Mount Emei: Leshan Giant Buddha

Author: Compiled by China Travel Press
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-08-01
Features: Mount Emei is one of China's four major Buddhist mountains, alongside Mount Wutai, Mount Putuo, and Mount Jiuhua. Legend has it that in the sixth year of the Yongping era (63 AD) during the Eastern Han Dynasty, a herbalist named Pu Gong climbed Mount Emei to gather herbs and encountered the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra in a vision atop the mountain. The historical Buddhist presence on Mount Emei dates back to the Long'an period (376–401 AD) of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, when one of the founders of the Pure Land sect, Master Huichi, came to establish temples throughout the mountain, including Fupeng Temple (now Wan niên Temple). The Tang and Song dynasties marked the peak of Buddhism on Mount Emei. In the fifth year of the Taipingguo era (980 AD) of the Northern Song Dynasty, Emperor Taizong ordered eunuchs to the mountain to cast a bronze statue of Samantabhadra riding an elephant, standing 7.35 meters tall, which solidified Mount Emei as a sacred site for the worship of Samantabhadra in Chinese Buddhism. The octagonal brick hall of Wan niên Temple during the Ming Dynasty incorporates architectural elements from Indian Buddhist structures, making it unique in style. Over 100 temples have been built on the mountain at various times, with 26 remaining today. These sacred halls and monasteries blend seamlessly with the rugged valleys, misty clouds, lush green trees, and flowing springs, forming a natural landscape garden.