(1) This gate at Shuanggui Tang faces the parking lot. I suspect it's used on busy days.
(2) But this is the gate I entered through, which faces a huge plaza.
(3) Inside (looking back at the first hall) are the "free-life" ponds for releasing animals.
(4) Two of the four (cartoonish) Heavenly Kings. I've never seen generals this cute!
(5) The front of the main hall.
(6) Detail of the lions across the front of the main hall.
(7) Behind the main hall, this Manjushri Hall is really ancient. (Manjushri in China is Wenshu; he's the Bodhisattva of Wisdom, and a hall all his own along the main axis of a temple is a rare thing. The next picture may tell why.)
(8) Behind the Manjushri Hall is this pagoda dedicated to Poshan, the temple's founder. He was reputedly brilliant--like another Manjushri?
(9) Which pair of footwear is not like the others?
(10) A charming post-base.
(11) This is not part of the regular tour. Around 4pm, a monk was walking around banging a wooden mallet on a board to call the others to the afternoon service; he walked into this area next to the Relic Hall (which contains no relics), and when he walked out again, he left the door open. I like this better than a lot of the "shiny" areas.
(12) I appreciated the rusticity of the Meditation Hall.
(13) Thank goodness for large tour groups. No photos are allowed of the main Buddha, but when a big group arrived, I used them as camouflage to get this shot.
(14) The central stele in the Stele Garden. Not reading Chinese, I don't really get excited about steles much; but the garden was pretty.
(15) The monk Xuanzang in the 500 Arhat Hall. I listened to two Chinese guys arguing whether this was Xuanzang or Tangseng. That's funny, because Tangseng is the fictionalized version of Xuanzang, as found in Wu Cheng'en's The Journey to the West.
(16) Just a chat between friends, in the 500 Arhat Hall.
(17) Calling Dr. Freud! This guy is clearly afraid of his friend's... umm... "snake."
(18) This pretty bridge crosses the creek that wraps around the temple; I passed it as I walked back to the main road to catch a bus into the county seat, and another for the 2.5 hour trip back to Chongqing's urban area.
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Last Updated August 13, 2019
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