Figure 4 - Mountain Gate
Mountain Gate
East - West
The Mountain Gate is the main entrance to all Buddhist temples, and it is located at the very front of all temple buildings. The main entrance is named “Mountain Gate” because from ancient times, most Buddhist monasteries were built in the mountains and in forests. It is also called “Three Gates” because the entrance represents in Buddhist teachings the three doors of liberation: the “door of emptiness”, the “door of no mark”, and the “door of non-action”. (It is said that non-action is not artificial, not forced.) From outside entering the “Mountain Gate”, from ordinary to sage hood, from the low to the high, from delusion to enlightenment, these are the gates for entering the way toward Bodhi enlightenment. Stepping through these traditional religious gates symbolizes entrance into another enriching and bountiful spiritual world: it is one that is pure and untainted, filled with kindness, compassion, and joy, far away from worldly troubles and fetters of obsession.