Liaoyang Jinyin Garden

In 928 AD, Yelü Bei, the crown prince of the Liao Dynasty, built the Dongdan Palace on a 30-meter-high earthen hill in Liaoyang. This hill, known locally as the "Three Hills Unseen," became the cornerstone of centuries of power transitions. By 1499, during the Ming Dynasty's Hongzhi era, the former palace site was converted into a royal silver treasury. Locals called it the "Gold and Silver Vault," a sturdy fortress that once stored the empire's wealth.

In 1694, Emperor Kangxi converted the silver treasury into a Buddhist temple, which is one of the reasons people refer to this building as the Jinyin Garden - Guanyin Chan Temple. In the 19th century, during 1863 and 1889, a wooden Mahavira Hall was added. In the 20th century, merchants used the Mahavira Hall as a chamber of commerce. A monk purchased the site for 600 yuan, renovated it, and restored it to religious use.

At the entrance of the temple stands a stone archway built in May 1992, 8.4 meters high and 11.5 meters long. The northern lintel is inscribed with calligraphy by Zhao Puchu. Passing through the archway, the Heavenly King Hall, completed in 1994, is flanked on the east and west by a bell tower and a drum tower, which once marked the hours with morning bells and evening drums.

In the central courtyard, a three-legged incense burner, 3.5 meters high and carved from cold black jade, reflects the sunlight. Behind it stands the Hall of Perfect Penetration, completed in November 1998, covering an area of 345 square meters. The hall is serene and peaceful, enshrining a thousand-armed, thousand-eyed Guanyin statue, flanked by Sudhana and the Dragon Girl. On the east and west sides are the Hall of Three Saints, the Ksitigarbha Hall, the Dharma Protection Hall, and the tranquil monks' quarters.

On November 14, 1983, the Liaoyang Municipal Government designated this building complex as a cultural heritage protection unit, and it now serves as the location of the Liaoyang Buddhist Association. This architectural entity fully preserves the traces of historical transformation from a princely treasury to a commercial residence and temple.