New pavilions finished at Jade Buddha Temple
Tens of thousands worshippers and monks attend a ceremony on Saturday morning to celebrate the completion of Kwan-yin Hall as well as the bell and drum halls at Jade Buddha Temple in Shanghai.
Construction was completed on three new pavilions at Shanghai's 135-year-old Jade Buddha Temple on Saturday, which marks the near completion of a major renovation project.
The pavilion of Avalokitesvara, or Kwan-yin, has been built along with two smaller pavilions, the bell and drum halls, on each side of the Kwan-yin Hall.
The new pavilions are near the former site of the historic Mahavira Hall, or the temple's main pavilion which has been moved 30.66 meters northward to make available a larger space in the main square for worshipers and visitors to pray.
Visitors and worshippers are now able to pay tribute or pray through the Hall of Heavenly Kings at the entrance of the temple, the Kwan-yin Hall and the Mahavira Hall. The three pavilions serve as the central axis of the temple to match with a more traditional Chinese Buddha temple style.
The newly built bell hall at the Jade Buddha Temple.
The temple was originally an old residential house, whose owner donated it to the temple to house the two jade Buddha sculptures after which the temple was named.
The renovation project was launched by the temple in July 2014 after the city's housing quality watchdog highlighted safety concerns, and pointed out that many buildings across the temple had been damaged by insects.
A visitor takes a photo of the newly built Kwan-yin Hall at Jade Buddha Temple on Saturday morning.
