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.

Background

The founder, Chan master Sheng-yen (1931-2009), became abbot of the Nung Chan monastery in 1978, and in 1989 his organisations purchased hilly ground in Jinshan for a larger monastery to hold their growing numbers of devotees and students. The design took seven years, and work on the first phase, which makes up most of the complex, started in 1993. Venerable Guo Dong followed him as abbot in 2006. The buildings follow the slope, so Building I begins at the 3rd level and climbs to the Grand Buddha Hall on the 6th. Seven walking paths lead past streams, a bamboo forest and dense woodland. It counts as one of the "Four Great Mountains" of Taiwanese Buddhism.

Source: Wikipedia, "Dharma Drum Mountain"

The main sights

• 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.

Good to know

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.

Key facts