White Buddha Hall

White Buddha Hall

White Buddha Hall is a cultural relic protection unit of Shanxi Province.

Located over 60 li east of Dingxiang County, on the southern side of Leihongjian Mountain peak, it is a cave temple. In the 14th year of the Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty (1535 AD), monks and Taoist priests raised funds from all over, carving a hall directly into the mountain to create stone cave statues. The project took nine years to complete, resulting in a stone hall with a single Thousand-Petal Precious Lotus Jade Statue enshrined inside. Statues were also carved into the hall walls, hence it is also called the Hundred Buddha Hall. The stone hall has three rooms, each about thirty feet deep and wide, entirely imitating wooden architecture, resembling a typical main hall. Columns, beams, brackets, purlins, rafters, and tile ends are all carved directly from the mountain rock, featuring simple yet refined stone carving craftsmanship. Inside the stone hall, one hundred stone Buddha statues each have distinct expressions, vivid and lifelike. The stone hall serves as the main hall. There are also an East Side Hall (Dragon King Temple), West Side Hall (Goddess of Mercy Temple), Guan Yu Temple, and Bell Tower. The halls and statues were all built or refurbished during the Qing Dynasty.

Xiurong Academy: Xiurong Academy was first built in the 40th year of the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty (1775 AD).

At that time, Xinzhou County was called Xiurong County, hence the name. It is the first educational institution in Xinzhou City. Originally, the Wenchang Temple was located to the east of the academy, but as the academy gradually expanded, the Wenchang Temple was eventually incorporated into the academy grounds. On the western slope of the academy, three scenic pavilions were built in succession: a central four-cornered pavilion, a southern eight-cornered pavilion, and a northern six-cornered pavilion. The six-cornered pavilion is the largest of the three, with each side approximately three meters long and the pavilion about nine meters high. Formerly known as Liaowu Pavilion, the six-cornered pavilion is the highest point in the city. Standing atop it, one can overlook the entire city. In front of the original six-cornered pavilion, there was a brick archway called “Gateway to Heaven,” symbolizing that scholars of the academy could ascend through this gateway to the Liaotian Pavilion and achieve rapid success.

Guifeng Temple: Guifeng Temple is located near Antou Village, Yantou Township, about 22 kilometers southwest of Fanshi County, one kilometer from the Xidou Highway. Established during the Sui Dynasty, it has been renovated through various dynasties. The surviving structures include a five-room main hall, a three-room East Side Hall, and a two-story, six-room East Building, all built during the Qing Dynasty. The statues inside the halls have been destroyed. There are more than ten stone tablets recording renovations since the Ming Dynasty. The temple sits against the mountain and faces the river, resembling a phoenix, with rugged and oddly shaped rocks. Among the stones grow ancient twisted-trunk cypresses, whose trunks are uniquely twisted as if twisted by hand. Travelers from far and near marvel at their distinctive shapes. Legend says that in order to prevent treasures from being looted by soldiers, the old monk of the temple once ordered young monks to bury the “Fortune-Gathering Basin” under a sapling, and to mark it for recognition, he twisted a mark on the young tree. As a result, overnight, all the trees turned into “twisted” ones. The “Fortune-Gathering Basin” was never found again. And the twisted appearance of the ancient cypresses of Guifeng Temple has remained unchanged to this day.

Jicheng Village: Jicheng Village is under the jurisdiction of Heshan Town, Dingxiang County, located 50 li from the county seat. It is a veteran revolutionary base area, currently with 206 households and over 522 residents, and over 3,000 mu of cultivated land, with a per capita income of 2,299 yuan. The village’s economy mainly focuses on agriculture and tourism, with crops such as potatoes, corn, and millet being the primary agricultural products.

… More detailed information about Jicheng Village++

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Cultural Relic Protection Units of Shanxi Province