Fayuan Si - Buddhist Temple
Fayuan Si - Buddhist Temple
4.5
8:30 AM - 3:30 PM
Monday
8:30 AM - 3:30 PM
Tuesday
8:30 AM - 3:30 PM
Wednesday
8:30 AM - 3:30 PM
Thursday
8:30 AM - 3:30 PM
Friday
8:30 AM - 3:30 PM
Saturday
8:30 AM - 3:30 PM
Sunday
8:30 AM - 3:30 PM
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- Caishikou • 9 min walk
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
4.5
34 reviews
Excellent
18
Very good
12
Average
3
Poor
0
Terrible
1
Stephen W
Adelaide, Australia3 contributions
Apr 2017 • Solo
Far away from the crowds, rarely visited by tourists, is this peaceful old temple. It's not difficult to get to - about 15 minutes walk through the hutong from the nearest subway station (Caishikou). You experience a Buddhist Temple as it should be, and if you are fortunate, as I was, there may be a service in progress - fifty or more monks walking around the courtyard chanting 'Amitabha'. Under such circumstances, respect must be shown and no photographs taken. This is real. I have visited many temples in Beijing, some of which are very interesting, but Fayuan Si provides the most authentic experience of a functioning Buddhist temple. It's a good place to sit and meditate or reflect on the craziness of the world outside the walls.
Written May 10, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Alienandbear
Daly City, California, United States153 contributions
May 2013 • Solo
So as soon as I got to the gate there were 2 people begging from the outside. No idea if they were fake or real beggars.
Walking inside you see again a drum and bell tower. A reoccurring theme in all of these places.
Walking further in you can see the monks working at the place trying to maintain it.
Definitely a quiet place that is free. I tried to take a picture of some of them doing their daily chores some of them are camera shy.
Summary-
Free! Outside is also a park where young Chinese people do break dancing.
Interesting life style of modern day monks that aren't rich
Bathrooms are squatters
Walking inside you see again a drum and bell tower. A reoccurring theme in all of these places.
Walking further in you can see the monks working at the place trying to maintain it.
Definitely a quiet place that is free. I tried to take a picture of some of them doing their daily chores some of them are camera shy.
Summary-
Free! Outside is also a park where young Chinese people do break dancing.
Interesting life style of modern day monks that aren't rich
Bathrooms are squatters
Written September 9, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Metamorphosis14
Beijing, China25 contributions
Nov 2013 • Solo
Born and bred in Beijing, the temple is not far from where I live. there is a huge playground in front of the entrance, where children are playing and the elderly are playing chess or walking dogs. the entrance fee is 10 RMB (Worth for the visit). the temple is absolutely amazing!!!! U could enjoy the peace even the temple is situated in the central beijing. Monks are living inside the temple. If u are lucky enough u will be invited to join them for meal.
Written May 6, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
tetelu
Cluj-Napoca, Romania356 contributions
Sep 2012 • Solo
A really quiet temple. I was disappointed that some buildings were under restoration. But this is a good thing after all.
It is a "working temple" so you will see people praying and burning stuff
This is a place were I took one of my favorite picture.
I like the atmosphere
It is a "working temple" so you will see people praying and burning stuff
This is a place were I took one of my favorite picture.
I like the atmosphere
Written October 21, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Maria H
24 contributions
Jul 2016 • Solo
This temple is a bit out of the main tourist attractions (line 4, Caishikou exit D and then quite a long walk) and it's not particularly beautiful although very old and historic. I found my visit worthwhile because I happened to be there when Buddhist monks were chanting and performing their rituals which was moving and something I had never seen before (I went on a Friday around 4pm). Had that not been the case I would have been disappointed.
Entrance is RMB5 and there are beggars at the entrance who will probably point you to the ticket window which is not that obvious but I don't think they are very bothered about charging the entrance fee. In front of the temple there's a park where there were children playing, Old men playing cards and women playing something like badminton but without rackets, using their bodies.
Entrance is RMB5 and there are beggars at the entrance who will probably point you to the ticket window which is not that obvious but I don't think they are very bothered about charging the entrance fee. In front of the temple there's a park where there were children playing, Old men playing cards and women playing something like badminton but without rackets, using their bodies.
Written July 21, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
bonanza1973
San Carlos, CA591 contributions
Jan 2016 • Solo
It's a 1 km walk (15min) from exit D of the Caishikou metro station on line 4. This is active Buddhist temple and you'll see monks strolling the grounds and worshipers burning incense. Most exhibit areas are closed, thus I think there is reduced gate fee of 5 RMB. Of all the temples I visited, this temple alone had 4 beggars at the front entrance. One beggar sat at the steps of the ticket office, and he helped me identify that it was the ticket booth as there is no sign to indicate ticket sales. There must have been no tourist activity since I tapped the window to wake the ticket agent. He seemed in a deep sleep. I ventured into the open spaces and open doorways without any map or signs to mark the way as there are no English signs within grounds to indicate the landmarks. The bell and drum towers were closed. Mainly, the buildings in the center were open. these were buildings of worship with knee pads set in the front for worshipers to bow. There are a few cats roam the area.
