Tian Tan Buddha

The 34 meter high bronze statue

The Tian Tan Buddha , also Tiantan Buddha , ( Chinese  天壇 大佛  /  天坛 大佛 , Pinyin Tiāntán Dàfó , Jyutping Tin ¹ taan ⁴ Daai ⁶ fat ⁶ ) is a bronze Buddha statue at Ngong Ping on Lantau Island in Hong Kong . The sculpture , also known colloquially as "Big Buddha" ( 大佛 , dàfó , Jyutping Daai ⁶ fat ⁶ ), is one of the five largest Buddha statues in China and the largest Buddhist monument in Hong Kong. It is located at the Po Lin Monastery ( 寶蓮 禪寺  /  宝莲 禅寺 , Bǎolián Chánsì , Jyutping Bou ² lin ⁴ Sim ⁴ zi ^{6 * 2} ) on a mountain top and is supposed to symbolize the harmonious relationship between man, nature and religion. As a popular tourist destination, it attracts thousands of visitors every year.

Since the completion of the Fo Guang Buddha , also Foguang Buddha ( 佛光 大佛  /  佛光 大佛 , Fóguāng Dàfó ) in the Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum in Kaohsiung , Taiwan in 2011 , it has been the world's second largest free-standing Buddha statue in a sitting posture.

description

268 steps lead up to the mountain top with the statue and the exhibition hall

The Buddha statue is a representation of the Buddha Amitabha and sits on a lotus throne on a three-tiered altar. Visitors can climb up to the altar platform and walk around the Buddha there. The figure itself is 34 meters high and weighs 250 tons. As with all Buddha statues, the hands are shaped into so-called mudra . These gestures have specific symbolic meanings: the right hand is raised as a sign of rejection of suffering, the left hand rests in the lap in a gesture of giving. The Buddha wears the swastika , a sacred symbol of happiness, on his chest .

Tianmu statues ( 天母 , tiānmǔ ) as the embodiment of the six virtues of Paramita in Mahayana

The Buddha statue is surrounded by six smaller bronze statues, the gods or immortals, in Chinese called Tianmu ( 天母 , tiānmǔ ), and holding up in their hands various symbolic objects in the direction of the Buddha, representing the six virtues of Paramita , such as generosity and patience , Embody meditation, morality, willpower (constant effort) and wisdom. The statue is called Tian Tan Buddha because its base was designed based on the Altar of Heaven or the Temple of Heaven in Beijing . Atypical for Buddha statues, it also looks north, in the direction of Beijing.

A three-storey exhibition hall is located within the throne pedestal and thus under the Buddha.

history

Construction of the Tian Tan Buddha began in the late 1980s. The monument was inaugurated on December 29, 1993 after the access roads were also expanded. It was composed of 202 bronze parts. Inside the statue there is a strong steel frame to withstand the heavy load of the outer shell and the wind pressure. The giant Buddha was estimated to cost up to 68 million Hong Kong dollars to build.

Monks from around the world were invited to the opening ceremony, and visitors from mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Thailand, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Sri Lanka and the United States of America attended the event.

On October 18, 1999, the Hong Kong Post Office issued a stamp depicting the Tian Tan Buddha.

Visit and access

View from the upper platform with details of the robe of the Buddha.

Visitors have to climb 268 steps to reach the platform below the lotus throne on which the Buddha sits. There is a small, winding driveway up to the statue for the disabled.

The Po Lin Monastery and Buddha are open to the public between 10:00 and 17:30. Access to the Buddha is free. There is an entrance fee of 60 Hong Kong dollars to enter the exhibition halls below the Buddha. This includes a vegetarian lunch. There are several shops selling souvenirs in front of the entrance.

The monastery is also known as the Buddhist Kingdom in the South and serves as an international Buddhist retreat. It is one of the largest and arguably the most famous in Hong Kong. The monastery was founded in 1924 after three Zen masters retired to this place in 1906 . The main temples are decorated inside on the walls and ceilings with cinnabar paintings depicting dragons and many other Chinese mythical motifs. Many visitors spend time in the adjoining tea garden. A footpath behind the tea garden leads to the Path of Wisdom , a path in the form of a lemniscate (to symbolize infinity) on which the Heart Sutra is engraved on numerous large wooden steles . If you go up to the top of the hill, you have a good view of the Tian Tan Buddha.

The Po-Lin monastery is located on a small plateau at around 520 m. Lantau Peak , the second highest mountain in Hong Kong, rises just behind the monastery.

