Baiyun Guan

Frommer's Review

If the incense here somehow smells more authentic, it's because this sprawling complex, said to have been built in 739, is the most active of Beijing's Daoist temples. Chinese visitors seem intent on actual worship rather than smug tourism, and the blue-frocked monks wear their hair in the rarely seen traditional manner -- long and tied in a bun at the top of the head. The temple acts as headquarters for the Chinese Daoist Association. Although the texts of Daoism (China's only native religion) decry the pursuit of wealth and honors as empty, the gods of wealth attract the most devotees. One notable structure is the Laolu[gum] Tang, a large cushion-filled hall in the third courtyard originally built in 1228, now used for teaching and ceremonies.

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