1, Jinyang Xishan Giant Buddha Monument
Located in the south of the north peak of Mengshan Mountain, it is chiseled by the mountain. Due to years of wind and rain erosion, the rock surface has been severely weathered. Moreover, wormwood, a small tree, has grown in the peeling place of its bare chest and neck, losing its original charm, making people not know that it was the giant Buddha of that year, standing in the arms of the giant Buddha without knowing it. No wonder former Buddhist explorers lamented that "the giant Buddha no longer exists" and "only rocks remain". The exposed chest and neck of Jinyang Xishan Giant Buddha is17.5m high, 25m wide and 5m wide. It was recorded in the Tang Dynasty that it was "200 feet high", which was about 63 meters according to the standard commonly used in the Tang Dynasty, only 8 meters lower than the Leshan Giant Buddha in China and Sichuan (7 1 meter high) and more than the Bamiyan Giant Buddha in Afghanistan (the world's largest Buddha). Western countries can't research the "Ba" Buddha clearly, and think that the "Ba" Buddha was carved in the "third to seventh centuries", which is an inaccurate estimate, while the historical records clearly record that it was carved in the second year of Tianbao in the Northern Qi Dynasty in the sixth century (55 1). If the "Ba" Buddha was carved in the "7th century", the giant Buddha in Jinyang Xishan was a century earlier. It is 162 years earlier than the China Leshan Giant Buddha carved in the first year of Kaiyuan in Tang Dynasty (7 13). Accordingly, Jinyang Xishan Giant Buddha is the second largest Buddha in the world in terms of height and the earliest large stone Buddha statue in the world in terms of age.
Since the Northern Qi Dynasty carved Buddha, the inscriptions of Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties have been reconstructed, expanded, excavated and recorded. Except for the inscriptions on the ruins of Qiansi Temple, which have been moved to the Shuangta Temple in Taiyuan for preservation, the inscriptions of other generations have not been exported, so there are still a large number of funerary objects in the place where they are still there. As for the remains of the giant Buddha's stomach, hands, legs, feet, pedestal and pavilion, they are all covered with mud and stones on the hillside under the giant Buddha's chest. The investigation of this giant Buddha has only touched half, and it still needs to be cleaned up and excavated.
Edit this passage back to the contents of Xishan Giant Buddha-Historical Records
Xishan Buddha
Where is Jinyang Xishan? There is nothing in the book of Beiqi. Jinyang Xishan is Taiyuan Xishan, where there are the giant buddhas of Tianlong Mountain Tianlong Temple, Longshan Tongzi Temple and Mengshan Kaihua Temple. Which is the "Xishan Giant Buddha"? Historians have different opinions, some say "Tianlong Mountain Statue", and some say "It is in Mengshan Mountain, but it no longer exists". "The Book of the Northern Qi Dynasty" contains: "Carve the giant Buddha statue in Jinyang Xishan, burn ten thousand pots of oil overnight, and shine on the palace". "Palace" refers to the famous Jin Yanggong in history, and its site is in the area of Jiulong Temple, Guchengying Village, Jinyuan Town. It seems that the giant Buddha is the "ten thousand pots of oil" that shines in the ancient city and village.
Tianlongshan Giant Buddha is located more than 30 miles southwest of Guchengying Village, blocked by Longshan in the middle, and the light can't reach Guchengying Village. It can be seen that the "Tianlong Mountain Statue" is not a "Xishan Buddha". There are records about the giant Buddha in Tongyu Temple in Longshan, inscriptions and local chronicles. This giant Buddha was carved in the seventh year of Tianbao in the Northern Qi Dynasty (556). It was carved into Galway Buddha before, indicating that this is not the "Western Mountain Buddha", so it is only the giant Buddha of Mengshan Kaihua Temple. Mengshan Kaihua Temple was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution. Among the remaining broken monuments found in the temple, there are five generations of Liu Zhiyuan's "Rebuilding the Zhuang Yan Pavilion in Hua Kai, Mengshan", and there is a "Western Mountain Buddha" in the monument. And the record seems to be "a mile behind the house." Housi no longer exists and is called "Dadu Cliff". At close range, the rock looks like a big belly, and at a distance, the chest and arms are clear and headless. It was originally carved from a rock. The chest and neck of a stone carving giant stand out in the mountains. Climb up the giant's neck and look to the southeast. Among the mountains, you can see the ancient city Yingcun, 20 miles away, and the site of Jin Yanggong is in front of you. It is indeed possible to "light the palace with oil." This stone carving giant is the "Jinyang Xishan Giant Buddha".
