Tongling Dashi Pavilion

Tongling Dashi Pavilion

Tongling Dashi Pavilion is a cultural tourism attraction.

Dashi Pavilion is located at the foot of Shenying Mountain in Datong, by the Qingtong River. Originally named Xiangshui Temple and also known as Pujisi, it was first built in the seventh year of the Shunzhi reign during the Qing Dynasty (1650). Legend has it that during the Kaiyuan era of the Tang Dynasty, Kim Gyo-gak, the prince of the Silla Kingdom, traveled a thousand miles to Jiuhua Mountain in search of enlightenment and eventually became the Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha. On his way, he stopped to rest at Shenying Mountain. Dashi Pavilion was later built by monks from Jiuhua Mountain in admiration of him. Since then, monks and worshippers from all over have had to pass through this place on their way to Jiuhua Mountain, making it a place of flourishing incense offerings. The “Complete Map of the Number One Scenic Spot – Tiantai Peak in the Southeast of Jiuhua Mountain,” illustrated in the 1900 edition of the Jiuhua Mountain Annals, listed Dashi Pavilion as one of the scenic spots of Jiuhua. From then on, Dashi Pavilion became an important sacred site welcoming pilgrims from Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shanghai, and Southeast Asia, and was also known as the “First Gate of Jiuhua Mountain.” However, after suffering severe damage during the Anti-Japanese War, the catastrophic flood of 1954, and the man-made destruction of the Cultural Revolution, Dashi Pavilion and other temples were largely ruined and mostly no longer exist.

On November 5, 1998, with the approval of the Tongling County People’s Government, it was decided to relocate Cilin Retreat and rebuild Dashi Pavilion on the original site of the old great temple. The consecration ceremony for the Buddha statues was held on the 30th day of the seventh lunar month in 2003, during which 49 gold-plated Buddha statues were solemnly consecrated. The rebuilt Dashi Pavilion covers an area of nearly 10,000 m², with a construction area of more than 3,000 m². It now includes structures such as the mountain gate, Mahavira Hall, Heavenly King Hall, Three Saints Hall, Ksitigarbha Hall, and Guanyin Hall. Additionally, the Hall of Five Hundred Arhats and the Dharma Lecture Hall are under construction. With total investments reaching tens of millions of yuan, the pavilion has taken initial shape and is seeing increasing numbers of worshippers. It is currently one of the key highlights of the Citang Lake Scenic Area.

Datong Town: Datong is a famous ancient town in southern China with a history of a thousand years. Located southwest of Tongling City, it sits on the southern bank of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. To the northwest, it faces Zongyang across the river, and to the south, it borders Guichi and Qingyang via the Qingtong River. It is only 180 kilometers from Huangshan, known as the “World Park,” and 90 kilometers from Jiuhua Mountain, one of China’s Four Sacred Buddhist Mountains. The Tongqing Highway, Tonggui Highway, the along-the-river expressway, and the He-Tong-Huang Expressway all run through the town. It serves as a vital hub and gateway to the southern Anhui tourism region, and is the northern entrance to Anhui’s “Two Mountains and One Lake” (Jiuhua Mountain, Huangshan, and Taiping Lake). It is also the location of the First Gate of Jiuhua Mountain.

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