Xianfo Temple

In Laifeng County, 7 kilometers east of the Youshui River fotanyan. According to legend, it was first chiseled in the Xiankang period of the Eastern Jin Dynasty (335-342). There is an ochre red cliff, standing on the riverside, about 100 meters high, with three Buddhas on the wall and three pavilions built on the wall. Therefore, the pond in the river is called Buddha pond. The stone mountain on the river bank is called xianfo rock, and the temple is called xianfo temple. The big Buddha sits on the lotus terrace, about five and a half meters high. Next to the big Buddha in the middle, there are four small Buddhas. On both sides of the big Buddha, there are two small Buddhas. The small ladder is about two meters high. In the south, there are a group of grottoes carved with 19 one meter high small Buddhas. The total length of the Grottoes is 35 meters. The ancient temple is surrounded by precipice on the top and deep pool on the bottom. Outside the temple, the ancient trees are towering, the sun is covered with thick shade, the green vine curtain is hanging, the wind is gentle, and the summer is cold. Whenever the bright moon is in the sky and the shadow is reflected in the clear pool, you can enjoy the scenery with the help of the fence.

A palindrome poem once wrote: "flowers bloom, chrysanthemums, white osmanthus compete for research, good scenery is suitable for people to stay late in the sky, the clouds fall, the ripples in the pool, the gauze cage tree color, the moon cage smoke." If you read the poem upside down, that is: "smoke cage moonlight tree cage yarn, shadow waves in the pool sunset, pleasant day, stay good scenery, research for guibaiju blossom." On the stone wall at the north end of the stone Buddha, the word "immortal Buddha Temple" is engraved. Next to it is engraved "may, the first year of Xiankang".

According to the records of Laifeng County, only the six characters of "may in the first year of Xiankang" are inscribed. There were two Xiankang dynasties in the history of our country, one was Xiankang in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (335 A.D.) and the other was Xiankang in Jianyuan Dynasty (925 A.D.) by Wang Yan, the king of Shu in the Five Dynasties. There is still a debate about which period of Xiankang period it was made, and it is still under study. No matter which Xiankang year it was made, it is more than a thousand years old and has a long history. More than a thousand years ago, such superb carving skills can show the degree of development of Tujia ancient manual technology.

Xianfo Temple

Xianfo temple is located on Fotan rock by Youshui River, 7 kilometers east of Laifeng County, Enshi, Hubei Province.

The cave was first excavated in the first year of Xiankang (335 AD) in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. It is the only existing large-scale Moyan Grottoes in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and the two lakes. The statue art has strong characteristics of the Central Plains, representing the peak of the stone carving art in the two lakes. It provides important material materials for the study of the Buddhist cultural and artistic exchanges between Western Hubei and the Central Plains and between Sichuan, Hubei and Hunan at that time, and has a high value Historical, scientific and artistic values.

Xianfo temple was announced by the State Council as the Sixth Batch of national key cultural relics protection units in 2006.

Brief introduction to temples

The grottoes of xianfo temple are more than 100 meters high. There are three Buddhas on the wall and three pavilions built on the wall. There are more than 100 large and small stone Buddhas. The carving is simple and exquisite. On the stone wall at the north end of the stone Buddha, the word "immortal Buddha Temple" is engraved.

Xianfo temple, which is located in the cliff, has triple eaves. Ganlan Temple stretches straight along the river, overlooking from the railing, with mountains like Dai and hills undulating. There are more than 100 large and small stone Buddhas in the grottoes. They are more than 5 meters high and more than 10 centimeters short, with different expressions and exquisite carving skills. The big Buddha sits on the lotus terrace, about 5.5 meters high; next to the big Buddha in the middle, there are 4 small Buddhas, and on both sides, there are 2 small Buddhas, about 2 meters high.

Layout structure

There are Grottoes in the south of xianfo temple. There are 19 1-meter-high small Buddhas. The total length of the whole grotto is 35 meters. The ancient temple is surrounded by cliffs on the top and deep pools on the bottom. The ancient trees outside the temple are towering, and the sun is covered with thick shade. It is also very cool in summer. Whenever the bright moon is in the sky and the shadow is reflected in the clear pool, you can enjoy the scenery with the help of the fence. There were hundreds of small Buddha sculptures on both sides of xianfo temple, which were destroyed during the cultural revolution. The stone steps outside the temple extend to the beautiful Youshui river. The deep pool in the river is called "Buddha pool". The bright moon is in the sky, and the green mountains and bright moon are reflected in the pool. It is called "Buddha pool reflecting the moon". For thousands of years, the incense of xianfo temple has flourished. Many men and women from far and near come here to worship Buddha and pray for God. They have been there all the year round, and many scholars and scholars have come here.

Main building

The cliff of xianfo temple, the cliff on the West Bank of Fotan, is about 200 meters long. It is about 40 meters long. From north to south, three large niches, one middle niches and 18 small niches are carved. There are 31 statues of Buddha, Bodhisattva and donor.

The first large niche (K ā n, a small pavilion dedicated to the shrine) is in the shape of inverted U, about 6 meters high. The top of the niche is 13.6 meters above the ground. In the niche are two disciples of one Buddha. The Buddha sitting statue is 5 meters high and Xumi seat is 3.4 meters high. The Standing Statue of the second disciple is 4.1 meters high.