Edit this passage back to the content of Xishan Buddha-the excavation process
Xishan Buddha
Li Jinxiang, a retired worker of Shaanxi Highway Bureau, is a famous local "Buddha protector". He told reporters that he couldn't remember how many times he came to Mengshan to seek Buddha. The reason why Li Jinxiang made such a great determination to look for the giant Buddha came from the accidental discovery of an old man named Wang Jianni. Wang Jianni's grandfather, Wang Jianping, was the president and founder of Shaanxi Buddhist Association during the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression period. Wang Jianni heard many stories about Mengshan Buddha from his grandfather when he was young. 1980 10, 55-year-old Wang Jianni was working in the municipal department and was transferred to participate in the national geographical names survey. In a place name survey in Taiyuan, the name "Daduyan" made Wang Jianni feel strange. He went to Mengshan again. This time, through searching among local people, Wang Jianni learned that many place names nearby contain the word "temple". This discovery made Wang Jianni more convinced that he was not far from the Giant Buddha.
Later, accompanied by local villagers, Wang Jianni began to look for tall stone cliffs on nearby mountains-he realized that to chisel a 200-foot-high sitting statue, there must be rocks at least the same height. When they came to the "pot-bellied" cliff, Wang Jianni's eyes lit up, and a huge Buddha's chest appeared in the middle of the cliff. So Wang Jianni immediately asked the relevant departments to conduct on-the-spot investigation. After investigation, it was found that the head of the giant Buddha was lost and the part below the chest was buried in the slope of broken rocks and tiles. Because the investigation conditions were backward at that time, this discovery went away.
Wang Jianni's unexpected discovery aroused Li Jinxiang's great interest. 1997 One day, Li Jinxiang came to Mengshan. After finding the strange rock mass, he organized the villagers to clean up the surrounding rubble and found a finger sculpture about the height of an adult man in the rubble. In August, 2005, Li Jinxiang's letter to National Cultural Heritage Administration, China was handed over to Shanxi Provincial Cultural Relics Department and Taiyuan Mayor's Office. The Provincial Cultural Relics Bureau immediately instructed the Municipal Cultural Relics Bureau to urge the local government to strengthen the protection and development of the giant Buddha, so the Mengshan Giant Buddha was "excavated".
Edit this passage back to the Catalogue of Xishan Giant Buddha-Restoration Degree. Since 2006, the local government has hired experts to comprehensively protect and develop the Mengshan Giant Buddha, and the head restoration project has started. On June 5, 2007, the comprehensive reinforcement project of Mengshan Giant Buddha in Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province was completed. The restoration of Mengshan Giant Buddha has aroused great concern from all walks of life. Some people say that it is higher than Bamiyan Buddha (53 meters high) and earlier than Leshan Buddha (7 13 AD). However, why was it built and destroyed so badly? Its body was painted with too many mysterious colors.
In March 2008, the head repair project of Mengshan Giant Buddha was initially completed.
On May 12, 2008, Mengshan Giant Buddha Scenic Area was opened to the public to welcome tourists from all directions.
