So honored to have been invited to join in on the Grand Opening…read more Great Hall at Fo Guang Shan San Bao Temple 1750 Van Ness Avenue San Francisco CA 94109 It was such an amazing celebration. Congratutions! The place has so many rooms for different activies. In addion, they will serving lunch in the future. They also have a great bookstore and gift shop with items that make such good gift giving. A must visit.

When I went, the sermon and chanting were done in Mandarin Chinese. I was informed and has…read moreexperienced in prior visits that some chanting texts are provided in pin yin so that it is more user friendly for non Chinese speakers. There are some free vegetarian food offered free of charge after the service. Donation is up to your own free will.

Integrated Taoist and Buddhist temple started in 1957. It enshrines Immortal Patriarch Lu Sun Yang…read moreas its patron deity. It was started ordained Taoist master of the Quan Zhen tradition and holds regular chanting ceremonies. Authentic sacred space.....like stepping into another spiritual realm and time. Amazing vegetarian food served after ceremonies.

...and it's 5 stars IF...and only IF...you speak Chinese. There is nobody there that speaks…read moreEnglish. I happened to go there because my family was once affiliated with it and I am studying Daoism. Unfortunately, although the love of Dao was passed on to me...the language was not. After speaking to the older man in my broken mandarin chinglish (which by the way, he speaks cantonese...so this was already a bit of a scene as you can see) he repeatedly told me...nobody speaks English. I found this odd though because when I called, they said there was one person that did and could help me learn more. I don't know. It's on the 2nd floor of the building (not the third...the third floor is a place for chinese opera singers to practice. And not the first floor either...although...the first floor is a friendly chinese restaurant "the potsticker"). The temple is open from 10-4pm. I found a website for it...not sure if its applicable: http://www.angelfire.com/anime5/ibisworld/linkgoals.html

Some relatives were visiting from out of town and wanted to go to SF. We passed by this temple a…read morefew times and since it was around Lunar New Year/Tết they wanted to stop in and visit. I was surprised to learn that it's the oldest Vietnamese Temple in the U.S. We went inside and placed our shoes on the shoe rack. The relatives lit some incense, prayed, and walked around the main temple/floor area. They got to talking to one of the young ladies at a table and the lady was super nice. She even gave each of us some clementines and red envelopes. She was friendly and wasn't pushy. She said that a mediation/prayer time was going to start and invited us to join. We had to get going and she was cool about it. It's easy to donate to the temple if you'd like as they have boxes with slots on either end. I enjoyed reading the history of Buddhism from the wall art. I thought it was cool to see a temple inside a typical SF/Edwardian(?) type home.

It's weird to rate a temple on Yelp!, but I love this temple and just wanted to express that…read more This is a wonderful temple nestled right next to the Castro District. My grandmother used to come here all the time, so naturally, I've spent a lot of time here. I also have several relatives who frequent this temple, and it's always a treat to come here. The altar is upstairs, and it's very beautiful up there. The downstairs part of the temple where people cook and eat is a bit more worn and torn, but probably because of the sheer numbers of people who come to the temple every weekend. San Francisco buildings are all mostly pretty old and dilapidated. The Buddhist monk who heads this temple is a magnanimous, gentle, warm, and inviting man who is originally from Hue, Vietnam. He always is so welcoming to everyone who enters the temple and is very easy to talk to. The Sunday service is always pleasant, and the carpet is very comfortable to sit on for that hour. There are often memorial services on Sundays that start at 12 pm or so. By the way, the vegetarian food prepared here is always delicious. Even my cousins, who don't usually eat Vietnamese vegetarian food, usually wolf down a plateful with nary a comment about missing any carnivorous products. YUM. TIP: Do not park in the Chicago Title Company parking lot next door, even though the title company is closed on Sundays -- you WILL be TOWED. Boo, Chicago!

This place is still relatively new renovated. Seems like they designed the place themselves and…read morestarted to build since 2007 from the photos they posted in the temple. I didn't provide any inside photos since its not so nice to take pictures in temples. The building has high ceilings for good ventilation and airflow since Theres so much incents burning. They do funeral services and has placement for placques of the deceased. Not overcrowded yet and still have space for now. There are street parking only. Can be difficult to find parking if your group has 3+ cars. They have self-serve water in case you get thirsty & some asian candies on the table for grabs. The ladies that work there are pretty knowledgeable with the traditional stuff so if you don't know just ask. . Hopefully you can speak Chinese or have a friend that does. Else if you just want to check out the Chinese culture I'm sure you can just walk in and tour around.

Great place to prey. There is free food on special days. All volunteers are very nice, so you will…read morelike this temple.

