. 北京名刹天宁寺, 80.Link to Zotero Bibliographic Record
    • 2 WILKINSON. 2000. Chinese History: A Manual, 12.Link to Zotero Bibliographic Record

    Contains artifact(s) (1)

    Date range



    How to Cite This Entry

    Sophia Liu, “Tianning Monastery  天寧寺 ” in Architectura Sinica last modified March 21, 2024, https://architecturasinica.org/place/000297.

    Bibliography:

    Sophia Liu, “Tianning Monastery  天寧寺 .” In Architectura Sinica, edited by Tracy Miller. Entry published December 9, 2021. https://architecturasinica.org/place/000297.

    About this Entry

    Entry Title: Tianning Monastery  天寧寺

    Authorial and Editorial Responsibility:

    • Tracy Miller, editor, Architectura Sinica
    • Sophia Liu, entry contributor, “Tianning Monastery  天寧寺

    Additional Credit:

    • Website coordination by Yuh-Fen Benda
    • Initial research 2021 by Sophia Liu
    • Editing and proof correction by Tracy Miller

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