(At the junction of Sanjiang in Leshan, Sichuan, sits an incorruptible Buddha receiving incense) How to explain this text

Overview

The Leshan Giant Buddha is located in Leshan City, Sichuan Province, at the confluence of the Minjiang River, Qingyi River and Dadu River, facing Leshan City across the river. The Leshan Giant Buddha is carved on the rock wall at the confluence of the Minjiang River, Qingyi River and Dadu River. It is carved on the riverside cliff of Qixia Peak in Lingyun Mountain on the south bank of the Minjiang River. It is also known as the Lingyun Giant Buddha. It is a seated statue of Maitreya Buddha and is one of the most famous Moyan statues in the Tang Dynasty. One of the masterpieces of art is the world's largest stone sculpture of seated Maitreya Buddha.

Introduction

The Buddha sits upright with his hands on his knees. The shape is solemn, the drainage facilities are hidden, and the design is clever. The Buddha statue was excavated in the early years of the founding of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty (AD 713). It was initiated by monk Haitong to reduce the power of the water and save all living beings. He recruited manpower and material resources to build the statue. After Haitong's death, Haitong's disciples took over the construction. It was not completed until the 19th year of Zhenyuan (803 AD) of Emperor Dezong of the Tang Dynasty, which lasted 90 years. It is praised by poets as "the mountain is a Buddha, and the Buddha is a mountain". The Leshan Giant Buddha Scenic Area consists of Lingyun Mountain, Mahaoyan Tomb, Wuyou Mountain, and the giant reclining Buddha landscape, covering an area of ??approximately 8 square kilometers. The scenic spot belongs to the Emeishan Scenic Area, which is a national 4A-level scenic spot and a well-known scenic tourist attraction. In ancient times, there was a saying that "go up to Emei and go down to Lingyun".

The head of the Leshan Giant Buddha is flush with the mountain, with its feet on the river and its hands on its knees. The Buddha has a well-proportioned body and a solemn demeanor. It was carved into the mountain and sits beside the river. The Buddha is 71 meters high, with a head height of 14.7 meters, a head width of 10 meters, 1021 buns, ears 7 meters long, nose 5.6 meters long, eyebrows 5.6 meters long, mouth and eyes 3.3 meters long, neck height 3 meters, shoulders wide 24 meters, the fingers are 8.3 meters long, 28 meters from the knees to the insteps, and the insteps are 8.5 meters wide. More than a hundred people can sit on the insteps. On the cliffs along the river on both sides of the Buddha, there are two stone carvings of guardian warriors more than 10 meters tall, holding halberds and wearing battle robes. There are hundreds of niches and thousands of stone carvings, forming a huge Buddhist stone carving art group. To the left of the Buddha, along the "Dongtian", is the beginning of the Lingyun Plank Road, with a total length of nearly 500 meters. On the right is the Jiuqu Plank Road. After the Buddha statue was carved, a thirteen-story pavilion was built to cover it. It was called the "Big Buddha Pavilion" and "Big Buddha Pavilion" in the Song Dynasty, and it was called "Tianning Pavilion" in the Song Dynasty. It is a pity that it was destroyed by the war in the late Ming Dynasty and was burned down by Zhang Xianzhong's rebel army. You can see dozens of holes on the cliffs on both sides of the Buddha, where beams and columns were placed when the pavilion was built. Today, the beams and pillars have long been demolished, but the majestic Buddha is still standing tall.

