The Temple of the Spring Buddha is a symbol of the respect of the Chinese people for the heritage of Buddhism

Buddhism is one of the world religions that are widespread in Asia. At the state level, Buddhism is accepted in China, Thailand, Tibet, India, Cambodia, Nepal and other countries. In the Russian Federation, Buddhism is practiced by Kalmyks, Buryats and Tuvinians.

The followers of Buddhism worship Sidhart Gautama, or Buddha - God, who was a man, but was able to attain enlightenment as a result of travel, self-restraint and conversations with sages about the meaning of life. The Buddha image is immortalized in sculpture. In the East, there are many statues of Gautama. One of them is located on the territory of the temple, which is called - the Temple of the Spring Buddha.

Why is Buddha the Spring?

This name was given to the temple because it contains a hot spring with healing power. In Russian, the name of the geyser is translated as "hot spring". The water temperature in Tianrui hot spring reaches sixty degrees Celsius degrees.

The temple complex of Foshan, built during the Tang Dynasty, is also famous for the fact that there is a huge bell on the belfry, its weight is more than 100 tons, and its diameter exceeds five meters. This bell is smaller in size than the Tsar-Bell of the Kremlin. However, the Kremlin giant is just a tourist attraction (certainly worthy of attention), and the bell of the Spring Temple (in a different way the Bell of Fortune) is in effect.

According to ancient traditions, the territory of the church is guarded by evil forces from marble deities and demons located at the entrance to the shrine. In the temple, prayers and services are performed. The temple of the Spring Buddha is the refuge of Buddhist monks. Here also laymen come to pray, to give up daily worries, to be alone with your thoughts and feelings.

Temple location

The monastery is in a desert area on the outskirts of Henan Island. Since monks prefer solitude, there is nothing around the temple except the ticket office and one parking space.

The Temple of the Spring Buddha attracts pilgrims and tourists from all over the world, but in addition to the hot spring, a huge bell and marble statues at the entrance, travelers are eager to see the highest Buddha statue in the world.

Description of the statue

In the image of the Spring Buddha, Buddha Vairochan, symbolizing wisdom, is immortalized. The Buddha statue of the Spring Temple is the highest in the world. Its height, along with the hill on which the Buddha stands, is two hundred and eight meters. For comparison: the famous Statue of Liberty will barely reach the Buddha to the knee. Significantly below is the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, the sculptural composition "Motherland Calls!" In Volgograd and other monuments. The statue of the Spring Buddha is recorded in the Guinness Book of Records.

The sculpture of the Buddha of the Spring Temple seems incredible also because the Buddha stands on a giant pedestal, which is a lotus flower.

To get to the statue, you need to overcome 365 steps, divided into 12 spans. It is not difficult to guess that this division means the number of months and days in a year.

The Buddha is made of gold, copper and special steel. First, parts of the statue were sculpted, then they merged together. A total of one hundred and a hundred pieces were made. After their connection, the weight of the Buddha was one thousand tons.

History of the erection of the statue

The statue of the Buddha of the Spring Temple, whose height is striking in fantasy, was erected in 2010. The decision to create the highest statue in the world was taken after the Taliban blew up the ancient statues of the Buddha in Afghanistan. Destroyed sculptures were included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. The Chinese government expressed its dissatisfaction with the incident and determined the place of the creation of the sculpture - the village of Zhaocun in Henan Province.

Construction began in 2001. The work was very intensive, and in a year the inhabitants and guests of China had the opportunity to see a giant statue. However, then the height of the Buddha of the Spring Temple was 153 meters. The record sizes of the Buddha were achieved due to the transformation of the hill on which Vairochan stands, to the stone steps.

The Buddha of the Spring Temple symbolizes the respect of the Chinese people for Buddhism.

How to behave in the temple?

The Temple of the Spring Buddha is a holy place. Therefore, behavior should be such as not to violate religious traditions (even if the visitor professes a different religion), not to offend monks and parishioners.

The image of the highest Buddha tourists keep in their memory, as the photo and video in the temple are prohibited. Moreover, photographing makes the residents of the monastery worry, and this is not surprising. You can not photograph people without their consent.

Before entering the temple, you need to remove the hat and shoes. Clothing should cover the arms to the forearm and legs to the ankles. It is forbidden to talk on the phone and talk with each other.

Buddhist monks can not communicate with women, and some clerics - and with men. Therefore, it is better not to try to start a conversation with the ministers of the cult. If desired, you can order a prayer service in the church and make offerings.