Hall of Kṣitigarbha
The Hall of Kshitigarbha atRoushen Temple, inMount Jiuhua,Anhui, China.
Traditional Chinese	地藏殿
Simplified Chinese	地藏殿
Literal meaning	Hall of Kṣitigarbha
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Dìzàngdiàn

TheHall of Kṣitigarbha (Chinese:地藏殿;pinyin:Dìzàngdiàn) is one of the most important annexed halls in Chinese Buddhist temples. It is named after its primary function of enshrining theBodhisattvaKṣitigarbha (lit. 'earth store')) and sometimes doubles as the temple mausoleum.[1]

Dizang is a bodhisattva most closely associated with the salvation and liberation ofhell-beings. He features prominently in manyMahayana sūtras, such as theKṣitigarbha Bodhisattva Pūrvapraṇidhāna Sūtra (地藏菩薩本願經)..^[1]

TheDaśacakra Kṣitigarbha Sūtra (地藏十輪經) elaborates:

"Kṣitigarbha is patient and immovable like the great earth; his meditation is deep and profound like a secretstorehouse."

(「安忍不動如大地，靜慮深密如秘藏。」)

Due toShijiamounifo's (Śākyamuni Buddha) exhortations, Dizang has to cultivate all the living creatures in adherence to the Dharma and eliminate all suffering in the period spanning from Shijiamounifo'sParinirvana toMi Le Fo's (Maitreya) final birth. Dizang has made the vow:

"Until the hells are empty (of suffering beings), I will not become a Buddha."

(「地獄不空，誓不成佛。」)

"Once all sentient beings are saved, I will attain Buddhahood."

(「眾生度盡，方證菩提。」)

"If I do not descend into hell, who will?"

(「我不入地獄，誰入地獄?」)

It is through this gesture of selflessness that he became recognized as "foremost in compassion and vows" and has been worshiped by people since ancient times.^[2][3]

In Chinese Buddhism, Dizang's image is usually in the form of a Buddhist monk; complete with a robe, shaved head or in a Five Buddha Crown (Chinese: 五佛冠,pinyin:Wǔfóguān), also known as a Vairocana-crown (Chinese: 毗卢帽,pinyin:Pílúmào), which is a crown adorned with images of theFive Tathāgatas.^[1] He sits in the lotus posture and wields akhakkhara in his left hand, symbolizing the unification of compassion for all living creations whilst holding strictly to themoral precepts.^[1] In his right hand is aruyi, signifying the fulfillment of the wishes of all living creatures.^[1]

Some images depict him standing in a triad that includes a father-son duo:Daoming (道明), abhikshu who stands to his left, andMingong (憫公), a wealthy elderly man on his right.^[1]

In some larger Buddhist temples, statues of theTen Yanluo Wangs flank images of Dizang.^[1]

Wikimedia Commons has media related toKshitigarbha Halls.

• Wang Guixiang (2016-06-17).《中国汉传佛教建筑史——佛寺的建造、分布与寺院格局、建筑类型及其变迁》 [The History of Chinese Buddhist Temples] (in Chinese). Beijing: Tsinghua University Press.ISBN 9787302427056.
• Zhang Yuhuan (2014-06-01).《图解中国佛教建筑、寺院系列》 (in Chinese). Beijing: Contemporary China Publishing House.ISBN 9787515401188.

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