ShanXi province lies west / south west of BeiJing / HeBei. Best known places include PingYao, the YunGang Grottoes and JinCi Temple. ShanXi is packed with ancient Chinese culture.
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The Hanging Temple of HengShan 悬空寺, and the YunGang Grottoes 云冈石窟
Near DaTong, ShanXi province.
The Hanging Temple (XuanKong Temple 悬空寺, XuánKōng Sì) is constructed on a vertical cliff face, 75 meters (245 feet) above the ground, at the foot of the HengShan mountain.
The temple lies about 64 kilometers south east of the city of DaTong. Together with the YunGang Grottoes, the Hanging Temple is one of the main tourist attractions and historical sites in the DaTong area. Built more than 1,600 years ago, this temple is notable also as the only surviving temple combining all three Chinese traditional religions/philosophies: Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism.
The structure is kept in place with oak crossbeams slotted into holes chiseled into the cliffs. The main supportive structure is hidden inside the rock. The temple is located in a small canyon basin, and is situated under a prominent summit that helps protect the temple from rain and sunlight.
The YunGang Grottoes are located at the southern foot of Mount WuZhou, 16 kilometers west of DaTong. There are 250 caves here containing many thousands of carvings and statues.
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A trip to the YunGang Grottoes 云冈石窟, DaTong, ShanXi province
Over 50,000 Buddhist statues are to be found in the caves here, ranging from just 3cm in height to 20m.
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The ‘Hanging Monastry’ at DaTong, ShaanXi province
Suspended some 50m above a river, the monastry was built in the year 490 and most recently renovated in 1900.
Close by are the YunGang Grottoes - caves containing over 50,000 Buddhist statues from 3cm to 20m in height - and a number of Buddhist temples on Heng Mountain (via cable car). There is also the YingXian Pagoda, built in 1056.
A 6 hour train journey from Beijing (daily overnight sleeper; also from Xi'An and PingYao).
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