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Known as the Buddhist Holy Land, Caotang Temple lies about 30 kilometers (25 miles) southwest of Xian, in Caotangying Village of Huxian County. Initially built in 401, the temple became a sacred place where the Buddhist master, Kumarajiva (one of the four Buddhist translators), translated Buddhist scriptures. The temple was a thatch-roofed house, so it got the name of Caotang Temple, meaning Straw Hut Temple.

Kumarajiva - A famous Buddhist master, became a monk at the age of seven. Due to his intelligence and diligence, he mastered the sprit of the Buddhism very well. He led 3,000 Buddhist followers to translate sutras from Sanskrit to Chinese. Instead of metaphrase, he used free translation, which made the scriptures easy to understand.

Features inside the temple:

Kumarajiva Dagoba - Precious Art

Baohui Buddhist Master Preaching Inscription - The real script of the famous calligraphy Liu Gongquan.

The Mist of Caotang Temple - One of the eight famous scenic features in Shaanxi Province A well inside the temple occasionally emits gusts of mist. The legend is that there is a piece of stone on one side, halfway down the well, and whenever there is a snake lying on the stone, the mist comes out, and travels over the countryside. The real cause of the mist, however, might be geothermal vapor, which, once out of the well, gets mixed with the smoke of incense over the temple. Later an elegant pavilion has been built over the well and was named as 'the Misty Well'.