Shimen Giant Buddha

Shimen Giant Buddha

The Grand Buddha Temple has a total construction area of 720 square meters. Beneath the main hall are two-tiered stairways: the upper section features a seven-step cascading stone path, while the lower section consists of a sixteen-step stairway. The main hall is crowned with a seven-tiered hipped-gable roof covered in glazed tiles, adorned with a precious bottle at the center and decorative chiwen (mythical beast heads) on each upturned eave. It employs a post-and-lintel beam structure. The main hall is three bays wide (22.1 meters) and two bays deep (8 meters), with an overall height of 24.84 meters. The side chambers are constructed with stone and timber, featuring a flush-gable roof covered with small blue tiles, a through-tenon beam frame with six pillars and four through-joists, three bays wide (17 meters) and one bay deep (4 meters), with an overall height of 4.5 meters. The entire mountain gate is built along the cliffside, with a rigorous structure that is both majestic and spectacular.

The most eye-catching feature of the Grand Buddha Temple is its cliff-carved statue — the Lotus-Stepping Guanyin, facing south and standing 13.5 meters tall with shoulders spanning 5.9 meters and chest thickness of 5.2 meters. The carving is exquisitely detailed, with smooth lines and a strong sense of dimension and aesthetic beauty. The Guanyin statue has a kind and serene expression, dignified and graceful, wearing a precious crown with a smiling arhat in the center. She dons celestial robes and sashes, her entire body gilded and painted, with necklaces around her chest and ornaments hanging from her abdomen. She sits leisurely atop a lotus, her left foot slightly raised and resting gently on a lotus leaf, her left hand placed on her left knee, and her right hand hanging naturally. Her expression is tranquil, exuding nobility and grace, as well as a sense of freedom and ease. The statue is majestic, vivid, and lifelike. It is the largest Lotus-Stepping Guanyin statue in China and ranks ninth among all Buddhist statues nationwide. During the Cultural Revolution, the statue was nearly destroyed; the surrounding flying apsaras carvings and inscriptions can no longer be seen today.