Key words:Patron God

Location:Guanyin Temple (Guanyintang in Chinese) is located in the south of Old Town of Dali, about 10 minutes’ drive.

Overview

Popularly enshrined and worshipped in Dali area, Guanyin has been regarded as a Patron God or Goddess of Bai minority. Buddhism in Dali could be taken as Yunnan Esoteric or Dian Mi, in which Guanyin is much more important than Buddha; experts referred to the Guanyin (Goddess of Mercy) there as Arcarya Guanyin (A Cuo Ye in Chinese) who is much slimmer than those elsewhere. It’s even said that Pi Luoge, the founder of the Nanzhao Kingdom, had been nominated by Guanyin as the governor of the Six Tribes at that time. Among Buddhist temples in Dali, Guanyin temples or shrines are the majority, and Guanyin Tang or Guanyin Temple is the most famous one.

Legend

Legend goes that there used to be wars in Dali and people lived homelessly. One day, when invading soldiers from north were approaching to commit the damned sins, Guanyin disguised herself into an elderly lady, carried a huge rock on her back, and trotted on the road. On seeing this, the soldiers were surprised and scared, they hold their journey and contemplated: “Even an elderly lady is able to carry so huge a rock with ease, the young people of the villagers must be very strong and brave, and we are to be doomed if we continue the war…”; they finally abandoned and retreated, and the villagers stayed safe. From then on, a temple for Guanyin was constructed to express gratitude to her.

As a Buddhist temple, it’s highlighted by Guanyin, and therefore named Da Shi An which means Huge Rock Temple, referring to the story of Guanyin another way around. On lunar Feb 19, Jun 19 and Sep 19 of the year, temple festivals are organized for Guanyin by the locals.  

The tours including Dali:

• 1 Day Dali City Tour

• 2 Days Dali Old Town and Erhai Lake Cruise Tour
• 2 Days Dali Climbing /Kayaking/Cycling Tour