Edit this paragraph back to the contents of Xishan Giant Buddha-Landscape Introduction 1,
Xishan Buddha
Tianlongshan Buddha
More than 30 miles southwest of Guchengying Village, there is a Longshan barrier in the middle, and the light can't reach Guchengying Village. It can be seen that the "Tianlong Mountain Statue" is not the "Xishan Giant Buddha". There are records about the giant Buddha in Tongyu Temple in Longshan, inscriptions and local chronicles. This giant Buddha was carved in the seventh year of Tianbao in the Northern Qi Dynasty (556). It was carved into Galway Buddha before, indicating that this is not the "Western Mountain Buddha", so it is only the giant Buddha of Mengshan Kaihua Temple. Mengshan Kaihua Temple was destroyed in the Cultural Revolution. Among the remaining broken steles found in the temple, there are five generations of Liu Zhiyuan stele "Rebuilding the Zhuang Yan Pavilion in Hua Kai, Mengshan", which contains the "Western Mountain Buddha" here. And the record seems to be "a mile behind the house." Housi no longer exists and is called "Dadu Cliff". At close range, the rock looks like a big belly, and at a distance, the chest and arms are clear and headless. It was originally carved from a rock. The chest and neck of a stone carving giant stand out in the mountains. Climb up the giant's neck and look to the southeast. Among the mountains, you can see the ancient city Yingcun, 20 miles away, and the site of Jin Yanggong is in front of you. It is indeed possible to "light the palace with oil." This stone carving giant is the "Jinyang Xishan Giant Buddha".
Second, Jinyang Xishan Buddhist Temple.
The Great Zhuang Yan Temple was originally built in the Eastern Wei Dynasty. In the second year of Tianbao in the Northern Qi Dynasty (55 1), Levin donated to build Kaihua Temple, also known as Kaihua Temple, carved Buddha statues from the mountains and built two temples, which were called "the second temple of Dashi Cave". It can be seen that the "Xishan Giant Buddha", formerly known as "Grottoes", is located in Shangsi. In the early years of Emperor Wendi's Renshou (602), the Giant Buddha Pavilion was built and renamed "Jingming Temple". Tang Wude three years (620), Li Yuan stayed in Jinyang, renamed Kaihua Temple. In 660, Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, Li Zhi and Wu Zetian, came to Bing to pay homage to the Buddha statues of Kaihua Temple and Tongzi Temple. They "prostrated themselves and sighed, giving up treasures, possessions and clothes", which made the governor of Bing Gui "prepare the sacred face quickly and solemnly" and "make it wide before opening the niche". After Wu Zetian and Li Zhi returned to Chang 'an, the capital city, two years later, the emperor's imperial palace made two cassocks, sent messengers to send them to Bing, and gave them two cassocks of giant Buddha statues. The gold and silver jewelry decorated on the cassock shines brightly, and "five-colored cliffs, caves, candles and mountains" and "Taoist temples are watched by thousands of people" caused a sensation in the guest. When Tang Wuzong destroyed the giant Buddha, the pavilion was in disrepair, but the giant Buddha was not damaged. In the second year of the late Tang Dynasty (895), Li Keyong, king of Jin Dynasty, exhausted the power of Hedong and spent 300,000 yuan to rebuild the Giant Buddha Pavilion in five years. In 945, two years after the Five Dynasties, Liu Zhiyuan, king of Beiping, stayed in Beijing (Jinyang) to build a Buddhist pavilion. The stately pavilion rebuilt this time is five stories high, with 13 trees, 26 rooms and 130 rooms on each floor, covering the 200-foot-high giant Buddha, which shows the scale of the pavilion. At the end of Yuan Dynasty (1368), the temple collapsed, the head of the Buddha fell off, and the lower part of the Buddha was covered with broken bricks and mud stones on the mountain. In the 18th year of Hongwu in Ming Dynasty (1385), the former temple was rebuilt by Zhu, the king of Jin, and was named Huokeji. The 800-year-old "Xishan Giant Buddha" has been buried for more than 600 years.
Since the Northern Qi Dynasty carved Buddha, the inscriptions of Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties have been reconstructed, expanded, excavated and recorded. Except for the inscriptions on the ruins of Qiansi Temple, which have been moved to the Shuangta Temple in Taiyuan for preservation, the inscriptions of other generations have not been exported, so there are still a large number of funerary objects in the place where they are still there. As for the remains of the giant Buddha's stomach, hands, legs, feet, pedestal and pavilion, they are all covered with mud and stones on the hillside under the giant Buddha's chest. The investigation of this giant Buddha has only touched half, and it still needs to be cleaned up and excavated.
Edit this passage to return to the content-characteristics of Xishan Giant Buddha.