The rocks on both sides of the Buddha are red sandstone. The red sandstone in Leshan is a loose and easily weathered rock. It is softer than granite and is a good material suitable for sculpture. However, after the Buddha statue is carved, it is prone to erosion and weathering. The Leshan Giant Buddha was carved on this kind of rock. In the long years of more than a thousand years, the Leshan Giant Buddha has inevitably suffered all kinds of damage, both natural and man-made. It has been repaired in various dynasties. Over the hundreds of years since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the Giant Buddha has been eroded by natural wind and rain, causing the Buddha's body to be riddled with holes and beyond recognition. In 1962, the government allocated special funds for comprehensive maintenance of the Buddha statue. In February 1982, it was listed as a national key cultural relic protection unit by the State Council. In 1990, the government allocated funds for a relatively thorough repair of the Buddha's head. At the same time, some supporting facilities and service facilities have been added. In December 1996, the Emeishan-Leshan Giant Buddha was approved by UNESCO as a "World Cultural and Natural Heritage" and included in the "World Natural and Cultural Heritage List". During an on-site inspection, Professor Dr. Sancerre Silva, a UNESCO World Heritage expert, praised that "the Leshan Giant Buddha is comparable to other stone carvings in the world such as the Sphinx and the Valley of the Kings of the Nile."

The Origin of the Giant Buddha

According to records in books such as Wei Gao's "Jiazhou Lingyun Giant Buddha Statue" in the Tang Dynasty and Peng Rushi's "Rebuilding the Lingyun Temple" in the Ming Dynasty, the initiator of the excavation of the Leshan Giant Buddha was Haitong Monk. Haitong is from Guizhou and grew up in Lingyun Mountain. In ancient times, at the confluence of three rivers in Leshan, the Minjiang River, Qingyi River, and Dadu River converged at the foot of Lingyun Mountain. The water was so fierce that boats were often overturned at this point. During summer floods, the river flows directly into the mountain walls, often causing tragedies of shipwrecks and fatalities. Seeing this, Monk Haitong decided to dig a statue of Maitreya Buddha on the cliff. He wanted to rely on his boundless magic power to "change the violent waves into a safe current", reduce the water potential and calm the wind and waves forever. Therefore, Zen Master Haitong traveled all over the north and south of the Yangtze River, Jianghuai and Huaihe lakes to raise money and build a giant Buddha. After the construction of the Buddha statue started, the local officials came to ask for bribes to fund the construction. Haitong sternly refused, saying, "You can dig out your own eyes, but the Buddha's wealth is rare." The local officials took advantage of the situation and said, "Try for the future." Haitong calmly "picked his own eyes and held the plate to show it", "the officials were so frightened that they ran around praying for regrets". Haitong's dedicated and self-forgetting behavior inspired everyone and made them sincere.

The construction of the Buddha statue began in the early years of the founding of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty (AD 713). When the Buddha reached its shoulders, monk Haitong died. After Haitong's death, the project was temporarily suspended. About ten years later, Zhangchou Jianqiong, the governor of Xichuan in Jiannan, donated his salary. Haitong's apprentices led the craftsmen to continue building the Buddha. Because the project was huge, the imperial court ordered a hemp salt tax, which made the project progress rapidly. When the Leshan Giant Buddha was repaired to the knees, Zhangchou Jianqiong, the person who continued the construction, was moved to the position of Minister of Household Affairs, and the project was stopped again. Forty years later, Wei Gao, the military governor of Xichuan in Jiannan, donated his salary to continue building the Leshan Giant Buddha. Thanks to the efforts of three generations of craftsmen, it took 90 years to complete in the 19th year of Zhenyuan (803 AD) of Emperor Dezong of the Tang Dynasty.

Wei Gao first wrote the "Record of the Great Maitreya Stone Statue of Lingyun Temple in Jiazhou", which records the beginning and end of the construction of the Giant Buddha. The original stele still exists on the cliff near the river on the right side of the Giant Buddha.

The Leshan Giant Buddha stands at the confluence of the Minjiang River, the Dadu River and the Qingyi River. For more than a thousand years, the Leshan Giant Buddha has seen many spring scenes in the world and has gone through many dynasties, but it remains solemn and kind, with an unwavering heart.

[Edit this paragraph] Interesting Structure

When looking at this Tang Dynasty Buddha statue, one often only sees the appearance that was carved into the mountain, and sees the posture of the Buddha sitting upright with his hands on his knees. The structure of the parts of the Buddha cannot be clearly seen.

