Darning Temple is part of a complex of buildings. The temple was first built in the fifth century. Large incense burners with bells stand in front of the main hall in which services are held daily at 4 pro. The temple has strong ties with Japan. The Buddhist abbot, Jian Zhen (688-763) was invited to teach in Japan, and made five attempts to go there, but failed each time. It was on his sixth attempt, at the age of 66 and by then blind, that he succeeded in reaching the Japanese capital of Nara where he established a study centre at one of the temples. His contribution in bringing understanding of Chinese literature and arts, architecture, medicine and printing to Japan was commemorated in 1963, 1,200th anniversary of the death of Jian Zhen, when a number of Chinese and Japanese Buddhists decided to build the Jian Zhen Memorial Hall. The walls are decorated with murals depicting his journeys. In 1980 the Japanese donated a wooden statue of Jian Zhen, a copy of the beautiful lacquer statue of the monk in the Nara Temple in Japan. In front of the wooden statue is an incense burner presented by Japanese Emperor Hirohito.
In early November 2003, a grand commemoration meeting was held in Yangzhou to mark the 1,250th anniversary of Jianzhen's successful arrival in Japan, including officials, Japanese guests, and visitors from different areas, Buddhist monks and Buddlust believers.
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