Shengguo Temple is located on Fenghuang Mountain in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. Fenghuang Mountain lies southeast of West Lake. Stretching from the Zhuling Ridge in Changhua, past West Tianmu Mountain, and all the way to Fenghuang Mountain, its form resembles a soaring phoenix.

Shengguo Temple was first built in the second year of the Kaihuang era of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty (582 CE), and was initially called "Shengguo" (Superior Fruit). The mountain scenery was splendid, and the temple grounds gathered many monks, hence the name "Shengguo" (Superior Fruit). During the Qianning era of Emperor Zhaozong of the Tang Dynasty (894-897 CE), Chan Master Wuzhuo Wenxi revived the temple and began teaching the Dharma there. The ruined temple was suddenly restored and was then renamed "Shengguo" (Sacred Fruit).

In the fourth year of the Kaiping era of the Later Liang Dynasty (910 CE), King Qian Liu of Wuyue had images of three Buddhas and Arhats carved into the cliff face to the left of the temple. During the Jingyou era of Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty (1034-1037 CE), the monk Huiran built a pagoda. In the fifth year of the Qingli era (1045 CE), the temple was granted the plaque "Chongsheng" (Venerating the Sacred). When Emperor Gaozong moved the court south, the temple was abolished and turned into a restricted imperial garden. It was rebuilt in the thirteenth year of the Chunxi era of Emperor Xiaozong (1186 CE), but was destroyed by the end of the Deyou era (1275 CE).

The temple was revived again in the twentieth year of the Zhiyuan era of the Yuan Dynasty (1283 CE), but was destroyed during the Zhizheng era (1341-1368 CE). It was rebuilt in the fourth year of the Hongwu era of the Ming Dynasty (1371 CE), and in the fifteenth year of the Yongle era (1417 CE), it was established as a major public monastery. In the ninth year of the Zhengde era (1514 CE), the monk Zijing undertook a major renovation. In the thirty-fifth year of the Jiajing era (1556 CE), it was burned down during troubles with Japanese pirates. In the thirty-seventh year (1558 CE), the monk Zhengyin rebuilt it. The temple was destroyed four times and magnificently restored six times.

From this point on, the temple underwent many changes. During the Shunzhi era of the Qing Dynasty, the monk Chaoqian resided at the temple for two years. As the temple had no records, he compiled a one-volume temple chronicle. It began with a preface and a map, but had no table of contents. It then recorded the mountain, which is Fenghuang Mountain. Next, it recorded the historical sites of the temple mountain, with entries for peaks, cliffs, rocks, caves, valleys, ridges, paths, pines, streams, wells, springs, ponds, pools, grounds, stone statues, and lanes. Following that, it recorded the temple itself, Shengguo Temple. Then it recorded the temple's historical sites, with entries for halls, assembly halls, rooms, towers, pavilions, halls, gates, kiosks, hermitages, bridges, pagodas, steles, records, and fundraising appeals. Next, it recorded the temple's successive Chan masters, including Tang Dynasty's Chan Master Wuzhuo Wenxi, Song Dynasty's Dharma Master Xizui and Dharma Master Jingfan, Yuan Dynasty's Chan Master Zhuming, and Ming Dynasty's Chan Master Zijing. After that, it recorded the successive abbots, listing only Chan Master Wuji. Finally, it recorded the ancestral stupas, including the stupa of Chan Master Wuzhuo Wenxi and the stupa of Layman Ma Sengmo.

The style of this chronicle used the mountain and temple's historical sites as its framework, adopting the inscribed poems and verses of various figures as its details. Its accounts of successive Chan patriarchs narrated the lineages of the Chan school. Chaoqian was a monk-poet with an elegant disposition, which is why he made this compilation. Although its length is not great, these surviving fragments are like precious spiritual light and can be treasured.

This text is reproduced from the woodblock-printed edition by the Ding family of Qiantang from the seventh year of the Guangxu era of the Qing Dynasty (1881 CE).