Línggǔ Temple Scenic Area

The large Ming Línggǔ Temple complex has one of the most interesting buildings in Nánjīng – the Beamless Hall (Wúliáng Diàn), built in 1381 entirely out of brick and stone and containing no beam supports. Buildings during the Ming dynasty were normally constructed of wood, but timber shortages meant that builders had to rely on brick. The structure has a vaulted ceiling and a large stone platform where Buddhist statues once sat. In the 1930s the hall was turned into a memorial to those who died resisting the Japanese. One of the inscriptions on the inside wall is the old Kuomintang national anthem.

A road runs on both sides of the hall and up two flights of steps to the graceful Pine Wind Pavilion (Sōngfēng Gé), originally dedicated to Guanyin as part of Línggǔ Temple. The temple itself (Y5 admission) and a memorial hall to Xuan Zang (the Buddhist monk who travelled to India and brought back the Buddhist scriptures) are close by; after you pass through the Beamless Hall, turn right and then follow the pathway. Inside the memorial hall is a golden scale model of a 13-storey wooden pagoda that contains part of Xuan Zang's skull, a sacrificial table and a portrait of the monk.

Nearby is the colourful Línggǔ Pagoda (Línggǔ Tǎ). This nine-storey, 60m-high, octagonal pagoda was finished in 1933 under the direction of a US architect to remember those who died during the Kuomingtang revolution. Tour bus Y2 and Y3 runs to the Línggǔ Temple from Nánjīng train station. A free shuttle bus connects the area to the Sun Yatsen Mausoleum.