Puji Temple, as with all other temples on Putuo Shan, is dedicated to the worship of Guanyin Pusa. The temple complex first began construction in the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907) and has now expanded to occupy a land area of over 10,000 square meters and includes more than 200 buildings.
Legend has it that the temple was once visited by an emperor. To avoid being noticed, he disguised himself as a peasant. Upon arrival at the main entrance he was denied entry due to his somewhat shabby appearance. He was later escorted to a side entrance and finally permitted entrance. Furious at the treatment he had received from the monks, he decreed that from then on everyone who visited the temple must enter through the side entrance—a decree that is still abided to this day.
Nowadays Puji Temple's smoky square courtyards are more clogged with snap-happy tourists than pilgrims or those seeking enlightenment in the study of Chan Buddhism (known as Zen in Japan). But if you're up and about in the small hours (4 a.m. or so) you'll get a more authentic experience as monks chant the scriptures and devout Buddhists burn incense and fake money for dead relatives to spend in their afterlives.