The three pagodas of Chongsheng Temple are the symbol of Dali's "land of literary fame", the symbol of ancient Yunnan history and culture, and one of the oldest and most magnificent buildings in southern China. 1961March, the State Council announced the first batch of national key cultural relics protection units.
The building complex is 4 km away from Xiaguan/kloc-0, located at the foot of Leying Peak in Cangshan Mountain 1.5km north of Dali, with its back to Cangshan Mountain and facing Erhai Lake. The three pagodas are composed of one big pagoda and two small pagodas, which stand tall and stand out from a distance. It is one of the scenic spots in Canger.
The Three Pagodas Chongsheng Temple was built in the Kaiyuan period of the Tang Dynasty (AD 7 13-74 1). The great pagoda "Chihiro Pagoda" was first built, with a height of 69.13m. It is a square brick tower with dense eaves and a floor of *** 13. Later, the South Tower and the North Tower were built, both 43 meters high. It is a pair of octagonal brick towers, both of which are 10. The three pagodas are integrated, magnificent and have a quaint national style.
The construction of the three pagodas, in addition to Buddhism, has an important reason, that is, Dali was once a "country with frequent floods". The ancient book "Jin Bian" records: "It is said in the world that the dragon worships the tower and fears Peng. Dali used to be Long Ze, so it is a town. "
According to legend, there were three towers in ancient times, which were paved with one layer of soil and repaired with another. After the tower was repaired, the soil was dug up layer by layer, which made the tower appear, so there was the saying of "piling up the civil tower" and "digging up the tower now" When the tower was completed, the bridge was as high as a hill and as long as 10 Li. When repairing the tower, the transportation capacity was insufficient, and the bricks were transported by goats. Now Yinqiao Village in Dali is called Taqiao Village in ancient times. According to ancient records, these three towers are. It took 7.7 million craftsmen and 40 thousand gold, and it took eight years to build all this.
After the completion of the three pagodas, a large-scale Chongsheng Temple was built. After several generations of expansion, it reached its peak in the period of "Dali Kingdom" in the Song Dynasty. According to Nanzhao unofficial history, Chongsheng Temple "has a base of seven miles and a weekly area of more than 300 mu, consisting of 890 houses, 11,400 buddhas and 45,550 bronze welcome"; It has the scale of "three pavilions, seven floors, nine halls and a hundred houses".
In the 18th year of Tang Zhenyuan in Nanzhao (AD 802), Wang Yongqiang of Qi State (now Myanmar) and Prince Shunandou, accompanied by Yi Mouxun, king of Nanzhao, went to worship and burn incense at the Three Pagodas of Chongsheng Temple, which became the "Buddhist Capital" advocated by Southeast Asia and South Asia. During the Dali period, Duan Siping, the first king of Dali, loved Buddhism. Nanzhao unofficial history said that Duan Siping "is good at Buddhism, building temples every year and casting thousands of Buddhas". In A.D. 1056, Yedo, king of Luo Xing (now Thailand), visited Chongsheng Temple twice to greet the Buddha's tooth, and Duan Silian, king of Dali, gave him a jade Buddha. Dali Buddhism is very popular because of its vigorous advocacy. Nine of the twenty-second generation kings of Dali became monks in Chongsheng Temple. They are: the second generation of Wang Duan Ying Si, the eighth generation of Wang Duan Su Long, the ninth generation of Wang Duan Su Zhen, the eleventh generation of Wang Duan Si Lian, the thirteenth generation of Wang Duan Shou Hui, the fourteenth generation of Wang Duan, the fifteenth generation of Wang Duan (also the father of Duan Yu in Eight Dragons) and the sixteenth generation of Wang Duan (also). Among them, the second generation of Wang Duan became a monk in Chongsheng Temple in less than one year. Of course, these kings also love Buddhism, but it is mainly a way out after the failure to compete for the throne. Therefore, there are records of "abdicating as a monk" and "avoiding the world as a monk" in the history books. The Buddhist classic "The Great Infatuation Volume" copied in the Ming Dynasty records the complicated scenes of the king's accession ceremony. It is a unique phenomenon in the history of Buddhism in the world that so many kings become monks. Therefore, it attracted pilgrims from the mainland and Southeast Asia and South Asia to make a pilgrimage to Chongsheng Temple, which became the "Royal National Temple" respected by Southeast Asia and South Asia.
Xu Xiake, a geographer in the Ming Dynasty, wrote in Travel Notes of Yunnan: "The temple was built under the Ten Peaks of Cangshan Mountain, and it was named Chongsheng Temple in the Kaiyuan period of the Tang Dynasty. The first three towers stand upright ... The towers are surrounded by towering pines, and the west is entered by the mountain gate. The bell tower is opposite to the three towers, which is extremely magnificent. There is a clock in the building. It is extremely large, with a diameter of more than ten feet and a thickness of one foot. It was cast during the reign of Mongolia (Nanzhao) and its reputation can reach 80 miles. Then there is the hall, followed by the monument ... then there is "Rain Copper Guanyin", a bronze statue more than three feet high ... From the later level, it is Jingtu Temple. " Chongsheng Temple in Ming Dynasty is famous for its five weapons: Three Pagodas, Nanzhao Bell Hood, Yutong Guanyin Statue, the plaque of Buddhist Capital written by monks in Yuan Dynasty, and the golden statue of Sansheng in Ming Dynasty. Incense is more prosperous, and it has been heard in South Asia and Southeast Asia. (Selected from official website, the Three Pagodas of Chongsheng Temple in Dali)