(1) The front gate of Shengshou Temple, located inside the Baodingshan Grotto complex. No hint here of how torn up it is inside.
(2) Approaching the majestic first hall of Shengshou Temple. The construction gets worse and worse.
(3) This looks like Cultural Revolution damage to me. How did so many of the nearby grottoes remain untouched? Or did they? The site wasn't open to foreign visitors until 1980 (there's a picture of the first foreign visitor, "Canadian linguist" [English teacher?] Roderick Stewart in the visitors' center). Were they covering something up?
(4) I was so glad to see this. The famed 1000-armed Guanyin (actually with 1007 hands) was closed for repairs in the grotto area. So it was cool to see this reproduction in the Hall of Great Compassion in the temple.
(5) This is what happens when you put your pagodas in the parking lot. No respect.
(6) The construction was killing me; because of it, an entire area (Xiaofowan, which adjoins the temple grounds) was completely closed. These statues are part of the front of the oldest hall at Shengshou Temple, the Vimalakirti Hall. I could only imagine what they would look like when the walls were there.
(7) On my way out, I saw some kids playing hide and seek--with camouflage! I got them to stand still long enough for a group photo.
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Last Updated August 13, 2019
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