This isn't a "tourist trap." It's a living, breathing place of worship. You'll see locals offering…read morefruit and burning joss sticks, providing a profound glimpse into the spiritual life of the community.

This is one of the trustworthy temple that I would recommend for anyone who's interested in…read moreBuddhism! The main temple is called Ten Thousand Buddha Temple in which located in Ukiah. They serve authentic vegetarian food and great classes at a reasonable price for believers to learn traditional Buddhism.

I passed by this place bunches of times on my way to get dim sum or tea or something... it's right…read morenext to the Chinatown branch of the San Francisco Public Library. Part of what makes this place so spooky is the entrance is way up there, so you can't see in without nearly entering the place... And with a name like "Quong Ming Jade Emperor Palace" it seems right out of one of those 1980s horror movies where the villains are all spooky Chinese mystics. Because nothing scares white movie goers like Chinatown. Where did the demon-summoning box in Hellraiser come from? "Gizmo" from Gremlins? The cursed monkey's paw that grants wishes that damn the wisher? I think you see where I'm going with this. Well, you might be disappointed. The Jade Emperor is a Taoist figure, and as expected, this is a Taoist temple. Taoism is one of the most innocuous religions in existence... I wandered in here randomly one day and the worshippers/community members were very accomodating, especially since they mostly spoke Cantonese and I only speak English. The building is very pleasant; it has a nice smell and a beautiful look. For events: twice each lunar month (they may have a calendar there?) they have some veggie lunch available. I hear there is music performed and a small service. Yay culture tourism!

I'm ringing in Chinese New Years writing a review for this temple. It's buzzing with people wishing…read moreand hoping for a good year. Happy Chinese New Year everyone!!!

As a child, I used to go to this temple with my grandmother. After she passed, her name went up on…read morethe golden wall beside bodhisattva, which means she is a devoted follower. I can definitely attest that the leaders are good people. They mean well. They treated my grandmother well, and visited her when she was in critical condition at the hospital to comfort her. Recently I came as an adult and the elderly greeter was very enthusiastic. However, the things she said were very manipulative and unsympathetic. After teaching me how to pray for a baby, she demanded money for the temple when I got pregnant and warned that if I didn't, I would lose the baby. $300 in fact. She said it more than once without a smile and forced me to say it directly to Buddha while watching me do it. She also taught me that I should go up to pregnant women to inconspicuously rub their bellies. I did not need permissions to touch their bodies. I realize that you cannot control the things that people say, but if she is a greeter, she is not in touch with the standards of society. I was too shocked to realize she was threatening me with money. I hope this review gets through to the leaders and monks of 佛光寺 Fo Guang Si and that you prevent this from happening to other visitors. I know that you are a tight knit group, but from this interaction, I do not believe you are as welcoming to newcomers as you can be. No matter how devoted my grandmother was to this temple, I am never coming here again. For visitors, proceed with caution as your milage may vary.

"To Promote Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, as well as to propagate the Jodo Shinshu teachings," this…read morebeautiful center is a fantastic resource for the Buddhist Churches of America. In addition to housing the Center for Buddhist Education, the Institute of Buddhist Studies, and the BCA bookstore, the Jodo Shinshu Center (JSC) holds many activities, sessions, and conferences. There are multiple classrooms, a gated parking lot, dorm/hotel rooms for overnight stay, a library and kodo for services. The wonderful and helpful staff is always more than willing to help, welcoming many guests to tour the JSC and learn about Jodo Shinshu Buddhism. I always jump at the chance to attend the conferences/reunions/activities at the JSC and have been to talks on Shinran Shonin, TechnoBuddha, YAC Retreat, College YBA Conference and many other events here. I have not only formed great memories and relationships with lifelong friends, but also expanded my knowledge of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism through this awesome center. I definitely encourage anyone to drop in and check it out, keeping an eye on courses and outreach offered by the JSC.

I think they need to have more information available for first time visitors... There were not many…read morestaff available, and the information was about specific events, not the facilities there. Basically, I wanted to know if I could go to the kodo (but I forgot the word, sorry), but basically got mixed messages. I think because I'm Boricua, the staff working there thought I did not know it was a Buddhist center... but I know that; I am a Pure Land Buddhist, lol. Anyway, it is too bad because I think it is important for everyone to know about Amida Buddha. It seems there are other Jodo Shinshu churches/temples that might be more inclusive, but I can't say for sure. 実は、日本語を勉強しましたが、昔だったから、急に言語をスイッチするのが難しいです。私がちょっと恥ずかしがりやし, この頃近毎日英語だけで話しているので, 日本語の言葉が出てこなかったんです。ちゃんと話せなかったのが問題を引き起こしたと気がしました。すみませんでした。