A 50-million-yuan project is underway to restore three key temples of Tibetan Buddhism in northwest China's Qinghai Province.

The repair of the main hall at the Ta'er Monastery, a holy site of the Yellow Sect of Tibetan Buddhism, has been completed. The rotten wooden structures in the hall have either been replaced or repaired with anticorrosive materials. Decorations inside and outside the hall were plated with gold and lightning arresters were installed on the hall.

Located in Huangzhong County of Qinghai Province, the monastery was built in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) in memory of Tsong Kha Pa, founder of the Gu Lu (yellow) sect of Tibetan Buddhism. It was later expanded to become one of China's famous six temples of Lamaism.

The renovation of the Qutan Temple, also built in the Ming Dynasty, but mainly in the style of the Han Dynasty (BC 202 -220 AD), is near completion. The project lasted six years and cost 10 million yuan.

The 600-year-old lama temple is referred to by experts as "the imperial palace of the northwest" because of the axis running directly through its mid-section, dividing the temple into two symmetrical parts, just like the imperial palace in Beijing.

The temple has remained intact, however centuries of weathering and the lack of maintenance have damaged the buildings, murals and cultural relics. To date, the first and second phases of the repair project have passed appraisal by experts.

The first phase of repair on Longwu Temple began last May. The project will be divided into three phases at a cost of 2 million yuan.

In addition, plans have been made to repair other key temples of Tibetan Buddhism, said an official with the provincial cultural department.

(Xinhua News Agency March 8, 2002)