Stone Buddha Temple Statues

Stone Buddha Temple Statues

The Stone Buddha Temple Statues are a cultural relic protection unit of Hangzhou.

The Stone Buddha Temple Statues, also known as the Renwang Temple Statues, are located on Shifo Mountain in Hangzhou. There are currently five stone statues carved during the Qian-Yue Kings period of the Five Dynasties. The largest among them is a standing statue of Amitabha Buddha located in the center of the rock face, flanked by standing statues of Guanyin Bodhisattva and Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattva. On either side of the three standing statues are seated statues of Sakyamuni and Zhiyi, the founder of the Tiantai school. The stone statues are severely damaged, but the statue of Zhiyi is relatively well-preserved, depicted in the lotus position with the meditation mudra.

In the early years of the Jianyan era, Emperor Gaozong fled south in haste while being pursued by the Jin forces. Master Hui Zhao of the Kaibao Temple in the former Eastern Capital led his disciples to accompany the emperor on this southern journey. Upon arriving in Hangzhou, he submitted a petition to the imperial court requesting the reconstruction of Renwang Temple on Qibao Mountain in Qiantang, continuing its role in conducting rituals for the royal court as before. In the Xianchun Lin’an Annals compiled by the Southern Song scholar Qian Shuoyou, there is a record of ancient stone Buddha statues at the Qibao Kaibao Renwang Temple on Qibao Mountain. These stone Buddha statues were carved before the temple’s establishment, thus confirming that they date back to the Five Dynasties Wuyue Kingdom period.

The Stone Buddha Temple began with cave excavation and statue carving during the Qian-Yue Kings period, and reached its peak in scale during the Shaoxing era with the establishment of Renwang Temple. At that time, the Guanyin Platform Hall was grand and magnificent, standing in majestic symmetry with the Three Gates. Throughout the Southern Song Dynasty, Renwang Temple suffered repeated fires, such as those in the Jiatai Jiazi and Shaoding Xinyou years, leading to cycles of rebuilding and decline. By the end of the Southern Song Dynasty, it had completely fallen into disrepair due to the impact of war. The existing large stone Buddha statues are heavily damaged, possibly due to the turmoil of the Xianfeng era during the late Qing Dynasty. Judging from the marks of destruction, the Cultural Revolution was likely the most devastating period.

In 1992, it was designated as a municipal-level cultural relic protection unit of Hangzhou.

Protected area: The boundary extends to the edges of the site’s front grounds on the east, south, and west sides, and to the mountain path to the north of the relics, covering a total area of 1,392 square meters.

Construction control zone: Since the relics are entirely within the construction control zone of the national-level protected Lin’an City Ruins, and the control zone of the Lin’an City Ruins already covers the surrounding area of the relics, no additional construction control zone boundaries are designated this time.