Xinchang Great Buddha Temple (xīn chāng dà fó sì 新昌大佛寺) is located in the valley between Nanming Mountain (nán míng shān 南明山) and Shicheng Mountain (shí chéng shān 石城山) in Southwest Xinchang County (xīn chāng xiàn 新昌县), Shaoxing City (shào xìng shì 绍兴市), Zhejiang Province (zhè jiāng shěng 浙江省). The temple is a famous in Buddhism field. Originally it was built during the Yonghe Period (yǒng hé nián jiān 永和年间) in the East Jin Dynasty (dōng jìn 东晋), more than 1600 years ago. According to records in Biographies of Eminent Monks (gāo sēng zhuàn 高僧传), in 345 A.D, an eminent monk Tan Guang (tán guāng 昙光) came to Shicheng Mountain to appreciate the beautiful mountains and rivers of eastern Zhejiang. He lived in a stone chamber and hastily established Yinyue Temple (yǐn yuè sì 隐岳寺), which was the origin of Xinchang Great Buddha.

The Xinchang Great Buddha Temple Scenic Area has a total area of 25.5 square kilometers. It consists of The Great Buddha Temple Scenic Area (dà fó sì jǐng qū 大佛寺景区), Shi Li Qian Xi Scenic Area (shí lǐ qián xī jǐng qū 十里潜溪景区) and Nanyan Temple Scenic Area (nán yán sì jǐng qū 南岩寺景区).

The Great Buddha Temple Scenic Area is 0.5 kilometers away from the southwest county. It has 165 scenic spots. The temple was surrounded by mountains, rare rocks, pavilions and ancient trees. So it got another name of Shicheng Ancient Buddhist Temple (shí chéng gǔ shā 石城古刹).

Looking from the outside façade, the temple has five layers. The big stone status of Maitreya is in the middle of the hall. The statue base is 2.4 meters high, and the main body is 13.2 meters high, 15.9 meters wide. The distance between two knees is 10.6 meters. The ears are longer than 2.7 meters. The Buddha sits with his great hands on his lap, palms upwards. More than 10 people can stand on his hands. The statue is considered as the number one great buddha in the south of Yangtze River in China.

The main halls in the Great Buddha Temple are Heavenly King Hall (tiān wáng diàn 天王殿), The Western Hall (xī fāng diàn 西方殿), The Main Shrine Hall (dà xióng bǎo diàn 大雄宝殿), Dafo Hall (dà fó diàn 大佛殿), Dizang Hall (dì zàng diàn 地藏殿), The Scriptorium (cáng jīng lóu 藏经楼) and so on. Apart from these, The Thousand-Buddha Buddhist Temple (qiān fó yuàn 千佛院), Zhi Zhe Fa Pagoda (zhì zhě fǎ tǎ 智者法塔), Yinyue Cave (yǐn yuè dòng 隐岳洞), The Free Life Pond (fàng shēng chí 放生池), Wuliang Bridge (wú liàng qiáo 无量桥) etc..

The Thousand-Buddha Buddhist Temple (qiān fó yuàn 千佛院) is located 300 meters northwest of the Great Buddha Temple. There are more than a thousand Buddha statues in the temple. That’s why it was called Thousand-Buddha Buddhist Temple. Some of them are big while some of them are quite small. The biggest one is about one meter and the smallest one is only a few inches. The statues were arranged in good order. They fully reflect the infinite intelligence and high artistic level of ancient Chinese craftsman.

The Free Life Pond is in the temple gate outside the Great Buddha Temple. It is not only the specific architecture in the temple, but also has the effect of adding views to the temple. When entering the gate, you will be attracted by the clear pond. The water mirrors the surrounding green mountains and trees. The feeling of lustration in Buddhism place will soon strike you. The characters Nan Wu E Mi Tuo Fo (nán mó ā mí tuó fó 南无阿弥陀佛) on the rock in the south of the Free Life Pond was written by Master Hongyi (hóng yī fǎ shī 弘一法师). The three characters Fang Sheng Pond was written by Qian Silian (qián sī lián 钱思廉). On the hillside of the two ponds was the Master Zhizhe Memorial Pagoda (zhì zhě dà shī jì niàn tǎ 智者大师纪念塔), it was built to commemorate the Master Zhi Yi (zhì yǐ dà shī 智顗大师) who was the founder of chinese Buddhism in Sui (suí cháo 隋朝) and Tang Dynasties (táng cháo 唐朝).
     

Xinchang Great Buddha Temple
Address: No. 117 West of Renmin Road (rén mín xī lù 人民西路), Chengguan Town (chéng guān zhèn 城关镇), Xinchang County, Shaoxing City, Zhejiang Province
Admission fee: RMB 80
Opening hours: 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Transportation: you can take special bus to get to there