The top of the second niche is 13.85 meters above the ground, and the height of the niche is 6.3 meters. The statues in the niche are two Bodhisattvas, two disciples of one Buddha. The sitting statue is 5.3 meters high, the Xumi seat is 3.7 meters high, and the rib statue is 2.8 meters and 3.2 meters high respectively.

The third niche is 14.6 meters from the top to the ground, with a height of 6.2 meters. Sitting Buddha is 5 meters high and xumizuo is 3.4 meters high. Behind him, there is a light and backlight relief head, and the edge is painted with red flame pattern. The second disciple is 3.8 meters high and stands on a round throne decorated with lotus ornaments. The top of the middle niche is 11.3 meters above the ground. There are two Bodhisattvas standing in the niche, wearing a crown, wearing Tassels and carrying a clean bottle. The height is 2.7 meters.

To the south of the central niche, there are 18 small niches, one for each. Due to the weathering of the rock, the face and clothing pattern are blurred. The name of each statue is unknown, but its original charm still exists.

Cliff statues

Xianfosi grottoes are not only the only cliff statues of the Tang Dynasty in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and the two lakes, but also the largest existing cliff statues. " In the middle of the 200 meter cliff, there are four large niches on the concave stone wall, including the North niche, the middle niche, the South niche and the south medium niche, with 31 statues in size. Among them, there are three large Grottoes in the north. The main statue in the cave is a large statue. There are disciples or disciples and Bodhisattvas carved on both sides of the Buddha. There are three niches with a total of 11 statues. There is a medium-sized niche in the middle, 11.3 meters high from the top of the niche to the ground, and two vertical statues of Bodhisattvas are chiseled. The left zuntong is 2.7 meters high. The shape is well proportioned, with a crown on the head, two streamers on the shoulders and a knot in the middle.

Three pendulous wreaths on the chest, a long skirt around the waist, exaggerated abdomen and long legs. Hold the net bottle in the right hand and lift it up in the left hand. It is dynamic and steady with a calm look. At the south end, there are 18 niches for small Buddha statues, one for each Buddha, most of which are about Guanyin, dizang and other subjects. Ranging from 15 to 2 meters high, it is the most severely damaged area, and almost none of them is well preserved. The top of the large niche is 14.6 meters from the top of the ground, and the niche is 6.2 meters high. Sitting Buddha is 5 meters high and 34 meters high. His head is chiseled high in a bun, his ears are drooped and his shoulders are hung. He is wearing a double collar sagging cassock popular in the Tang Dynasty, and his right hand is caressing his knees.

County records

According to the records of Laifeng County (Tongzhi Edition), "Xiankang Buddha, on the rock of Fotan, the cliff is Qianxun, and two ancient Buddhas are carved on it On the left, it is engraved with a record of "six characters, many of which are indistinguishable". In the history of our country, there were two "Xiankang" years, one was "Xiankang" in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the other was "Xiankang" in the Five Dynasties. If the former has a history of more than 1600 years, it is the most famous cliff sculptures in Jiangnan: even the latter is a cultural relic more than 1000 years old. In the collection of Buddhist couplets (quoted), there is the xianfo temple in Laifeng, Hubei Province: the sun and the moon hang in the sky at the bottom of the water, and the buildings appear in the air. From: Fengxian Buddhist temple in Hubei Province.

Stone inscription

Huiwen poems on stone tablet of xianfo Temple

Fotan has always been praised for its quiet scenery, especially when the moon is in the sky and the Fotan is reflecting the moon. It is one of the ten scenic spots in the history of Laifeng. Scholars have left many masterpieces, and now there is a poem on the cliff in front of the Mountain Gate: flowers blooming, chrysanthemums blooming, white osmanthus blooming, beautiful scenery, lingering in the evening sky, rosy clouds falling, ripples in the pool, gauze cage tree color, moon cage smoke.

What's more interesting is that it's a palindrome poem. It's written in sentences. If you put it together, you can deduce ten thousand new poems.

Read the poem upside down

Smoke cage moonlight tree cage yarn,

Shadow waves in the lake sunset;

It's better to stay at night,

The flowers of white chrysanthemum are blooming.

In the original poem, the first two words are removed to form five character quatrains

Ju Bai Gui Zhengyan,

Pleasant stay late days;

Waves and shadows in the pool,

Tree color, moon cage smoke.

It is said that tanzhenren once wrote a message: "recite a hundred poems, and the iron boat goes with the water". Once a talented man read 99 poems at a time. The river waves rolled, and the iron boat loomed on the water. The talented man was so shocked that he forgot the last one in his hurry that he even became a regret forever.

In 1986, the Culture Bureau of Fengxian County issued a collection of more than 14000 poems on the interpretation of the Hui poems of xianfo temple in Enshi newspaper, and 200 of them were selected to become the collection of poems on the interpretation of the Hui poems of xianfo temple. Today, the xianfo temple has not been restored. There are more than 100000 pilgrims every year, especially on February 19, June 19 and September 19

Peripheral facilities

Historical evolution

In the Tang Dynasty, cliff Buddha statues were first carved.

In 1938, Chen Yuanru, head of Laifeng County, investigated and counted that there were 176 temples and more than 250 monks and nuns in the county

In 1945, Laifeng branch of the Chinese Buddhist Association was established and became the Buddhist Center of Hubei, Hunan, Chongqing and Guizhou border areas

In 1956, xianfo temple was listed as the first batch of key cultural relics protection units in Hubei Province

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Chinese PinYin : Xian Fo Si