Ancient White Pagoda

Ancient White Pagoda

The Ancient White Pagoda is a cultural tourism attraction.

The Ancient White Pagoda of Xichang stands within the former Jujing Temple (later renamed White Pagoda Temple) in the northwest corner of Xichang city (now in the backyard of the Liangshan Military Sub-district).

The Ancient White Pagoda of Xichang is 21 meters tall, with an 14.8-meter base circumference, octagonal in shape, built from brick, and consists of seven levels. On the northern side is embedded a stone tablet inscribed with the record of the pagoda’s renovation in the 10th year of the Yongli era, featuring foreign scripts. Entry to the pagoda is from the 10th level of the base, where a narrow passage allows you to follow a left-to-right spiral pathway up to the 4th level. The 5th and 7th levels are completely hollow. The exterior of the 3rd level features stone carvings of miniature Buddha statues. The top of the pagoda is also carved with Buddha images.

According to historical records, this pagoda was originally built in the 14th year of the Tang Xiantong era (873 AD) by Lady Duan, the mother of King Jingzhuang of the Nanzhao Kingdom. It collapsed due to an earthquake in the 15th year of the Ming Jiajing era (1536 AD) and was rebuilt in the 4th year of the Yongli era (1656 AD). It was again destroyed by an earthquake in the 30th year of the Qing Daoguang era (1850 AD), and was subsequently reconstructed in February of the 9th year of the Qing Xianfeng era (1859 AD), remaining standing to this day.

The architecture of the Xichang Ancient White Pagoda reflects the artistic talent of the ancient laboring people of Xichang and the long history of Buddhism in the Liangshan region.