Entering the Hall of Everlasting Protection 永佑殿
There are around five major halls here in the Beijing Lama Temple and I have arrived at the third one. The Hall of Everlasting Prtection 永佑殿 looks much like the preceeding hall and it has just as many people. I was under the impression that the last temple, the Hall of Harmony and Peace, was the more important one and it was to be expected that it was the most visited one. But the hall here is just as crowded. I guess it was a different kind of crowd here and one which wasn’t really irritating since this was a real temple and the visitors here aren’t just here to take photos. well most of them aren’t.
Replacing the Incense Burner
This hall was special because when the Emperor Zongzheng was yet to ascend to the throne, this was where he lived. Not really surprising since he would be staying in a very similar place when he grows up. Could it be that these princes would rebuild within the Forbidden City a replica of this temple? That might not be very far fetched. Enough speculation, the current hall now houses a Buddhist statue which is venerated by the faithful here in Beijing.
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