Foguang Temple
佛光寺
The Tang-dynasty East Hall (857), discovered by Liang Sicheng in 1937, overturned the claim that China had no surviving Tang-era wooden buildings. Tang architecture, sculpture, murals and inscriptions gathered here make it a pilgrimage site for architecture lovers.
Foguang Temple is located in Foguang Mountain in Doucun Town, Wutai County, about 50 km from Taihuai Town. It was founded in the Northern Wei under Emperor Xiaowen and was destroyed during the Huichang persecution of Buddhism in the Tang. In 857 (the 11th year of the Dazhong era), the East Hall was rebuilt with funds from the female patron Ning Gongyu. In 1937, Liang Sicheng and Lin Huiyin located the temple by following clues from Dunhuang murals. Inside the hall, they found Tang-dynasty inscriptions beneath the beams, confirming it as a Tang wooden structure. Liang Sicheng called it 'China's First National Treasure', overturning the claim by Japanese scholars that China had no surviving Tang wooden architecture. The East Hall faces west on a high platform, seven bays wide and four bays deep, with a single-eaved hip roof, massive dougong brackets and eaves that project about 4 meters. Inside, 35 Tang painted sculptures on the Buddhist platform are well preserved, and Tang murals survive on the beams and bracket-eye walls. Outside stands a Tang sutra pillar. Together these make up the 'four wonders' of Tang architecture, sculpture, murals and inscriptions. The Manjushri Hall in the temple is a Jin-dynasty building with reduced internal columns. The Patriarch Pagoda is a Northern Wei relic, one of only two Northern Wei stone pagodas remaining in China. A visit takes about 1.5 hours, and a guide is recommended. Entry costs about 15 yuan. Getting there: there is no bus. You can hire a car from Taihuai Town for about 1.5 hours (about 500 yuan per car if combined with Nanchan Temple), or hire one from Wutaishan Station or Xinzhou, or drive yourself along National Highway 108. Notes: light inside the East Hall is very dim, and photography is forbidden. Bring a small flashlight (don't use the flash). The mountain roads wind, so bring medicine if you get carsick. There are few food options nearby, so bring your own snacks.
Opening hours
08:00–18:00 (winter 08:30–17:00)
Nearby sights
- Jinge Temple
- South Terrace Jinxiu Peak
- West Terrace Guayue Peak
- Longquan Temple
- Zhenhai Temple
- Nanshan Temple
- Central Terrace Cuiyan Peak
- Shuxiang Temple