The hair curls are embedded with stones

There are 1021 screw buns on the top of the Buddha. These were numbered with chalk during maintenance in 1962. From a distance, the bun and the head appear to be integrated, but in fact they are made of stones embedded one by one. At the exposed root of a single piece of screw bun, there are obvious splicing cracks and no mortar bonding. There are two layers of plaster on the surface of the bun, and the inner layer is lime, with a thickness of 5-15 mm each. During repairs in 1991, three remaining snail stones were found in the recessed part of the right leg of the Buddha statue. Two of them were relatively complete, 78 cm long, 31.5 × 31.5 cm at the top, and 24 × 24 cm at the base.

The two ears are made of wood

There is a hole about 25 centimeters deep on the inside of the earlobe of the right ear of the Buddha. The maintenance workers took out many broken objects from it. A closer look revealed that they were rotten. Wood mud. This confirms what Fan Chengda of the Southern Song Dynasty recorded in "Wu Chuan Lu": "The Buddha statues are the largest in the world, and their ears are made of wood." It can be seen from this that the 7-meter-long Buddha's ear is not hewn from the original rock, but is made of wooden pillars as a structure and then decorated with hammered ash. A hole was also found at the lower end of the Buddha's nostril, and three pieces of wood were exposed inside, forming the shape of a Chinese glyph. It shows that the raised bridge of the nose is also lined with wood and decorated with hammered gray exterior. However, it is impossible to verify whether this was the case when it was completed in the 19th year of Zhenyuan in the Tang Dynasty, or whether later generations used this craft to repair it during maintenance.

The drainage system is all over the body

The Leshan Giant Buddha has a very clever drainage system. The Leshan Giant Buddha has a cleverly designed and invisible drainage system behind its ears and head, which plays an important role in protecting the Giant Buddha. So that the Buddha statue will not be corroded by rainwater. Wang Shizhen, a poet of the Qing Dynasty, wrote a poem about the Leshan Giant Buddha: "The spring flows from the ancient Buddha's bun." Among the 18 layers of conch buns on the head of the Buddha, the 4th, 9th, and 18th floors each have a horizontal drainage ditch, which is decorated with hammered ash bricks and cannot be seen from a distance. There are also drains on the collar and folds of the clothes. There is a drain on the front of the chest that splits to the left and is connected to the drain on the back of the right arm. Behind the two ears and against the cliff, there are connected caves on the left and right that are 9.15 meters long, 1.26 meters wide, and 3.38 meters high. It is 1.35 meters high. The left hole is 8.1 meters deep, 0.95 meters wide and 1.1 meters high. These wonderful ditches and caves form a scientific drainage, moisture isolation and ventilation system, which have played an important role in protecting the Buddha and preventing erosive weathering for thousands of years. The two interconnected caves on the left and right can collect mountain springs, and a calcareous compound about 5-10 cm thick has condensed on the inner cliff. However, the cliff on the side of the Buddha is still red sand original rock and is relatively dry. The two caves that are blocked on the left and right have moist walls and water at the bottom. Water is constantly flowing out of the cave entrances, so the chest of the Buddha is about 2 meters wide and soaked in water. Obviously, this is because the hole is not penetrated. I don’t know why the builders didn’t open it up back then.

There is a broken stele on the chest

According to Huang Gaobin and Robert, the person in charge of the maintenance in 1962, they found a closed hole in the chest of the Buddha at that time. When the hole was opened, it was found that it was filled with scrap iron, old lead sheets, bricks, etc., and the door-sealing stone turned out to be a remnant monument commemorating the reconstruction of Tianning Pavilion in the Song Dynasty. After the completion of the Giant Buddha in the Tang Dynasty, a wooden pavilion was built to protect it from the sun and rain. From the many remaining pillar foundations and pile holes on the knees, legs, arms, chest and insteps of the Big Buddha, it is proved that there was a Big Buddha Pavilion. It was rebuilt in the Song Dynasty and called "Tianning Pavilion", but was later destroyed. But I don’t know what year or why, the fragmentary monument of Tianning Pavilion was actually embedded in the chest of the Buddha. The maintainers moved the ruined monument to Haishi Cave for preservation, but unfortunately it was destroyed in 1966.

