Bishui Temple

Bishui Temple

Bishui Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

Also known as Dripping Water Temple, Bishui Temple is located on the cliffs along the eastern bank of the Fujiang River at the foot of Guishan Mountain in the northern part of the city. It is a scenic area that combines pavilions and gardens, also known as Bishui Temple Riverside Park. The stone carvings at Bishui Temple are a cultural relic protection unit of Sichuan Province.

Bishui Temple is a Buddhist temple originally built during the Zhenguan era (627–649) of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty. It has been destroyed and rebuilt multiple times, but on a small scale each time.

The newly constructed Bishui Temple Riverside Park, which began in 1986, centers around the ancient Bishui Temple and extends approximately 1,000 meters north and south along the eastern bank of the Fujiang River. The park covers an area of 22,000 square meters. Major structures include the Main Hall, Huanshou Tower, Bibo Pavilion, Zi’an Residence, North Pavilion, Wangfu Hall, and other auxiliary buildings.

The Main Hall of Bishui Temple has four stories and features a triple-eaved, nine-ridge hip-and-gable roof in a wooden-style imitation architecture, standing 21 meters tall. It is built against the cliff and presents a majestic sight. The ground floor has an open layout supported by multiple reinforced concrete square columns. The second floor is the main hall, where the rock face partially overhangs, and the cliff walls house 18 niches of Tang Dynasty cliff-carved Buddhist statues, totaling more than 40 figures. To the south of the cliff stands a well-preserved 3.13-meter-tall round sculpture of the Goddess of Mercy (Guanyin) from the Tang Dynasty, considered a fine example of Tang Dynasty stone carving art. The third and fourth floors of the hall are both square pavilions with platforms, named Lingyun Pavilion, which display various jade, wood, and porcelain sculptures of Guanyin from the Ming, Qing, and modern periods.

About 200 meters north of the Main Hall, a newly built “Zi’an Residence” courtyard also features a North Pavilion, constructed in memory of Wang Bo, one of the Four Eminent Scholars of early Tang literature. It is a three-story, octagonal, helmet-roofed pavilion with red pillars and white walls, topped with yellow glazed tiles. Facing the Zi’an Residence building, the “Huanshou Tower” (a landmark structure of Mianzhou City during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, demolished in 1930 during street widening) is built along the river.

(Excerpted from the Mianyang Annals)

Location

Eastern bank of the Fujiang River, Youxian District, Mianyang City, Sichuan Province