Daiyue Beamless Hall

Daiyue Beamless Hall

The Daiyue Beamless Hall is a cultural relic protection unit of Shandong Province.

Beamless Hall

Located in Liyuan Village, Xiapu Town, the hall has no beams and is supported only by eight pillars standing on the ground. It is also called the Great Hall of the Thousand-Handed and Thousand-Eyed Goddess of Mercy in the Mount Tai Palace because it enshrines the Thousand-Handed and Thousand-Eyed Buddha. The hall is 41.5 meters long from east to west and 33 meters wide from north to south, covering an area of 1,369.5 square meters.

According to stele inscriptions, the hall was first built during the Yuan Dynasty and underwent partial repairs during the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty by Xiao Daheng. In addition to the Thousand-Handed and Thousand-Eyed Buddha, the hall also houses statues of the Heng and Ha Generals, the Four Heavenly Kings, the Twenty-Eight Lunar Mansions, the Sun God, the Moon Goddess, the Celestial Master Zhang, Zhong Kui, the Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li, the Erlang God, and the Four Gentlemen deities—both civil and martial figures, all with distinct expressions and lifelike appearances. From a distance, the hall’s body is built with red walls, wrapped with green trim, and sealed with blue edges; up close, the roof shines golden, radiating brilliance, earning it the beautiful title of “The Goddess Hall with Eight-Ridge Flying Eaves, Nine-Legged Copper Helmets.”

The hall has entrances to the west and south, with a stone lion crouching on each side of the doors and ten steps leading up. In front of the western gate lies a bridge that is 3 meters long and 2 meters wide, uniquely designed and celebrated as the “Nine Steps, Eighteen Ridges, One Step Three Hollow Bridges, Three Mountains Clamping One Well.” The Beamless Hall suffered severe damage during the Cultural Revolution, and today only the main hall and parts of the western side hall remain.

Liyuan Village: Liyuan Village…… More details about Liyuan Village++

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Shandong Provincial Cultural Relic Protection Units