China Trip: Day 7 – Lingyin Temple Scenic Area (Part 1)

After a wonderful lunch, we headed towards the Lingyin Temple Scenic Area.

The front gate had a beautiful textured gold sign

Once inside, we were greeted by a series of statues of important Buddhist prophets & historical figures:

These were followed by the amazing Feilai Feng, or commonly translated as “Flying Peak”. This limestone mountain has dozens of intricate Buddha carvings on its side, complete with dangling vines like something out of an Indiana Jones movie. It was absolutely breathtaking. I felt like I was on ancient hallowed ground. My pictures don’t do them justice…but here are a few that take you through the grounds…

We first stepped into the Cave of Golden Light. Dating back to 951 AD, the “Three Sages of the West” carving shown below is the earliest carving according to historical records.

We then saw a series of incredible limestone carving grottos on the side of the mountain.

This pic always makes me smile.

This guy looks like he has a secret…

This statue was in the cave of the Goddess of Mercy…

Here is some ancient writing found on the way out of the cave…

Next came another cave with a good luck Buddha inside. Women must touch Buddha’s hand with their right hand and then place their hand in their pocket (to bring themselves money & good fortune). Men must do the same with their left hand.

After finishing the outer grounds of Lingyin, we were ready to enter the actual temple…