Dharma Drum Mountain

Dharma Drum Mountain was founded by the Chan master Sheng Yen and the complex completed in 2005 in a register that is unusual for Taiwanese Buddhism: no gold, no bright ceramic roofs and almost no colour, just grey concrete, stone and pale wood laid out along a wooded valley, with a large plain Buddha in the main hall. The intention was that the architecture should not distract. There is a university and a retreat programme on the same site.

What you actually see

• The plain architecture - grey concrete, stone and wood without ornament or colour.
• The main hall - a large unpainted Buddha in a deliberately restrained space.
• The valley layout - buildings stepped along a wooded hillside.
• The retreat programme - meditation courses run on the site.

When to go

Year round; visits should be arranged in advance and there are set visiting hours. Modest dress and quiet are expected. Weekdays are calmest.

Honest expectations

This is a working monastery and retreat centre, not an attraction; casual wandering is not the intention and access is arranged. Photography is restricted. Visitors expecting the gold and dragons of other Taiwanese temples find it austere.

Nearby

Jinshan is on the coast below, and the Juming Museum is nearby.