Religious connotation

The Leshan Giant Buddha is a Maitreya Buddha. Maitreya Buddha was worshiped in the Tang Dynasty. According to Buddhist teachings, Maitreya Buddha is the future Buddha among the three Buddhas, symbolizing the brightness and happiness of the future world. He will succeed the Buddha Sakyamuni 5.67 billion years after his nirvana. With the status of Buddha, he spreads Buddhism widely under the Longhua tree in Hualin Garden and saves all sentient beings. Buddhist scriptures say that the birth of Maitreya will bring "peace to the world." During the Wu Zhou Dynasty, Wu Zetian ordered to compile a "Dayun Sutra" to prove that she was the reincarnation of Maitreya. The people's worship of Maitreya helped her ascend to the throne in the feudal era where men were superior to women. . Due to Wu Zetian's strong promotion, the trend of carving Maitreya became popular throughout the country. The construction of the Leshan Giant Buddha was only more than 20 years ago during the Wu Zetian era. Therefore, when Haitong built the Leshan Giant Buddha, he naturally chose Maitreya Buddha. Moreover, Maitreya Buddha is a future Buddha who can bring light and happiness. This is consistent with the requirements of the Buddha in Zhenjiang to calm floods. of.

In the Buddhist culture of Han China, the statues of Maitreya Buddha have undergone great changes. The first stage is the Jiaojiao Maitreya that was introduced to China from India; the second stage is the ancient statues with "Chinese characteristics". Buddha Maitreya; the third stage is Budai Maitreya. The Leshan Giant Buddha is an ancient Maitreya Buddha with "Chinese characteristics". According to the "Maitreya Sutra", the Maitreya Buddha statue has "thirty-two characteristics and eighty good qualities", which requires that his five senses, head, hands, feet and body have characteristics that are different from those of ordinary people.

The entire shape of the Leshan Giant Buddha is extraordinary. The bun on its head, broad shoulders, high and long eyebrows, and round nostrils are all "broad shoulders and thin waist" of Indian Buddha statues built in accordance with the provisions of Buddhist scriptures. Gone, replaced by strong shoulders and plump breasts, embodying the Tang Dynasty's fashion that favored fatness and beauty. The sitting posture of the Leshan Giant Buddha is with its feet hanging down naturally, which is different from the "lotus posture" of the Indian Buddha statues, because the Giant Buddha was built to calm the water. This stable and stable sitting posture can bring comfort to the boat. The courage and determination of people to overcome the rapids and shoals.

The Budai Maitreya Buddha is based on the image of a monk named Qisi from the Five Dynasties period in China. Qichi was a native of Fenghua County, Zhejiang Province. He was good at charity and could predict the weather and people's good and bad luck. He often carried a cloth bag and went around asking for alms. Before his death, he once said, "Maitreya is the real Maitreya. He has incarnated into hundreds of billions and always shows himself to the world. The world does not know about it." "Consciousness", so everyone believed that he was the incarnation of Maitreya Buddha, and the Maitreya Buddha in the temple also shaped his image - a cloth-bag monk with a big belly and a big smile.

Characteristics of the Giant Buddha

The Buddha statue is 71 meters high and is the tallest Buddha in the world. The head of the Buddha is 14.7 meters long, the head is 10 meters wide, the shoulders are 24 meters wide, and the ears are 7 meters long. Two people can stand side by side in the ears. The instep is 8.5 meters wide and can seat more than a hundred people. It is known as "Buddha is a mountain, and the mountain is "One Buddha".

