Jiantan Historical Temple | 劍潭古寺

Not too far from Jiannan MRT station in Taipei, there is an ancient temple called Jiantan Historical Temple 劍潭古寺. In fact, if you exit the MRT via Exit 1, all you need to do is climb up a set of stairs to get to the temple. 

First of all, I decided to visit because I was intrigued by the name of the temple. "How ancient could it be?" I thought to myself. So I had to see it for myself. 

Just as I got to the temple, I realized that the Buddhist monks in the temple were chanting a Buddhist prayer. The temple was filled with golden embellishments and was originally created 300 years ago! 

Jiantan Historical Temple was created when a Buddhist monk by the name of Hua-Rong created a temple and a stone sculpture of the Guan Yin Buddha. It was originally located in Jiantan as its name indicates, however, it was relocated to onto a hill on Bei An Street in Dazhi, Taipei during the Japanese era the Taiwan Grand Shrine in Jiantan was being built during that time. After the KMT government came over to Taiwan in 1945, the shrine was turned into the Grand Hotel. Click here to learn more. 

The temple was renovated several times after the Qing Dynasty and was declared a historical site in 2004 by the government.

Right outside the temple, you'll see the stone baby Buddha and a fish pond. The area has been converted into a mini garden where people can enjoy the view of the city, as the temple is on a hill. 

Just beside the temple, you'll also see a Japanese garden. It was very relaxing as I visited on a weekday and there weren't a lot of people. 

How to get to there: You can take the Taipei Metro and get off at Jiannan Station Exit 1. You'll have to walk roughly 5-10 minutes to get to your destination. 

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