Baoguo Temple (bǎo guó sì 保国寺) is situated on the mountainside of Ling Mountain (líng shān 灵山). It is about 15 kilometers away from Ningbo City (níng bō shì 宁波市), Zhejiang Province (zhè jiāng shěng 浙江省). The temple is a cultural relic spot under the protection of the state with an area of more than 13,000 square meters.

According to records, the temple was initially established in the Eastern Han Dynasty (dōng hàn 东汉) with the name of Lingshan Temple (líng shān sì 灵山寺), but was later renamed to Baoguo Temple in 880, during the Tang Dynasty (táng cháo 唐朝). Then it was rebuilt and expanded in later dynasties. The present Baoguo Temple is a mixture of constructions made by various dynasties.

There are two stone pillars standing in front of the gate of Baoguo Temple. You can see Buddhist scriptures on the pillars. Entering the temple, along the central axis are arranged the Heavenly King Hall (tiān wáng diàn 天王殿), the Grand Hall (dà diàn 大殿), the Kwanyin Hall (guān yīn diàn 观音殿) and the Scriptorium (cáng jīng lóu 藏经楼). The east and west axis are the subordinate buildings like the Bell Tower (zhōng lóu 钟楼), the Drum Tower (gǔ lóu 鼓楼), the Monastic Reception (kè táng 客堂) etc..

The Grand Hall, also called Beamless Hall (wú liáng diàn 无梁殿), is the most magnificent building in the temple. It was constructed in 1013, during the Northern Song Dynasty (běi sòng 北宋). It is the oldest and most well preserved wooden constructions in the south of Yangtze River (zhǎng jiāng 长江). The hall is exquisite in structure and unique in style. It is made of wood and is rectangle in dimention. The roof was firmly fixed by means of skillful cohesion of components through sophisticated traditional Chinese architectural technology. Eight large upright beams in the hall, slightly inclined towards the middle. Three well-like hollows on the ceiling of the hall cleverly connected with the whole frame. The mystery about the Grand Hall also embodies that no birds nestle here, no spiders weave webs here, no insects or ants crawl here, nor can you find much dust or dirt here. For years, many architecture and forestry experts carried studies here. Some say that it's because the wood used in the hall gives out a special scent which frightens away these insects. Some said it's because of its extraordinary style of construction. Yet no one gave any satisfactory explanation about this mystery.

Today the temple is a tourist attraction, and many of its rooms and halls are used to house various exhibitions. Such as the the exhibition rooms of Kwanyin statues, the gift exhibition of international friendship, the local customs of marriage in Ming State (míng zhōu 明州) exhibition, bronze wares exhibition and the notable scientific and technological discoveries and inventions of the 20th century. Visitors can learn knowledge during their visit.

Baoguo Temple
Address: on the mountainside of Ling Mountain in Hongtang Town, Jiangbei District (jiāng běi qū 江北区), Ningbo City, Zhejiang Province
Admission fee: RMB 12
Opening hours: 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Transportation: you can take No. 232, 332, 338 bus to get to there