Baodingshan Cliffside Statuesare15 km to the northeast of Dazu County in Sichuan Province.
Some Buddhists go there to worship, burn joss sticks or expound Buddhist doctrine.The statues on the cliff of Baoding Mountain began to be carved in the sixth year (1179) during the Chunxi reign, and were completed in the ninth year (1249) of the Chunyou reign of the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279). It was the place where the rites of the Secret Sect of Buddhism were performed, and was in the charge of Zhao Zhifeng, a famous monk in the Southern Song Dynasty. There are altogether 13 stone carvings, and more than ten thousand statues, among which the Big Buddha Bay and the Small Buddha Bay house the most statues.
The Big Buddha Bay looks like a horse's hoof. It is more than 500 meters long, and the cliff is 15~30 meters high. The statues are distributed on the east, south and north sides. The Big Buddha Bay was modelled after, and built later than the small one. There are more than 30 large-scale carvings, among which the famous ones arethe Six Samsaras,Guangda Baolou Pavilion,Statues of Three Sages of Huayan Sect of Buddhism,Thousand-Hand Bodhisattva,Painting of the Nirvana of Sakyamuni,Nine Dragons Bathe for the Prince,Peacock Sutra Painting, and so on. The carvings of the Song Dynasty (960-1279) possess the most distinctive features, and are well preserved. Moreover, they are exceptionally interesting and full of vivid tales.
The Thousand-Hand Bodhisattva was carved on the wall of the east cliff in the Big Buddha Bay. It has 1,007 hands that are crisscross and full of changes. The whole picture, looking like a peacock with an open tail, is dazzlingly magnificent, and is the only one in China. The statueThree Sages of Huayan Sectis 7 meters high. The Buddha, holding up a thousandjin(1 kg =2jin) stone pagoda with his hands, has gone through many years but still stands there intact, showing the masterly application of the mechanics in architecture. The Baoding Yuanjue Cave, which is famous for its well-conceived design and elegant carvings, lies in the south rock of the Big Buddha Bay. A window has been chiselled in the top of the cave for lighting,and there are also two windows at the entrance of the cave. The spring, guided from the top into the cave, flows out of the mouth of the dragon through the little ditches in the wall, and then breathes into the hidden ditches and streams out of the cave. There are three statues of Buddha carved on the facade wall of the cave. In front of the main Buddha, there is a Bodhisattva on his knees, who puts the palms together and bows his head, appearing very devout. There are twelve statues of Yuanjue (Perfect Enlightenment) Bodhisattvas on the right and left walls, which are sitting with different postures on lotus thrones and appear beautiful and solemn. Between the walls there are carvings of pavilions, terraces, and towers, birds and beasts, flowers and trees, springs and odd-shaped stones, which are similar to the realistic works and considered as essential works of the carvings in Big Buddha Bay.
The Shengshou Temple that lies on Baoding Mountain has a close relationship with the carvings on Baoding Mountain. The temple was first built in the Song Dynasty (960-1279), and fell into disuse later. The structures extant now were built in the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911), and they include the Heavenly King Hall, the Jade Emperor Hall, the Main Hall, the Sutra Hall, the Lamp Lighting Hall, and the Vimaiakirti Hall and so on. All the palaces, which are layer upon layer, powerful and lofty, and fine carved with exquisite model, display the typical characteristics of the architectures of Ming and Qing Dynasty.
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