Puning Temple (Hebei)

Puning Temple
普宁寺
Puning Temple
Religion
Affiliation	Buddhism
Sect	Tibetan Buddhism–Gelug
Location
Location	Chengde, Hebei, China
Shown within Hebei
Geographic coordinates	41°0′50″N 117°56′48″E / 41.01389°N 117.94667°E / 41.01389; 117.94667
Architecture
Style	Tibetan architecture
Founder	Qianlong Emperor
Date established	1755

The Puning Temple (Chinese: 普宁寺; pinyin: Pǔníng Sì; lit. 'Temple of Universal Peace'), commonly called the Big Buddha Temple, ^[1] is a Buddhist temple complex in Chengde, Hebei province, China. It was built in 1755 during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor in the Qing dynasty. It is near the Chengde Mountain Resort and alongside the equally famed Putuo Zongcheng Temple. Puning is one of the "Eight Outer Temples" of Chengde.

The Puning Temple was modeled after the Samye Monastery, the sacred Buddhist site in Tibet (much as the Putuo Zongcheng Temple was modeled after the Potala Palace in Lhasa). The front temple was constructed in the Chinese style, although the temple complex follows both Chinese and Tibetan architectural styles. The Puning Temple houses the world's tallest wooden sculpture of the Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara (22.28-meter-high and 110 ton),^[2][3] hence it is often nicknamed the "Big Buddha Temple". The complex features temple halls, pavilions, drum towers and bell towers. ^[4]