Tianma Mountain's Precious Jewel Light Pagoda

Tianma Mountain's Precious Jewel Light Pagoda

Tianma Mountain's Precious Jewel Light Pagoda is a cultural relic protection unit of Bazhong City.

Among the many temples on Tianma Mountain, the largest is undoubtedly Yuanzhi Teaching Temple. Halfway up the mountain behind the temple stands a pagoda named the "Precious Jewel Light Pagoda." It was built in the second year of the Yuanfeng era of the Northern Song Dynasty (1079) by Xu Wenquan from Hengshan Township, making it 915 years old. The pagoda has seven levels and eight sides, standing over 20 meters tall. Though small in size, it stands firmly amidst the mountains, appearing graceful. In the 27th year of the Shaoxing era of the Southern Song Dynasty (1157), Emperor Gaozong bestowed five-colored Buddhist relics to be enshrined within this pagoda, which is why it was said to often emit a radiant light.

By the Qing Dynasty, Tianma Mountain still enjoyed great religious activity. According to *Mingzhai Xiaoshi* (A Brief Record from the Bright Studio) by the Qing scholar Zhu Lian, in the 53rd year of the Qianlong era (1788), a play was performed in the temple to worship the gods, and firecrackers were set off, causing a fire. The fire burned the central wooden pillar of the pagoda, as well as the stairs, floorboards, and more. The pagoda’s stairs, eaves, and terraces were all destroyed, leaving only the brick body. A remnant section of wood in the southwest corner of the upper part of the pagoda today serves as evidence. Later, people found Song Dynasty Yuanfeng-era coins in the cracks of the bricks, leading to continuous dismantling of bricks in search of treasures. This caused the northwest corner of the pagoda’s base to gradually be removed, forming a large hole about two meters in diameter. Due to ground movement, the pagoda gradually tilted 6°51′52″ toward the southeast, with the center of its top displaced by 2.27 meters—earning it the nickname “the Leaning Pagoda.” According to a report by *People's Daily*, the Precious Jewel Light Pagoda tilts more than 1° more than Italy’s Leaning Tower of Pisa, and can thus be called the world’s most tilted pagoda. This pagoda is now a municipal-level cultural relic protection unit.