Xishan Buddha
When it comes to the Cliff Carved Giant Buddha, people will think of Leshan Giant Buddha in Sichuan, which is well-known at home and abroad. An atrocity committed by the Taliban in Afghanistan in March, 200012000 also made the Bamiyan Giant Buddha in Afghanistan, which has long been recognized by the western world as "the world's largest Buddha", not only destroyed, but also became famous all over the world. Undoubtedly, these two giant statues carved on cliffs have their unique position and influence in the world historical and cultural heritage. However, there is also a world-class Cliff Carved Buddha in Taiyuan, Shanxi, China-Mengshan Buddha in China (namely Xishan Buddha), but it is little known!
(1) vertical and horizontal elements, to build its status as a world-class cultural treasure.
According to historical records, Taiyuan Mengshan Giant Buddha was first carved in Tianbao period of Northern Qi Dynasty (55 1 year) during the Southern and Northern Dynasties in China, and it took five emperors 25 years to finish the carving in Northern Qi Dynasty. It is recorded in the Book of Northern Qi that Wei "carved Jinyang Xishan into a giant Buddha, burned ten thousand pots of oil overnight, and lit the palace", so "Mengshan Giant Buddha" is also called "Xishan Giant Buddha", and "Palace" refers to the famous one in history. The Buddha statue recorded in the Tang Dynasty is "200 feet high", which is about 63 meters according to the common ruler of the Tang Dynasty, only 8 meters lower than the Leshan Giant Buddha (7 1 m) in China and 8 meters higher than the Bamiyan Giant Buddha (53 meters1m) in Afghanistan, which was previously called "the world's largest Buddha" by the west. According to the date of engraving, the west can't verify the "Bamiyan Giant Buddha" clearly, and only thinks that it may have been engraved between the third and seventh centuries, which is an inaccurate estimate. China Mengshan Giant Buddha is clearly recorded in historical records as carved in 55 1 year, which is earlier than Sichuan Leshan Giant Buddha (7 13) 162. Accordingly, Mengshan Giant Buddha is the earliest large stone Buddha statue with exact age in the world so far. As far as height is concerned, Mengshan Giant Buddha is higher than Bamiyan Giant Buddha, and it is the second largest Buddha known in the world so far. Therefore, among the few stone statues carved on cliffs in the world, China Mengshan Giant Buddha undoubtedly occupies a prominent position!
(2) It was built by the royal family, and the ritual Buddha was like a national temple for a while.
There are records in the history books: "Levin, Wen Xuandi, Northern Qi Dynasty, built a temple in Mengyang Mountain in Tianbao two years ago, and endowed it with the history of civilization", "The statue on the mountain has been more than 20 years, which is caused by latitude". It can be seen that the Mengshan Giant Buddha in China was built by the Northern Qi Emperor Gao Yang, and it was built under the supervision of four emperors: Yin Gao, Gao Yan, Gao Zhan and Gao Wei. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty built a pavilion for the giant Buddha in 602 AD, called "Jingming". In the Tang Dynasty, great-grandfather Li Yuan often came to Mengshan to worship Buddha and changed his name to "Hua Kai". Especially in the fifth year of Tang Xianqing, Tang Gaozong and Wu Zetian revisited Jinyang's hometown to pay homage to Mengshan Giant Buddha. After returning to Chang 'an, they specially made a huge cassock for the Buddha, and sent a special envoy to Jinyang to hold a robe for the Buddha under the gaze of millions of monks and customs in Jinyang. For a time, the Mengshan Giant Buddha was like a national temple in the eyes of the royal family and respected in the eyes of the people. Its social and historical status can be seen. This makes the Mengshan Giant Buddha in China look particularly glamorous for a long time!
Xishan Buddha
(3) Hong Xian has been around for more than 800 years, and magical legends and stories are timeless.