Written January 18, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Coral
70 contributions
Sep 2019 • Solo
This temple didn't feel too touristy– most people seemed to be there to worship. The downside to this was there was no English signs so it was hard to get any context to what you were seeing.
Written September 14, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Vishnu Pendyala
San Jose, CA1,019 contributions
Nov 2018 • Solo
Walked about 1km from the subway station to get to this place of worship. Could see a number of monks walking in the temple - possibly living in the quarters surrounding the temple. Quite a few were praying inside the temple. Nice architecture. Nothing outstanding though. Recommend going there if you have time.
Written November 30, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Alexzsy
Beijing, China4 contributions
Apr 2018 • Family
In April, I went to a buddist temple called Fayuan Si,I saw a lot and view a lot there.
Fayuan temple has a long history.Firstly, Fayuan Temple is located in Jiao Zi Alleyway,which is remembered by people because of a story.Once upon a time,there was a mother who treated her son extremely kindly and listened to everything her son said.However,her son didn't learn to be a good person and was killed because of crime.As a result people named it Jiao Zi to remind them to educate their children correctly.Secondly,FaYuan Temple was built since Tang Dynasty.It was called Min Zhong Temple at first in order to remember people who helped the emperor to battle.It is called Fa Yuan Temple in Qing Dynasty,and currently it becomes a buddist museum.
Like other Chinese temples,Fayuan Temple has many features.FaYuan Temple has a big door on the middle with a smaller door on each side,which was the symbol of guard in the past.In the temple,there are bell tower and drum tower,which is also a culture.The halls are important too,firstly it's Hall of Heavenly King,where Maitreya Buddha ,the buddha of future is worshiped.The main hall is called Mahavira Hall,people worship Sakyamuni Buddha,the leader of Buddha there.
You can go to Fayuan Temple at any time,but the lilac is beautiful there,so I suggest go there in spring.However,you should be quiet there, do not interrupt the monks.It only costs you less than half a day,so you could have other plan.
p.s. the food in Niujie Street is very good,but there are too many people.
Fayuan temple has a long history.Firstly, Fayuan Temple is located in Jiao Zi Alleyway,which is remembered by people because of a story.Once upon a time,there was a mother who treated her son extremely kindly and listened to everything her son said.However,her son didn't learn to be a good person and was killed because of crime.As a result people named it Jiao Zi to remind them to educate their children correctly.Secondly,FaYuan Temple was built since Tang Dynasty.It was called Min Zhong Temple at first in order to remember people who helped the emperor to battle.It is called Fa Yuan Temple in Qing Dynasty,and currently it becomes a buddist museum.
Like other Chinese temples,Fayuan Temple has many features.FaYuan Temple has a big door on the middle with a smaller door on each side,which was the symbol of guard in the past.In the temple,there are bell tower and drum tower,which is also a culture.The halls are important too,firstly it's Hall of Heavenly King,where Maitreya Buddha ,the buddha of future is worshiped.The main hall is called Mahavira Hall,people worship Sakyamuni Buddha,the leader of Buddha there.
You can go to Fayuan Temple at any time,but the lilac is beautiful there,so I suggest go there in spring.However,you should be quiet there, do not interrupt the monks.It only costs you less than half a day,so you could have other plan.
p.s. the food in Niujie Street is very good,but there are too many people.
Written April 5, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rachelle W
Los Angeles, CA1,664 contributions
Dec 2017 • Solo
FaYuan Temple offers a piece of peace in fast-paced Beijing! For lay people without Buddhist certificate, admission is 5 Chinese dollars (like US$1). It is a medium sized yard with a few Buddhist halls. Each has different Buddha figures. I’m raised Christian but I still found the history and culture interesting. Unfortunately almost everything is written in Chinese, and very few artifacts have English explanations :( if one visits alone, it may be difficult to grasp the history and stories behind everything.
Overall, cool place to visit. Recommend time - 30 minutes for non-Chinese speakers or 1 hour for Chinese speakers :)
PS: Buddhist vegetarian meals are available here, but I didn’t get to try any. One may ask the monk or masters for details.
Overall, cool place to visit. Recommend time - 30 minutes for non-Chinese speakers or 1 hour for Chinese speakers :)
PS: Buddhist vegetarian meals are available here, but I didn’t get to try any. One may ask the monk or masters for details.
Written December 22, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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