When the Water in the Pool is Full, the Moon Comes Naturally
I have been to Jingshan Temple many times, but I didn’t know much about the rise and fall of Jingshan Temple. This time I found that the Jingshan Temple Exhibition Hall was open. I had some free time, so I learned about the history of Jingshan Temple.
The history of the temple begins with the founder of Jingshan Temple, Zen Master Faqin’s “When the water in the pool is full, the moon comes naturally”. Although Jingshan Temple is hidden in the deep mountains, due to the efforts and cultivation of monks in past dynasties, Jingshan Temple became the head of the Five Mountains in its heyday. Jingshan Zen Buddhism even spread to Japan. The prototype of the little monk Ikkyu in Japanese animation, Monk Ikkyu, was a disciple under the lineage of Zen Master Xutang of Jingshan.
In addition to the founder, the most famous abbot in the history of Jingshan Temple is Zen Master Dahui Zonggao. He was the founder of Kan-hua Zen (Zen of contemplating sayings) and a hero who strongly advocated resisting the Jin Dynasty. He was exiled to Hainan for this reason.
Later, there was also the famous Zen Master Shifan. His disciple, Zen Master Muqi, influenced the direction of Japanese painting with his free-spirited painting style, and seems to be even more famous.
In addition to the character line, the exhibition hall also has a timeline of the construction, rise, and fall of the temple in past dynasties. Basically, each abbot did two things: building temples and preaching Buddhism. Generally, abbots with high Buddhist cultivation or who carried forward Zen Buddhism also contributed greatly to the expansion of the temple, mainly because of their great influence, large audience, and easy fundraising.
In addition, it can be seen from the brief history of Jingshan Temple that Buddhists also tried to increase their influence by influencing government officials and even the emperor. From the founder, Zen Master Faqin, being bestowed the title “National Zen Master One” by Emperor Daizong of Tang, to Dahui Zonggao betting on Emperor Xiaozong of Song, these are all examples of Jingshan Temple trying to intervene in politics to increase its influence. The so-called “When the water in the pool is full, the moon comes naturally” is just the result of painstaking efforts and successful planning.
The reason why I like to go to Jingshan Temple is mainly because it is far from the city center and few people go there. Walking up the mountain from the halfway point along the Jingshan Ancient Road can also exercise my body. However, since the prophecy legend of Jingshan Temple spread widely, the number of people going to Jingshan has been increasing day by day. In the name of Great Jingshan Tourism, many buildings have also been built, seemingly to restore the unprecedented grand occasion of 3,000 monks in the heyday of Jingshan. The ticket price has also risen from 10 yuan six or seven years ago to 30 yuan. However, because I neither burn incense nor worship Buddha, although I go there many times, now I only go up the mountain and do not enter the temple gate.
Published at: Sep 22, 2022 · Modified at: Dec 11, 2025
