Tanzhe Temple (literally "Temple of Pool and Zhe Tree") is a Buddhist temple situated near China National Highway 108 in the Mentougou District, a mountainous area to the west of Beijing, and only 8km from Jietai Temple.
The temple is built on a hillside and consists of various pavilions, prayer halls, courtyards and a group of pagodas dating from the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. At one time, it was one of the most important temples in the nation. Built in the Jin Dynasty (265¨C420), it has an age of around 1,600 years. The area of the entire temple is 100 mu (6.8 hectares), and its arrangement of halls is akin to that found in the Ming and Qing dynasties.
The temple's central hall is its Mahavira Hall. 24 metres in length, 33 metres wide, and with a depth of 20 metres. Buddhist monks regularly perform chanting here, to the accompaniment of woodblocks, cup gongs, and bells. The complex is extensive, and is said to have provided a model for the layout of the Forbidden City. Above and to the right of the main courtyard lies a rare stupa yard (TaYuan), with stone monuments built in different styles over a period of several centuries and housing the remains of eminent monks.
