Yingying Pagoda (Relic Pagoda)

Yingying Pagoda (Relic Pagoda)

Yingying Pagoda (Relic Pagoda) is a cultural tourism attraction.

Yingying Pagoda stands 40 meters tall and is a 13-story, four-sided, cone-shaped brick pagoda with a hollow interior and closely spaced eaves, featuring both inner and outer square structures. It has a history of over 430 years. Originally named Relic Pagoda, it was later renamed “Yingying Pagoda” because the love story between Zhang Sheng and Cui Yingying from Romance of the Western Chamber took place beneath this tower.

Yingying Pagoda is located in Pujiu Temple in today’s Yongji City. Together with the Echo Wall at Beijing’s Temple of Heaven, the Pagoda in Jia County, Henan, the “Stone Harp” at Dafo Temple in Tongnan, Sichuan, it is known as one of China’s ancient “Four Great Echoing Architectures.” Additionally, it is also referred to as one of the “World’s Eight Wondrous Towers,” alongside the Bell Tower in Paris, France, the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy, the Hamsa Tower in Morocco, the Music Tower in Hungary, and the Swinging Pagoda in Myanmar.

Yingying Pagoda was originally built during the Sui Dynasty and was initially called Relic Pagoda. Later, because the love story of the main characters Zhang Junrui and Cui Yingying from The Romance of the West Chamber, written by Wang Shifu in the Yuan Dynasty, took place here, it came to be known as Yingying Pagoda. During the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty, a major earthquake in Hedong destroyed the original pagoda. The current structure was rebuilt eight years after the earthquake.

Yingying Pagoda features a simple and elegant design, constructed entirely of brick. Both the base and the interior are square-shaped, and the exterior presents a square-cornered, densely eaved pavilion style, with a multi-layered hollow form. The base is square, and the pagoda has a total of 13 stories, standing nearly 37 meters high.

The acoustical effects of Yingying Pagoda are quite remarkable. Standing in different positions, you can hear over 10 different types of echoes. One echo in particular resembles the croaking of a frog, and because the pagoda belongs to Pujiu Temple, it has given rise to one of the ancient “Eight Scenic Spots of Hedong,” known as the “Pujiu Toad Sound.”

The echo mechanism of Yingying Pagoda mainly involves two aspects: First, the building materials are unique. The entire pagoda is constructed from high-quality blue bricks. The clay used to make these bricks has a naturally high reflective capability, and the smooth surface of the bricks is coated with glaze, which provides excellent sound wave reflection. Second, the architectural structure is distinctive. Overall, the eaves of the pagoda are very special. When standing on the slope beneath the pagoda and looking up, the body of the pagoda is almost hidden among the densely packed eaves, and each layer of eaves has an inward curve. As a result, sound waves that hit each layer of eaves are not only fully reflected but also somewhat converged. Moreover, since the eaves are relatively close together, the reflected sound waves overlap, forming sound pulses. Thus, after nearly full reflection, overlapping, and convergence, the echo intensity is enhanced, the frequency changes, the pitch lengthens, and the resulting sound resembles the croaking of a frog.

Pujiu Temple has endured wars, and apart from the Bodhisattva Cave, stone lions, and a few stone tablets, most of the temple structures and relics have been lost, leaving many domestic and international visitors filled with regret. Thanks to recent reconstructions and continuous renovations, the crimson-walled, green-tiled halls, the serene and secluded meditation rooms, and the blossoming gardens of the western wing have once again come to life before the eyes of visitors.

Following the path once taken by Zhang Sheng to meet Yingying, visitors come to the pagoda and strike the stones with their hands, hearing the sound of frog croaks echoing from within. Legend says the frog sounds are the repentant cries of Madam, who was whipped by the public, serving as a warning to future generations not to break up loving couples.

Attraction Location

Xixiang Village, Puzhou Town, Yongji City, Shanxi Province