Development And Religious Functions In Large Yaomiao Feng Shan Devon Temple Evolution

Deyun Temple, located on Miaofeng Mountain, Baicaoling Mountain Range, Dayao County, Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, is a Chinese Buddhist temple with more than300years of history that is characterized by Buddhist Forest Monastery. From the6th year of Tianqi period, the Ming Dynasty (1626), founded by Cheyong, a Chan master, to2004, restored by Master Yinyan, Deyun Temple has held very good tradition all the time regardless of ups and downs so that it influences positively on the society in the locality and the neighborhood. Basing on field survey data and literature,this thesis narrates all the aspects of Deyun Temple and discusses its religious functions and development.First of all, the thesis clarifies the history of Deyun Temple from the foundation to the present day and studies the style of its architecture, including layout features, palace allocation as well as the combination of classical and modern styles with a plan before constructed. Meantime, I want to tell the readers the temple's rules and laws by the research on the management system and Sangha system. Moreover, I explain the temple's economy based on the data of financial management and the channel as well as allocation of the income. And then analyze the reasons why the monks and laymen believe in Buddhism, the priesthood arrangement, the identities of the Buddhists even the Buddhist heritage, study and practice. Certainly it is necessary to study the communication between different temples from the ancient times to the present day.On the basis of these narrates, I explore the social change and the rise and fall of the Deyun Temple, study adaptive changes of the religious functions, and analyses the functions of the religion at the temple. The idea that the Buddhist Forest Monastery and the spirit of Humanistic Buddhism could move forward with parallel trends is an important view of my thesis. Finally I think it is progressive that the Buddhist Forest Monastery would maintain the correct faith and get rid of the superstition, enhance social harmony as well as improve personal quality for many people in a right way by means of its own strict management and the monks'practice with ardent zeal.