Shiyawan Grottoes

Shiyawan Grottoes

Shiyawan Grottoes

Shiyawan Grottoes (Yanling Temple) is located 800 meters east of Zhangjiatai Village, Xinmin Township, about 25 kilometers southeast of the county seat. Backed by mountains and facing a river, it was carved into the rock face on the north bank of the Shizui River. According to records, these grottoes were excavated during the Song Dynasty, and it is said that the legendary monk Ji Gong once practiced here. There are four caves arranged from west to east along the cliff. The first cave is a square cave with a vaulted entrance and a flat, right-angled ceiling. At the back wall is a carved Buddha statue, the head of which is damaged. The second cave is located 22 meters east of the first cave. It has an arched entrance, and the lower parts of the eastern and western walls feature two symmetrical small niches. Each niche lintel is carved with two Buddha statues, both heavily damaged, with only outlines remaining. The back wall has three Buddha statues, the bodies of which are destroyed, leaving only the upper parts including the halos. The halos are peach-shaped and pointed, with two layers of cloud patterns carved above them. The third cave is 2 meters east of the second cave. In the center of this cave sits a Buddha statue cross-legged on a Sumeru pedestal, with hands resting flat on the knees; the head is missing. Between the second and third caves is a rectangular Buddhist niche, inside which the Buddha statue has been destroyed. The fourth cave is 1.9 meters east of the third cave. It has an arched entrance and a flat, right-angled ceiling that is higher in the back and lower in the front. On the left side of the front wall inside the cave are carved two Buddha statues and one guardian warrior statue, all heavily eroded, with only outlines remaining, in various poses either sitting or standing. The eastern and western walls of the cave feature five symmetrical Buddha statues and one guardian warrior statue.

The warrior is dressed in armor, with the head damaged. The other statues are smaller in size and mostly indistinct due to weathering. The back wall features three Buddha statues, all seated on Sumeru pedestals. They are cross-legged with hands resting flat on the knees; the upper parts are damaged, with only the lower contours remaining.

From 1991 to 1993, Taiwanese Buddhist Mao Guoxiong and Feng Mintang, the 13th-generation successor of Ji Gong, led more than 40 male and female followers to make three pilgrimages here to worship and pay homage to their spiritual roots, bringing with them illustrations tracing their origins.