Published on : 08/08/2023
The Nanjing Grand Bao'en Temple is one of the oldest Buddhist temples in China. This millennium-old Buddhist temple has recently introduced a series of metaverse attractions, which combines traditional culture and technology, leading visitors on a fascinating journey through time.
Walking through the glazed archway, touching the sacred objects in the underground palace, setting off fireworks on the "restored" glazed pagoda for blessings...all of these can be experienced in the metaverse! So, what kind of fun interactive experiences are there in the Grand Bao'en Temple?
A fully interactive metaverse museum lands at Grand Bao'en Temple
The Grand Bao'en Temple Site Museum (大報恩寺遺址博物館), located outside Zhonghua Gate in Qinhuai District, Nanjing, is currently the largest, highest standard and best-preserved temple site in China.
In April of this year, the Grand Bao'en Temple Site Museum launched the first "Fully Connected Metaverse" experience project in China. With the "Millennial Site and Repaying Kindness Culture" as the main theme, it connects high tech with real scenarios, creating a fantastic museum journey where the past and present intersect.
In the Grand Bao'en Temple metaverse, visitors will travel through various historical fragments and cultural stories related to Grand Bao'en Temple, such as the construction of the Ashoka Pagoda and Xuanzang's Journey to the West, uncovering interesting stories hidden behind the relics.
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Eight interactive stages: fun in the Grand Bao'en Temple Metaverse
Before entering the metaverse of Grand Bao'en Temple, your can first create an exclusive virtual avatar!
Enter the entrance of the Grand Bao'en Temple Site Museum, a light blue scanning device like a space capsule comes into view. Visitors only need to stand in the device and wait for a few seconds, and a cartoon image that looks very similar to their own will appear in a large screen on the side.
Then, you pick up your mobile phone, scan the QR code on the screen, enter the mini-programme for the Grand Bao'en Temple Scenic Area, and from there, enter the "Repaying Kindness Holy Land Metaverse".
From this point onwards, you can start a magical journey where you can visit the museum in the real world, while your cartoon avatar traverses the virtual world in sync.
The Grand Bao'en Temple Metaverse interactive experience has eight stages in total, which are "Millennium Stare", "Glazed Archway", "Underground Palace Sacred Objects", "Lotus Pond Ocean Meeting", "480 Temples of the Southern Dynasties", "Relic Buddha Light", "Repentance Holy Mirror" and "Pagoda Extraordinary VR Interaction".
These eight stages correspond to the eight main attractions in the Grand Bao'en Temple Site Museum. When we approach the attractions, the mobile phone will trigger a prompt saying "you have arrived nearby, would you like to check it out?", and the screen will immediately turn into a scene related to the current relic.
Through the metaverse, we can explore the original appearance of the relics restored through digital technology, and also increase our multifaceted understanding of the relics through fun mini games. It's really interesting!
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Grand Bao'en Temple Glazed Pagoda digitally "reborn"
If we were to choose the most special stage in the "Repaying Kindness Holy Land Metaverse" of Grand Bao'en Temple, it would undoubtedly have to be "Pagoda Extraordinary".
In "Pagoda Extraordinary", all you need to do is put on VR glasses, and you can instantly travel back 600 years at the touch of a button, admiring the elegance of the glazed pagoda of the Ming Dynasty Grand Bao'en Temple.
You can see the towering glazed pagoda stand in the center of the Grand Bao'en Temple, wholly composed of colorful glazed components, glistening and transparent, intricate and magnificent like a jade palace.
There are copper wind bells hanging on each layer of eaves, which make a pleasant sound when gently blowing by the breeze, leaving one intoxicated...
This legendary architecture, once known as one of the "Seven Wonders of the Middle Ages", was destroyed in war. Now, through the metaverse of Grand Bao'en Temple, it is once again presenting its prosperous and splendid scenery, allowing cultural heritage to "come alive" once more.
If you have the opportunity to travel to Nanjing in the future, you may want to add the Grand Bao'en Temple Site Museum to your "check-in" list, and personally experience the dimension-breaking journey in the metaverse!
Travel Information
Grand Bao'en Temple Site Museum
Address: Outside Zhonghua Gate, Qinhuai District, Nanjing
Opening hours: 09:00-17:30
Admission: 90 CNY
