The legend of Leshan Giant Buddha
The origin of the Leshan Giant Buddha
According to records in books such as Wei Gao's "Jiazhou Lingyun Giant Buddha Statue" in the Tang Dynasty and Peng Rushi's "Rebuilding the Lingyun Temple" in the Ming Dynasty, the initiator of the excavation of the Leshan Giant Buddha It’s Monk Haitong. Haitong is from Guizhou and grew up in Lingyun Mountain. In ancient times, at the confluence of three rivers in Leshan, the Minjiang River, Qingyi River, and Dadu River converged at the foot of Lingyun Mountain. The water was so fierce that boats were often overturned at this point. During summer floods, the river flows directly into the mountain walls, often causing tragedies of shipwrecks and fatalities. Seeing this, Monk Haitong decided to dig a statue of Maitreya Buddha on the cliff. He wanted to rely on his boundless magic power to "change the violent waves into a safe current", reduce the flow of the water, and suppress the wind and waves forever. Therefore, Zen Master Haitong traveled all over the north and south of the Yangtze River and the Yangtze and Huaihe Rivers to raise money and build a giant Buddha. After the construction of the Buddha statue started, the local officials came to ask for bribes to fund the construction. Haitong sternly refused, saying, "You can dig out your own eyes, but the Buddha's wealth is rare." The local officials took advantage of the situation and said, "Try for the future." Haitong calmly "picked his own eyes and held the plate to show it", "the officials were so frightened that they ran around to pray for regrets". Haitong's dedicated and self-forgetting behavior inspired everyone and made them sincere.
The construction of the Buddha statue began in the early years of the founding of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty (713 AD). When the Buddha reached its shoulders, monk Haitong died. After Haitong's death, the project was temporarily suspended. About ten years later, Zhangchou Jianqiong, the governor of Xichuan in Jiannan, donated his salary. Haitong's apprentices led the craftsmen to continue building the Buddha. Because the project was huge, the imperial court ordered a hemp salt tax, which made the project progress rapidly. When the Leshan Giant Buddha was repaired to its knees, Zhangchou Jianqiong, the successor to the construction, was appointed as the Minister of Household Affairs, and the project was stopped again. Forty years later, Wei Gao, the military governor of Xichuan in Jiannan, donated his salary to continue building the Leshan Giant Buddha. Thanks to the efforts of three generations of craftsmen, it took 90 years to complete in the 19th year of Zhenyuan (803 AD) of Emperor Dezong of the Tang Dynasty. Wei Gao first wrote the "Record of the Great Maitreya Stone Statue of Lingyun Temple in Jiazhou", which records the beginning and end of the construction of the Giant Buddha. The original stele still exists on the cliff facing the river on the right side of the Giant Buddha.
The Leshan Giant Buddha stands at the confluence of the Minjiang River, the Dadu River and the Qingyi River. For more than a thousand years, the Leshan Giant Buddha has seen many spring scenes in the world and has gone through many dynasties, but it remains solemn and kind, with an unwavering heart.
The Qingyi River and Dadu River merged into the Minjiang River at the foot of Lingyun Mountain. It is said that floods were frequent and the damage was severe. In the early years of the founding of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty (AD 713), monk Shi Haitong of Lingyun Temple initiated the construction of a giant Buddha by raising manpower and material resources to reduce the flooding and benefit the people. The construction was completed in the 19th year of Zhenyuan (AD 803), which lasted 90 years. It cost hundreds of millions to build and it has been built for more than 1,200 years. With Lingyun Mountain at its back and three rivers at its feet (Minjiang River, Dadu River, and Qingyi River), the Giant Buddha is a majestic statue of Maitreya, with a dignified posture, well-proportioned, ingenious design and drainage. The facility is invisible. It has gone through thousands of years of wind and frost, and it still sits on the bank of the roaring river, watching the vicissitudes of the world. It is a cultural treasure of the Chinese nation and a precious heritage of world history and culture.
The world-famous Leshan Giant Buddha is carved on the rock wall at the confluence of the Minjiang River, Qingyi River and Dadu River. It is a seated Maitreya statue. The Buddha statue was excavated in the early years of the founding of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty (713 AD) It was initiated by the monk Haitong to recruit manpower and material resources to reduce the power of the flood and save all living beings. It was completed in the 19th year of Zhenyuan of Dezong (AD 803) and lasted 90 years.
12, 1996. On September 6, Emeishan--Leshan Giant Buddha was approved by UNESCO as a "World Cultural and Natural Heritage" and officially included in the "World Heritage List"
According to Wei Gao's "Jiazhou" in the Tang Dynasty. Records of the Great Buddha Statue of Lingyun and Peng Rushi's "Reconstruction of Lingyun Temple" of the Ming Dynasty record that the Buddha statue was excavated in the early year of the founding of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty (713) and completed in the 19th year of Zhenyuan of Emperor Dezong of the Tang Dynasty (803), which lasted 90 years. For more than a thousand years, the Leshan Giant Buddha has seen many springs in the world and has experienced many changes in dynasties, but it remains solemn and kind, with an unshakable heart.
Attachment: The founder of the construction of the Leshan Giant Buddha is Monk Haitong, a native of Guizhou. , left his hometown and came to be a monk at the foot of Lingyun Mountain in Leshan. The foot of Lingyun Mountain is where the three rivers converge. Whenever there is a flash flood during the flood season, the flood will run wild like a wild horse, often destroying farmland and overturning boats.
< p>In order to subdue the river water, Monk Haitong decided to build a giant Buddha to calm the water demon. In order to raise funds, Monk Haitong worked hard everywhere and finally solved the problem after several years of hard work. On that day, everyone was watching and bursting with joy, but local officials took the opportunity to make things difficult, claiming that they would collect construction and protection fees, otherwise they would not allow the construction to start.Monk Haitong was very angry and said categorically: "You can take away my eyes, but you cannot take away the Buddha's wealth!" The local official said with a mocking look: "If you really give us your eyes, we will not take your Buddha's wealth." !" Monk Haitong immediately took out a sharp knife, gouged out his eyes, caught it on a plate, and held it in front of the officials. The local officials were shocked and fled the scene. Monk Haitong endured the severe pain and waved his hand, and the giant Buddha was immediately excavated. After the death of monk Haitong, his apprentices led the craftsmen to continue the construction. After 90 years of hard work, the Leshan Giant Buddha finally stood at the confluence of the Minjiang River, Dadu River and Qingyi River.