Meizhou Thousand Buddha Pagoda Temple

Thousand Buddha Pagoda Temple is a Buddhist temple located on the top of Yanhua Mountain in Dongshan Dadong, Meijiang District, Meizhou City, Guangdong Province, famous for the Thousand Buddha Pagoda hidden inside. The Thousand Buddha Pagoda Temple is a fine example of Buddhist culture in the eastern part of Guangdong Province and one of the major tourist attractions in Meizhou City. Every year, a large number of believers and tourists come to worship and visit the temple to feel the mystery and solemnity of the thousand-year-old pagoda and experience the charm and wisdom of Zen culture.

Basic Introduction

The Thousand Buddha Pagoda was built in the eighth year of Dabao of the Southern Han Dynasty (965 AD), with a history of more than 1,000 years, and is now a key cultural relics protection unit in Guangdong Province. In order to protect the Tower, on December 3, 1991 in the Tower above the new one thousand Buddha Tower, the entire pagoda with granite masonry, the tower height of nine 36 meters, octagonal, grand and magnificent. 

Thousand Buddha Pagoda was originally in the eastern suburbs of the Xiu Hui Temple, after the destruction of the tower due to the collapse of the temple. In the 11th year of Qianlong in Qing Dynasty (1746), the governor Wang Zhefu moved the Thousand Buddha Pagoda to the top of Dongshan Mountain in the eastern suburb of Meicheng. 1935, Peng Jingyi, the governor of Meicheng County, discussed with Huang Renhuan, the division chief in Meicheng, and funded the construction of the Pagoda Pavilion. 70's, the Meicheng County iron and steel factory expanded, and enclosed the Thousand Buddha Pagoda in the factory, which made it inconvenient for tourists to view it. 1990, the Thousand Buddha Pagoda was relocated to the Southeast Victory in the eastern suburb of Meicheng City by the locals, and was protected by the local people. In 1990, local people relocated the Thousand Buddha Pagoda to the southeast of Meicheng to protect it.

Completed in 2002, the Buddha Education and Training Center building is five-story high, with a floor area of more than 3,000 square meters, of which the third floor is a large auditorium that can accommodate more than 1,000 people, the fifth floor is a scripture building, and the rest of the floors are equipped with classrooms, libraries, archives, data rooms, reading rooms, computer rooms, a Zen hall, and a restroom for the Dharma masters.

What to See in Thousand Buddha Pagoda Temple

Passing through the gate pagoda, you can have a panoramic view of the Thousand Buddha Pagoda Temple. The temple is situated from east to west, with the Thousand Buddha Pagoda as the center, and built on the mountain. The entire temple complex is quite grand and staggered in an axial symmetrical shape. Front in turn for the release pool, the Tianwang Hall, Maharishi Hall, Thousand Buddha Hall, the left and right sides of the God of Wealth, Zushi Hall, Guanyin Pavilion, Dizang Pavilion, the Yaoshi Hall, the Sansheng Hall and other buildings.

Out of the Thousand Buddha Hall, climbed the stone steps behind the hall, is an upright and lofty octagonal stone tower. The pagoda towers over the clouds and sky with a grandeur, and its arches, flying eaves and arch buckets are all characterized by classical architecture. This stone pagoda is 36 meters high, with a diameter of 10 meters on the first floor and a total of 9 floors. Pagoda body is a pure stone structure, all with red and white granite masonry. At night time, the pagoda lamps shine high and the Buddha's light overflows, and it is known as the Pearl of Lingnan. Tower in front of the stone steps below a one-meter-high pot-bellied Maitreya Buddha, lifelike, smiling mouth always open.

Along the clockwise direction around the tower, the first floor is surrounded by reliefs carved with tall and solemn gods. Entering the stone tower, in front of you is a rustic seven-story iron tower. This iron tower was cast in the Southern Han Dynasty in the eighth year of Dabao (965), the tower is 4.5 meters high, about 1.6 meters wide, made of pig iron casting. The first layer of the tower is octagonal, with an inscription. The second to sixth layer is square, the highest seventh layer is spiked. Two to six layers of square corners are under the tower eaves, more than ten centimeters wide, the eaves have lifelike head toad, is to tie the bell. Calculated according to the four sides of each layer, two to six layers were 308, 268, 228, 148, 48 small Buddha statues, a total of 1,000 Buddha statues, so the name of a thousand Buddha Tower. There are also four big Buddhas on the fourth floor, namely, the Eastern Shande Buddha, the Western Immeasurable Life Buddha, the Northern Xiangde Buddha, and the Southern Chande Buddha.

Climbing the stone tower, the inner wall has a thousand white jade Buddha in relief, each layer of the door are monks and virtues of the inscription. There is a big bell on the highest floor and thousands of gilded Buddha statues are enshrined. A small seven-story stone tower is embedded at the tip of the top of the pagoda, constituting a unique landscape with a tower within a tower and a tower on top of a tower. Standing at the top of the pagoda and looking into the distance, the infinite scenery is as far as the eye can see.

Visiting Information

Entrance fee: The entrance to the temple is free, but you need a ticket to climb the tower. The ticket costs 5 yuan per person.
Transportation: The temple is accessible by taking the 6 bus to Gangbei Station and walking a short distance from there.