Wutai Shan Buddhist Garden
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- 708 Ski Hill Road,
- Cavan Monaghan, Ontario
- L5N 7K6
| Wutai Shan Buddhist Garden | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Mahayana |
| Location | |
| Location |
|
 Interactive map of Wutai Shan Buddhist Garden | |
| Coordinates | 44°14′N 78°34′W / 44.24°N 78.57°W |
| Architecture | |
| Type | Temple |
| Style | Chinese |
| Groundbreaking | 2011 |
| Website | |
| Official website | |
Wutai Shan Buddhist Garden (Chinese: 加國五台山, "Wutaishan Canada") is a Chinese Buddhist temple complex located in the township of Cavan Monaghan in Peterborough County, Ontario, between the communities of Omemee and Bethany. It is named after Mount Wutai, one of China's four Sacred Mountains of Buddhism. It is managed by the Buddhist Association of Canada and houses the Buddhist College of Canada.
In 1990, the Buddhist Association of Canada headquartered at the Cham Shan Temple in Thornhill, Ontario, purchased four plots of land totalling 550 hectares (1,350 acres) in Victoria and Peterborough Counties in Central Ontario, with the intention of building four pilgrimage sites mirroring the four Sacred Mountains of Buddhism in China.[1][2] Wutai Shan Buddhist Garden was the first site to be developed, with its groundbreaking ceremony held on May 28, 2011.[2][3] The complete project is estimated to cost 80,000,000 Canadian dollars;[1] as of 2016, $37 million had been invested into the project.[3] The statue of the bodhisattva Maitreya at the entrance to the complex was consecrated on June 19, 2017,[4][5] and the Main Hall was consecrated on October 5, 2019.[6][7]
Wutai Shan Buddhist Garden was closed to the public during the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 to 2024.[8] On July 24, 2022, a fire at the Hall of Dizang that was under construction caused over $1.8 million in damage.[9][10] The Hall of Guanyin was consecrated on October 6, 2022,[11] and the rebuilt Hall of Dizang was consecrated on November 20, 2024.[12]
Site description
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Wutai Shan Buddhist Garden covers an area of 217 hectares (535 acres),[7] making it the largest Chinese Buddhist site in Canada.[8] The entrance gate is located on the west side, where a stone sculpture of Maitreya measuring 13 metres (43 ft) tall and weighing over 700 tonnes is placed.[13] An ensemble of wooden temples built in Tang Chinese style sits on a gentle slope in the middle of the property, overlooking the rest of the complex.[8] Like most Chinese temples, they are oriented on a north–south axis.[14] East of the temples is Wisdom Lake, a spring-fed pond measuring 600 by 70 metres (1,970 by 230 ft), surrounded by stupas and sculptures.[15][16] There are also five gilt bronze sculptures of different forms of Manjushri placed on platforms around the property, reflecting the complex's namesake (Wutai means "five terraces" in Chinese) and its traditional identification as the daochang of Manjushri.[14][17]
