Pagoda of Fogong Temple

Coordinates: 39°33′55″N 113°10′55″E / 39.56528°N 113.18194°E / 39.56528; 113.18194
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
"Sakyamuni Pagoda" and "Shakyamuni Pagoda" redirect here. For the pagoda in Korea, see Seokgatap.
Pagoda of Fogong Temple
Front view of the Sakyamuni Pagoda of Fogong Temple
Religion
AffiliationBuddhism
Location
LocationYing County, Shuozhou, Shanxi, China
CountryPRC
Geographic coordinates39°33′55″N 113°10′55″E / 39.56528°N 113.18194°E / 39.56528; 113.18194
Architecture
TypeChinese
Completed1056-1195

The

Chinese pagoda. It is also known as the Wooden Pagoda of Ying County (Chinese: 应县木塔, pinyin: yìngxiàn mùtǎ). It was constructed in 1056, during the second year of the Khitan-led Liao dynasty and was renovated and expended in 1195 during the sixth year of the Jin Dynasty. The pagoda was built by Emperor Daozong of Liao (Hongji) at the site of his grandmother's family home.[1] The pagoda, which has survived several large earthquakes throughout the centuries, reached a level of such fame within China that it was given the generic nickname of the "Muta" (Chinese: 木塔; pinyin: mùtǎ; lit. 'Timber Pagoda').[2][3]

The pagoda stands on a 4 m (13 ft) tall stone platform, has a 10 m (33 ft) tall steeple, and reaches a total height of 67.31 m (220.83 ft) tall; it is the oldest existent fully wooden pagoda still standing in China.[4][5] Although it is the oldest fully wooden pagoda in China, the oldest existent densely-eaved pagoda is the 6th century Songyue Pagoda (made of bricks) and many much older stone pagodas exists in the entire North China Plain (e.g. the Zushi Pagoda of the Foguang Temple and the Four Gates Pagoda of Jinan); the oldest existent wooden buildings in China are the Buddhist temple halls found in Wutai County on the westside of the Mount Wutai, which date back to the mid Tang dynasty (618–907).[6]

History

Close-up detail of the dougong supports of the pagoda.
The pagoda and temple grounds
The pagoda and temple grounds
Sakyamuni
Buddha at the center

The Pagoda of Fogong Temple was built 85 km (53 mi) south of the Liao dynasty capital at Datong.[5] The Complete Classics Collection of Ancient China encyclopedia published in 1725—written during the reigns of Kangxi and Yongzheng in the Qing—states that a different pagoda built between the years 936–943 stood previously at the site before the present one of 1056 was built.[5] The same statement appears in the Shanxi tongzhi (Record of Shanxi Province) and the Yingzhou xuzhi (Record of Ying Prefecture, Continued).[5] The Yingzhou zhi (Record of Ying Prefecture)—edited by Tian Hui during the reign of the Wanli Emperor (r. 1572–1620) of the Ming dynasty—states that the pagoda was funded and erected in 1056 by a Buddhist monk named Tian.[5][7] In compiling a record for Ying County, Tian Hui of the late Ming dynasty researched the history of the pagoda and recorded the history of its repairs in his Zhongxiu Fogongsi ta zhi.[5] The placard on the third story of the pagoda listed that periodic repairs were conducted in the years 1195 and 1471.[5] While piecing together the history of the pagoda, Tian Hui never came across any information to suggest that the pagoda had a predecessor built from 936 to 943, as other texts suggest.[5]

In confirming the date of 1056 and not the years 936–943, Zhang Yuhuan writes in his Zhongguo gudai jianzhu jishu shi (1985) that the Wenwu Laboratory determined various wooden components from the second to fifth floors of the pagoda to be 930 to 980 years old.