Public transportation

Visitors can reach Lantau either by boat or the Mass Transit Railway . Ferries and speedboats run from Pier 6 in Central to Mui Wo , also known as Silvermine Bay . There is a direct bus (Line 2) to Ngong Ping from there. Take the subway to Tung Chung Station . There you can either take the bus to Ngong Ping (line 23), or you can take the Ngong Ping 360 gondola lift over the untouched mountain landscape to the Buddha.

comparison

Comparison with other large Buddha statues:

Buddha statue		country	material	Dimensions	location	annotation
Surname	image
Great Tian Tan Buddha 天壇 大佛  /  天坛 大佛 Tiāntán Dàfó		China , Hong Kong	bronze	H: 34 m B: ?? m M: 250 t	sitting freely	world's second largest free-standing Buddha statue in a sitting position
Great Buddha of Wuxi 靈山 大佛  /  灵山 大佛 Língshān Dàfó		China , Wuxi	copper	H: 88 m B: ?? m M: 700 t	free standing	Tallest Buddha statue in China
Big Buddha of Leshan 樂山 大佛  /  乐山 大佛 Lèshān Dàfó		China , Leshan	Stone , carved out of rock	H: 71 m W: 28 m M: 500 t	sitting	Largest stone Buddha in the world Further information
Big Buddha of Longmen 龍門 大佛  /  龙门 大佛 Lóngmén Dàfó		China , Luoyang	stone	H: 17.2 m B: ?? m M: ??? t	standing	-
Big Buddha of Yungang 雲崗 大佛  /  云岗 大佛 Yúngǎng Dàfó		China , Datong	stone	H: 15 m B: ?? m M: ??? t	sitting	-
Great Buddha of Nara 奈良 大 仏 Nara Daibutsu		Japan , Nara	bronze	H: 16.2 m B: ?? m M: 452 t	sitting freely	-
Big Buddha of Kamakura 鎌倉 大 仏 Kamakura Daibutsu		Japan , Kamakura	copper	H: 13.4 m B: ?? m M: 121 t	sitting freely	-
Big Buddha of Ushiku 牛 久 大 仏 Ushiku Daibutsu		Japan , Ushiku	copper	H: 100 m B: ?? m M: 4000 t	free standing	-
Great Foguang Buddha 佛光 大佛 Fóguāng Dàfó		Taiwan , Kaohsiung	bronze	H: 108 m, 40 m (statue) B: ?? m M: 1780 t	sitting freely	Largest free-standing Buddha statue in a sitting position
Phuket Big Buddha พระพุทธ มิ่ง มงคล เอก นาค คีรี Phra Phuttha Mingmongkhon Akenakkhiri		Thailand , Phuket	marble	H: 45 m B: 25 m M: ??? t	sitting freely	2008 completion
Buddha statues by Bamiyan बामियान के बुद्ध Bamiyan ke But بتهاى بامیان Buthāye Bāmiyān		Afghanistan , Bamiyan Valley	Stone , carved out of rock	H: 55 m H: 33 m B: ?? m M: ??? t	standing	March 2001 Destruction by the Taliban
Buddha statue from Hyderabad		India , Telangana	Stone , carved from a single monolith	H: 18 m H: 33 m B: ?? m M: 250 t	standing	Largest Buddha statue made from a single monolith

See also

• Ling-To Monastery
• Wong Tai Sin Temple

Web links

Commons : Tian Tan Buddha  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files

• Po Lin Monastery (Chinese, English)
• Ngong Ping 360 gondola lift (Chinese, English)
• Further information and pictures (Chinese, English)
• Images of the monastery and Buddha (Chinese, English)
• Video of the stairs rise to the statue (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Official website "Po-Lin-Monastry - Buddhist Monastery Po-Lin - (寶蓮 禪寺 / 宝莲 禅寺)" - Chinese, English: [1] - Accessed January 15, 2016 - plm.org.hk - On-line
2. ↑ 「佛光 大佛」 高 36 層 樓 、 重 1780 噸 成 世界 最大 坐佛. In: ETToday. Retrieved January 15, 2016 (Chinese, article “Foguang Buddha - world's largest free-standing Buddha in a seated posture, as high as 36 stories and weighing 1,780 tons”). 
3. ↑ Ngong Ping 360 ( Memento of the original from June 13, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 
4. ^ Website Po Lin Monastery ( Memento from June 27, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
5. ^ Website of the Po Lin Monastery ( Memento from April 15, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
6. ^ Website Po Lin Monastery ( Memento from June 16, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
7. ^ Website Po Lin Monastery ( Memento from May 1, 2009 in the Internet Archive )
8. ↑ ^{a b} Discover Hong Kong

Coordinates: 22 ° 15 ′ 14 "  N , 113 ° 54 ′ 17"  E