Scenic Splendor Fills the Hall | Xiaoxitian in Xixian County, Shanxi

【Shanxi's Beauty and Goodness·Xixian·Xiaoxitian Scenic Splendor Fills the Hall】The YYDS of Chinese hanging sculpture art is here, photos cannot show one percent of its beauty, this is the Buddhist pure land—Xiaoxitian located in Xixian County, Linfen City. To witness this splendid hall, you need to climb the stairs. Before you enter the Daxiong Hall, you better polish your eyes or glasses, I'm afraid you'll think you've entered a dream world! The hall is not big, even a bit cramped, those ingenious artworks are right in front of you, enjoy them slowly! Tips1: The real value of Xiaoxitian lies in the perfectly preserved hanging sculptures in the Daxiong Hall. Most of the hanging sculptures in the hall were painted between the 17th year of the Ming Chongzhen era (1644) and the 13th year of the Qing Shunzhi era (1656), the sculptures inside the hall are dazzling and magnificent, exquisitely moving, after more than three hundred years they remain as clean as new, intact as ever. The hall is filled with colorful sculptures, in addition to the five main statues above the altar, the walls, beams, and even the roof rafters are all painted with thousands of colorful sculptures. These sculptures have different postures and vivid shapes, placing you in the halls and pavilions of a thousand Buddha nations. Some are over 3 meters tall, while others are only the size of a thumb, intricate but not cluttered, orderly expressing the vast world of Buddhism. Tips2: Inside the Daxiong Hall, there are five interconnected Buddhist niches separated by a four-story pagoda. In the front of the hall, from left to right, 'Medicine Buddha', 'Amitabha Buddha', 'Shakyamuni Buddha', 'Vairocana Buddha', and 'Maitreya Buddha' are seated in the center of the niches, with attendant Bodhisattvas on both sides. The ten great disciples stand on both sides, with graceful shapes and subtle expressions, vividly portrayed. On the south wall of the hall, Buddhist figures and stories such as the 'Four Directions Three Saints' and the 'Four Heavenly Kings' are sculpted, and on the north wall, stories from Mount Sumeru's thirty-three layers of 'Trāyastriṃśa Heaven', the life of Buddha, and the Jataka tales of Shakyamuni are depicted. On the beams, the eight great Vajra are mighty and majestic, and the walls between the beams are adorned with the resplendent 'Pure Land'; numerous human-faced Apsaras, divine birds, peacocks, parrots, and cranes roam among the misty clouds, and the twelve musical Bodhisattvas perform 'heavenly' songs and dances with light and graceful figures, gentle and pure, moving freely. The entire hall, with its heavenly palaces and pavilions, layered upon each other, shrouded in mist, and decorated with colorful makeup, presents a captivating scene of a fairy palace and Buddhist land. 📝Note tips: 1. It's cheaper to buy tickets online in advance 2. Photography is basically allowed📷