The Leshan Giant Buddha has a cleverly designed and invisible drainage system, which plays an important role in protecting the Giant Buddha. Among the 18 layers of screw buns on the head of the Buddha, the 4th, 9th and 18th floors each have a transverse drainage ditch, which is decorated with hammered ash bricks and cannot be seen from a distance. There are also drains in the collar and folds of the clothes, and there are drains on the left side of the front chest that are connected to the drains on the back of the right arm. Behind the two ears and against the cliff, there are caves connected to the left and right; there is a hole at each end of the back and side of the chest, but they are not connected to each other. The walls of the holes are moist and water accumulates at the bottom. Water is constantly flowing out of the hole, so the chest of the Buddha is about 2 meters wide. of soaking tape. These ditches and caves form a scientific drainage, moisture isolation and ventilation system to prevent the Buddha from erosive weathering.

You can directly reach the bottom of the Buddha along the Lingyun Plank Road on the left side of the Buddha. When you look up at the Big Buddha here, you will feel as if you are looking up high. There is an ancient plank road with nine curves on the right side of the seated statue. The plank road is excavated along the cliff to the right of the Buddha statue. It is extremely steep and has nine twists and turns before you can reach the top of the plank road. This is the right side of the Buddha's head, which is the top of Lingyun Mountain. Here you can admire the carving art on the head of the Buddha. The hair on the top of the Buddha has 1021 buns. From a distance, the bun and the head appear to be integrated, but in fact they are made of stones embedded one by one.

There is a hole about 25 centimeters deep inside the root of the earlobe of the right ear of the Buddha. The 7-meter-long Buddha ear is not hewn from the original rock, but is made of wooden pillars as a structure and then decorated with hammer ash. Become. A hole was also found at the lower end of the Buddha's nostril, exposing three pieces of wood in the shape of a Chinese glyph. It shows that the raised bridge of the nose is also lined with wood and decorated with hammered gray exterior.

There is a closed hole in the chest of the Buddha. The sealing stone is a remnant monument chronicling the reconstruction of Tianning Pavilion in the Song Dynasty. The holes are filled with scrap iron, old lead sheets, bricks, etc. It is said that after the completion of the Great Buddha in the Tang Dynasty, a wooden pavilion was built to protect it from the sun and rain. From the many pillar foundations and pile holes remaining on the edges, legs, arms, breasts and insteps of the Buddha, it is proven that there was a Grand Buddha Pavilion. It was rebuilt in the Song Dynasty and was called "Tianning Pavilion", but it was later destroyed. The maintainers moved the ruined monument to Haishi Cave for preservation, but unfortunately it was later destroyed.

Behind the right side of the Big Buddha's head is the Lingyun Temple built in the Tang Dynasty, commonly known as the Big Buddha Temple. There are three major building complexes in the temple: Tianwang Hall, Daxiong Hall and Sutra Library.

Anecdotes and legends

It is said that in the early years of the Tang Dynasty, there was a Lingyun Temple on Lingyun Mountain. There was an old monk named Haitong in Lingyun Temple. At that time, at the foot of Lingyun Mountain, at the confluence of the Minjiang River, Qingyi River, and Dadu River, the water was deep and fast, and the waves were surging, often engulfing boats and endangering the people. Monk Haitong couldn't bear to see the ship destroyed and people perished. He thought that if the water in Sanjiang River was so rampant, there must be monsters in the water. If a Buddha statue is carved on this rock, with the power of the Bodhisattva, the water monster will be subdued and the ships will no longer be harmed.

The Leshan Giant Buddha mysteriously appeared four times. In 1962, during the three-year period of natural disasters, countless people died. The river at the foot of the Leshan Giant Buddha overflowed with death from hunger. The Buddha couldn't bear to witness the human tragedy and closed his eyes in pain. In 1976, leaders Mao, Zhu and Wednesday all passed away. Hundreds of thousands were killed and injured in the Tangshan earthquake. The giant Buddha complained about the injustice and showed an angry look on his face. In 2000, China joined the WTO and successfully applied for the Olympic Games. There were many happy events. The head of the Buddha shone with Buddha's light and auspicious signs abounded. For the above three times, there are photos in the Leshan showroom to prove it. The most mysterious thing is that during heavy rains in 1989, a hole was opened in Leshan, and a Buddha appeared inside. The face of the Buddha looked exactly like the national leader who took office that year. .