A listening presence across the sea
Why Guanyin became closely associated with Putuo Island, and how compassion gives the island’s sacred landscape its meaning.
Mount Putuo
A path between mountain and sea
Putuo Island lies within Zhoushan, the archipelago city in northeastern Zhejiang. Mount Putuo’s Buddhist landscape grew around devotion to Guanyin, a bodhisattva associated with compassion. Visitors do not need to share that faith to understand the place: its paths connect mountain and shoreline, while temples make room for prayer, study, quiet work and ordinary acts of care. Puji Temple and Fayu Temple offer two different ways to read that setting—one through a central courtyard and pool, the other through halls rising along a wooded slope.
A short introduction
Stories from the island
Two temples, read through their spaces
Puji’s pool and central halls meet Fayu’s rising sequence of buildings; architecture also makes room for the ordinary work of a temple.
Read the storyA short introduction
Two temples, two spatial rhythms
A short introduction
A place to begin
Putuo Island lies within Zhoushan, the archipelago city in northeastern Zhejiang. Mount Putuo’s Buddhist landscape grew around devotion to Guanyin, a bodhisattva associated with compassion. Visitors do not need to share that faith to understand the place: its paths connect mountain and shoreline, while temples make room for prayer, study, quiet work and ordinary acts of care. Puji Temple and Fayu Temple offer two different ways to read that setting—one through a central courtyard and pool, the other through halls rising along a wooded slope.
Photo credits and rights
-
Sea and island shore at Putuo, photographed in October 2018.Leiem · CC BY-SA 4.0 Photo source ↗ Rights information ↗ Resized; WebP conversion.
-
Visitors in the courtyard of Puji Temple, photographed in March 2015.Sixian Yu · CC BY-SA 4.0 Photo source ↗ Rights information ↗ Resized; WebP conversion.
-
A shaded courtyard at Fayu Temple, photographed in August 2021.Maeshima hiroki · CC BY-SA 4.0 Photo source ↗ Rights information ↗ Resized; WebP conversion.
