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Da Zhong Temple is situated in the western sector of the northern
third ring road, Beijing. Its real name is Jue Sheng (Consciouness)
Temple. Because of the cultural relic, the national treasure Yong
Le Huge Bell being kept in the temple, people thus call it Da
Zhong Temple.
The Yong Le Huge Bell, made in the first year
of Emperor Yong Le's reign of the Ning Dynasty, has had the history
of 500 odd years. It was then called "Hua Yan (sumptuous)
Bell. Because it is especially bulky, therefore it is also called
"Huge Bell". The Yong Le Huge Bell is 46.5 tons in weight
and 6.75 meters in height with a diameter of 3.3 meters. On inner
and outer sides of it there typecasted clear and neat Budhist
scriptures in Chinese regular script, 230, 184 characters in total,
which is the only bell having the longest inscriptions in the
world.
It was not an easy job to cast such a huge
bell. Even to move and hang it was very tough. It is alleged that
some unknown artisans who took advantage of the natural environment,
dug ditches from roads in winter and poured water on them to freeze.
Making use of the sliding principle, they pushed the huge bell
forward step by step. And then on the base of the temple, they
piled earth into a hill and again poured water on it to freeze,
pushed the huge bell on top of the hill, then hung it on strong
wood roof beam, shoveled out the hill and finally constructed
the temple.
This bell has been well preserved. Its copper quality is not only
dense and delicate, but solid also. "The words on it are
clear while the ring is vigorous and stretches echo. People are
accustomed to ringing the bell on the eve of every Lunar New Year.
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