Moya Grottoes Statues of Pujian Giant Buddha Temple

Moya Grottoes Statues of Pujian Giant Buddha Temple

The Moya Grottoes Statues of Pujian Giant Buddha Temple are a protected cultural heritage site of Sichuan Province.

The Moya Grottoes Statues of Giant Buddha Temple are located at the southern foot of Changqiu Mountain in Lishan Village, Heshan Subdistrict, Pujiang County. Based on their sculptural style, they are dated from the Tang Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty, with most statues being over a thousand years old.

The Volume Two · Ecclesiastical & Monastic Sites section of the Qing-era *Pujiang County Annals* records: “Giant Buddha Temple, ten li east of the county, features a large Buddha carved on a stone cliff, over ten feet tall, with a stone pond in front that never dries up year-round.” Niches 1 to 22 of the Moya Grottoes Statues of Giant Buddha Temple consist of a ring-headed square stele, 1.27 meters high and 0.43 meters wide, with its inscriptions now illegible. This niche stele is believed to be the most accurate historical record of the Giant Buddha Temple, but unfortunately, the text has been lost. As a result, the exact time of the temple’s construction remains unknown. Judging by the era of the moya statues, it is inferred to have been built during the Tang Dynasty.

There are currently 17 niches and 303 statues remaining. These carvings are mainly distributed along a 100-meter-long, 5-meter-wide, 10-meter-high white sandstone cliff on the north-south axis behind the Giant Buddha Temple, which can be divided into two areas: the Giant Buddha area on the eastern side of the cliff and the Thousand Buddha Cliff on the western side.

The Giant Buddha area contains 4 niches, all facing south. Niches 1 and 2 are roughly from the Tang Dynasty, Niche 3 was left unfinished, and Niche 4 is a Qing Dynasty carving.

Niche 1 is a horseshoe-shaped large Buddha niche with a raised platform at its base. It houses a statue of Maitreya Buddha, 5.25 meters tall, with a shoulder width of 1.62 meters, head height of 1.15 meters, and chest thickness of 0.56 meters. The Buddha sits in a relaxed cross-legged posture atop the high platform, with both feet naturally hanging down. It features a spiral ushnisha, a round and full facial expression, draped in a double-layered robe with cascading collars and a sanghati underneath. The left hand rests on the knee, while the right hand is raised upward with the palm facing outward, the little and ring fingers slightly bent downward and the other three fingers together pointing upward, forming the teaching mudra. On the left, right, and rear walls of the niche, 23 smaller niches continue the carving — 11 on the left wall and 12 on the right.

Niche 2 is a double-layered niche with an outer square frame and inner circle. The outer niche measures 1.1 meters in height, 0.96 meters in width, and 0.32 meters in depth. It houses a seated Buddha, two disciples, two bodhisattvas, and two guardian warriors, with relief carvings of the Eight Divisions of Heaven and Earth on the rear wall. On the first level of the niche, a lion crouches on each side. On the second level, a bird is carved at the center. Outside the inner niche, a sutra pillar is carved on the left and a seven-tiered square pagoda on the right, with a seated statue inside.

Niche 3 is only a rough draft and remains unfinished.

Niche 4 is a double-layered square niche, with the inner niche measuring 0.82 meters in height, 0.61 meters in width, and 0.13 meters in depth. Inside is a single seated statue, with the niche lintel inscribed with “Universal Salvation by the Compassionate Raft,” the left side inscribed vertically with “Scenes of West Lake in March,” and the right side with “A Sprig of Spring from the South Sea.” This niche is a Qing Dynasty carving.

Statue in Niche 4

The Thousand Buddha Cliff contains 13 niches, numbered 5 to 17, all facing west. They are roughly from the Tang Dynasty and mainly depict themes such as a seated Maitreya Buddha, a standing Kṣitigarbha, a standing Guanyin, and a central Buddha flanked by two disciples and two bodhisattvas.

Among them, Niche 12 is exceptionally unique. This double-layered niche measures 1.5 meters in height, 1.32 meters in width, and 0.32 meters in depth. Its inner walls are carved with 6 rows of 52 Buddha statues seated on lotus pedestals, with a central standing statue of Amitabha Buddha, totaling 53 Buddhas. Above the niche entrance, on either side, is a figure carved standing on clouds. On the left side of the entrance, a bodhisattva figure stands on the clouds, lowering the left hand to hold a vase and raising the right hand as if offering something. On the right side of the entrance, a disciple statue stands, though the head is damaged.

The most renowned feature of the Moya Grottoes Statues of Pujian Giant Buddha Temple is the 5-meter-tall Maitreya Buddha.

In Mr. Li Liang’s *Overview of Sichuan Grottoes and Moya Statues*, it is stated that Sichuan Buddhist stone carvings from the Tang Dynasty “rank foremost among all provincial grottoes and statues in China after the High Tang period.” Moreover, the Buddhist statues of this era still followed the “mammoth” style. According to statistics by Mr. Shu of Sichuan, there were as many as 17 stone Buddhist statues over 10 meters tall. Naturally, the most iconic among them is the 71-meter-tall Leshan Giant Buddha.

Compared to these towering figures, the 5-meter-tall Pujian Giant Buddha seems like it has entered the land of giants in Jonathan Swift’s *Gulliver’s Travels*. Yet, when compared proportionally, one is amazed to find that the Pujian Giant Buddha resembles a “scaled-down” version of the Leshan Giant Buddha.

Both the Pujian Giant Buddha and the Leshan Giant Buddha were carved during the Tang Dynasty. Their full and rounded forms fully reflect the aesthetic trends of that era. In terms of sculptural technique, both are depicted as seated Buddhas in the teaching mudra, sharing four common features: the Maitreya Buddha form, the double-handed teaching mudra, ornamental thrones, and dangling feet.

Protected area: Within 50 meters surrounding the Giant Buddha Cave and Thousand Buddha Cliff moya statues, as well as the current grounds occupied by the cultural relics management group.

Construction control zone: Centered on the Giant Buddha Cave, extending 100 meters east, 100 meters west, 200 meters south, and 300 meters north.