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 Located
at Hunyuan County of Shanxi Province, Hengshan Hanging Monastery
was built at the later period of northern Wei about 1400 years
ago. It is an immortal masterpiece of ancient architecture and
a piece crystallization of workmanship and resourcefulness.
The Hanging Monastery with Cuiping Mountain
behind is opposite to the north mountain - the Hengshan Mountain.
The clusters of architecture, over 40 buildings of them, are evenly
distributed and well-balanced in height. In the monastery are
over 80 statues; some are cast with bronze, some with iron, some
with clay and some are carved out of stone. Sakyamuni, the founder
of Buddhism, the Child Giving Avalokitesvara, Ludongping of Taoism
and others are living together friendly and harmoniously which
give one some thought that each and every sect of religions wants
to capture a seat in such an extraordinary monastery.
The Hanging Monastery has established its unique
position among the various temples and monasteries with its characteristics
of "peril, workmanship and miracle".
The perilous situation of the Hanging Monastery
makes one feel dumbfounded. Walking a few miles deep into the
canyon, you will see in the curling up clouds and mists, pavilions
in the air, hanging on the precipice. These pavilions are propped
up by a few pillars with a diameter of an ordinary bowl. The majority
of the building body is suspending in the air.
The workmanship of the Hanging Monastery lies
in the fact that with the supporting beams as its basis and the
skilful utilization of the hidden rocks, the whole building is
uniquely well-knit into an integral whole and the balustrades
are artistically connected. The layout of the monastery structure
is in excellent symmetry with variations, well-connected though
scattered at various points, and still in good proportion though
extraordinarily complicated. The main structure consists of over
40 halls pavilions, all of which are made of wood. The mountains
are excavated at halfway to create grottoes and within the niches
Buddhas are enshrined. Monasteries like this more than 1000 years
ago can be lauded as "superb craftsmanship excelling nature".
The miracle of the Hanging Monastery makes
one feel as if he were in the imperial palace. Entering the monastery
courtyard, you can find auxiliary pavilions on the north and south
ends well-proportioned and connected with hanging ladders. There
hang on precipice are two pieces of grand flying towers with three
layers and nine ridges. The main part of the tower is basically
hanging in the air, standing facing each other from north down
south. In between the two towers is a broken cliff several decades
of meters long; a plank road is built along the face of the cliff.
It is the most precipitous part of the Hanging Monastery. There
are corridors surrounding three sides of the Flying Tower. You
can climb up and down with the help of the stone balustrades;
it looks as if you were in the labyrinth.
On each side of the plank road are carvings
of tall Buddhist statues, sitting on the cliff with serene dignity
and composure.
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