As far as Buddhist culture is concerned, during the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Jinyang Buddhist culture was quite prosperous and monks gathered. It was once an important Buddhist center in the Central Plains. As early as the second year when Buddhism was introduced to China, temples were established in Shanxi. During the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, a generation of eminent monks such as Fa Xian, Hui Yuan and Luantan appeared in Shaanxi. With the establishment of several major Buddhist sects, Shanxi has become the center of Buddhist culture in China. Kaihua Temple, where Mengshan Giant Buddha is located, is one of the temples with the most incense. Overseas, especially in Japanese, Korean and Southeast Asian Buddhist circles, Mengshan Giant Buddha is called "Jiaocheng Mengshan Giant Buddha" because Xuanzhong Temple, located in Jiaocheng County, Shanxi Province, is a recognized ancestral home in the eyes of Pure Land Sect. In fact, the early Dojo of Pure Land Sect of Buddhism was in Kaihua Temple where Mengshan Buddha was located. Due to its long history, there was a misunderstanding in overseas Buddhist circles, which was called "Jiaocheng Mengshan Giant Buddha". The Japanese Buddhist community even praised Mengshan Buddha, believing that it has a long history and ranks first among the Buddha statues in China. According to legend, when Tang Gaozu Li Yuan was in Taiyuan, he visited Mengshan Giant Buddha one day and had a dream that night. In his dream, he saw the Buddha shining brightly, and when he woke up, he thought it was auspicious, which strengthened his determination to arise. Then the soldiers will prosper Jinyang and eventually become a great cause. Today's "Chinatown" all over the world is derived from this. These undoubtedly put a unique and mysterious veil on the Mengshan Giant Buddha.
(4) once you hide, you hide for 600 years.
China Mengshan Giant Buddha has been favored by the royal family and monks since it came out, which has played an important role in promoting and spreading Buddhist culture. However, with the change of dynasties and years, the once famous Mengshan Giant Buddha has gradually faded out of people's sight unconsciously. After the destruction of war and the erosion of nature's wind, frost, rain and snow, the pavilion finally collapsed at the end of the Yuan Dynasty (AD 1368), and the head of the giant Buddha had collapsed before the Yuan Dynasty. Since then, the abdomen, hands, legs, feet and pedestal of the giant Buddha have been buried in rocks, residual bricks and soil, which is unknown to future generations. It was not until AD 1980 that the Geographical Names Office of the Southern Suburb of Taiyuan City discovered the remains of the Giant Buddha in a geographical name survey. Once the Mengshan Giant Buddha was discovered, it attracted extensive attention from people of insight from all walks of life, and the Buddhist circles around the world also had a strong interest in it! Soon, the investigation and excavation of Mengshan Giant Buddha and the overall development and construction of Mengshan Scenic Area were included in the important agenda of Taiyuan Municipal Government of Shanxi Province, which became a brand-new highlight of Taiyuan City and even Shanxi Province, and soon focused on the eyes of the world!
(5) All sectors of society admire and create new business cards that attract the world.
Xishan Buddha
Since 1980 Monsanto Giant Buddha was discovered, people of insight from all walks of life have paid great attention to Monsanto Giant Buddha and encouraged its restoration, protection and development through various channels. Tian Donghui, director of China Buddhist Culture Research Institute, believes that Mengshan Buddha is a great miracle in the history of Buddhism in the world. He said that such a 1500-year-old Cliff Stone Carved Giant Buddha has a history and culture unmatched by other giant buddhas. Mr. Ma Qiyuan, an engineering expert who enjoys the subsidy from the State Council, believes that the cultural research value and social value of the Mengshan Giant Buddha are beyond doubt. Li Ruisen, vice president of China Cultural Relics Society, was shocked by the majestic momentum of the giant Buddha, saying that Mengshan Giant Buddha is not only the giant Buddha of Taiyuan people, but also the giant Buddha of all mankind, and it is a masterpiece of cliff stone carving art in the world. Taiyuan Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Government fully affirmed the restoration, protection and development of Mengshan Giant Buddha from the perspectives of protecting historical and cultural heritage, building a strong cultural province and city, building a famous historical and cultural city, and casting the soul and charm of the city. In recent years, the provincial and municipal governments and Jinyuan District Government have attached great importance to the development of Mengshan Giant Buddha Scenic Area, which will surely stir the world. A Buddhist cultural tourism resort that can not only reflect the local regional cultural characteristics, but also meet the religious belief needs of believers will soon be available, and Mengshan Giant Buddha will surely become a new business card for Taiyuan, Shanxi and even China to attract the world!