kalpa, which would signify the Pagoda of Fogong Temple as an "ultimate death shrine to the Buddha of the age," according to historian Nancy Steinhardt.[9] This occurred at roughly the same time in which Fujiwara no Yorimichi of Japan converted the Phoenix Hall of his father Fujiwara no Michinaga's residence at Byōdō-in into a temple meant to guide souls into the Buddhist afterlife (according to Pure Land Buddhism).[9]

The pagoda was placed at the center of the temple grounds,[10] which used to be called Baogong Temple until its name was changed to Fogong in 1315 during the Yuan dynasty.[11] Although the size of the temple grounds were described as being gigantic during the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty (1115–1234), the temple began to decline during the Ming dynasty.[11]

The Yingzhou zhi records that there was a total of seven earthquakes between the years 1056 and 1103, yet the tower stood firm.

developed within the neighboring Song dynasty. Also, in 1974 a Buddha tooth relic was discovered hidden in one of the Buddha statues on the fourth level of the Pagoda.[12]

Features

Zhengde Emperor calligraphy plaque "Wonder of the World" on Pagoda of Fogong Temple

The pagoda features fifty-four different kinds of

mezzanine layer where the bracket arms are located on the exterior. Two pinnacle concepts to Chinese palatial architecture are exhibited in the monastery. The first, duodong, refers to the bearing blocks and bracket arms of the monastery. The second, diantang, refers to the Palatial Hall. [11] From the exterior, the pagoda seems to have only five stories and two sets of rooftop eaves for the first story, yet the pagoda's interior reveals that it has nine stories in all.[11] The four hidden stories can be indicated from the exterior by the pagoda's pingzuo (terrace balconies).[11] A ring of columns support the lowest outstretching eaved roof on the base floor, while the pagoda also features interior support columns.[11] A statue of the Buddha Sakyamuni sits prominently in the center of the first floor of the pagoda, with an ornate zaojing (caisson) above its head (the pagoda is named Sakyamuni Pagoda due to this statue).[11] A zaojing is also carved into the ceiling of every story of the pagoda.[11] The windows on the eight sides of the pagoda provide views of the countryside, including Mount Heng and the Songgan River. On a clear day, the pagoda can be seen from a distance of 30 km (19 mi).[5]

Preservation

The Pagoda of Fogong Temple and its surroundings are protected by the

Chinese government, and over 1 million dollars have already been committed to the research on repairing and renovating the precariously standing millennium-old building.[14] In May 2011, Shanxi provincial authorities stated that the application for the pagoda should be finished by July 2011 for it to be included on the UNESCO list of protected world heritage relics by 2013.[15]

The present

In 2013, the pagoda was placed on China's tentative list for

UNESCO World Heritage Site consideration, along with the Fengguo Temple.[16]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Steinhardt (1997), 20.
  2. ^ Steinhardt (1997), 103.
  3. ^ Steinhardt (1994), 8.
  4. ^ Chinadaily.com.cn (2003).Sakyamuni Pagoda at Fogong Temple Archived 2007-08-24 at the Wayback Machine. Ministry of Culture. Retrieved on 2008-01-25.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Steinhardt (1994), 12.
  6. ^ Steinhardt (2004), 128–154.
  7. ^ Kuhn (2000), 332.
  8. ^ Steinhardt (1994), 12, footnote 31.
  9. ^ a b Steinhardt (1994), 14.
  10. ^ Steinhardt (1994), 12, 13.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Steinhardt (1994), 13.
  12. ^ a b Ma Liang, 2010, 41-42
  13. ^ Needham, Volume 4, 131.
  14. ^ "China seeks world heritage status for world's oldest wooden pagoda". news.xinhuanet.com. Archived from the original on 2011-05-17.
  15. ^ "Application of Sakyamuni Pagoda for UNESCO cultural relics to be finished by July". news.xinhuanet.com. Archived from the original on 30 December 2013. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  16. ^ "Wooden Structures of Liao Dynasty—Wooden Pagoda of Yingxian County，Main Hall of Fengguo Monastery of Yixian County". 2014-04-22.

References

External links

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