Twin Pagoda Temple

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The twin pagodas inside the Yongzuo Temple.

The Twin Pagoda Temple (Chinese: 双塔寺; pinyin: Shūangtǎsì), officially known as Yongzuo Temple (Chinese: 永祚寺; pinyin: Yǒngzuòsì), of Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, China, is a temple containing two pagodas dating from the Ming dynasty.[1]

History

The Twin Pagodas as seen in 1948. In the front is a bunker of the Republic of China Armed Forces.

The East pagoda was built in 1597, and the West one in 1612. In charge of the pagoda's construction was a high ranking monk, named Fodeng (佛灯). By the 20th century, deterioration since construction had caused the East pagoda to slant from its center of gravity by 2.87 meters. In 1995, experts set about trying to correct the slant. They removed earth from underneath the pagoda and successfully corrected the pagoda's tilt.[2]

Pagodas

The east pagoda, seen from the west pagoda.

The pagodas are the tallest set of twin pagodas in China. They are both eight-cornered, with the lowest floor being comparatively taller than the rest, the size of the upper floors progressively decreasing. The West Pagoda is 54.78 meters tall, with the lowest floor's circumference being 4.16 meters. The pagoda's eaves are painted with emerald green glaze. The East Pagoda is 53.3 meters high, and the lowest floor's circumference is 4.36 meters. On top of the East pagoda are three magic gourds (宝葫芦), with the upper two parts being made of copper.[3]

Temple

The temple contains approximately 260 stone steles, as it is the location where stele from temples in the area that are no longer extant were moved. The temple grounds also contain many peony trees, one of which dates from the Ming Dynasty.[4]

Notes

  1. "400多岁的明代牡丹"紫霞仙"绽放太原". sx.news.cn. Retrieved 2026-06-21. 双塔寺又称永祚寺，始建于明万历二十七年（公元1599年），由晋穆王朱敏淳邀请山西五台山显通寺住持妙峰禅师修建，距今已有400余年的历史 [Shuangta Temple, also known as Yongzuo Temple, was first built in the 27th year of the Wanli reign of the Ming Dynasty (1599 AD). Its construction was commissioned by Zhu Minchun, Prince Mu of Jin, who invited Chan Master Miaofeng—the abbot of Xiantong Temple on Mount Wutai in Shanxi—to oversee the project; the temple boasts a history spanning more than 400 years.]
  2. Xu (2007), 153.
  3. Xu (2007), 153.
  4. Zhao (2007), 66.

References

  • Xu Xiaoying, ed. Zhongguo Guta Zaoxing. Beijing: Chinese Forest Press, 2007.
  • Zhao Yu, ed. Shanxi. Beijing: Chinese Travel Press, 2007

37°50′51″N 112°35′48″E / 37.84750°N 112.59667°E / 37.84750; 112.59667