8:00 — 17:00

Upper Guangsheng Temple: 16 RMB Lower Guangsheng Temple: 10 RMB

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Summer is the ideal time for sightseeing in Shanxi Province.

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Linfen Railway Station is located on Chezhan Street in the northeastern urban area. The north-south Tongpu Railway trunk line runs through the city, connecting northern and southern Shanxi. The Houxi and Houyue Railways, which form part of China’s second Eurasian Continental Bridge, cross the region from east to west. Trains run from Linfen to Beijing, Xi’an, Taiyuan, Shijiazhuang, Tianjin and other cities.

An expressway directly links Linfen and Huozhou. Besides, the Dayun Highway (Datong–Yuncheng) and National Highway 108 run north and south across Shanxi, while National Highway 315 and Jinhan Highway stretch east and west. Long-distance buses departing from Linfen Coach Station reach Taiyuan, Xi’an, Yuncheng and all counties and districts under Linfen’s jurisdiction.

Linfen operates a full range of bus routes leading to tourist attractions, bringing great convenience to visitors.

Guangsheng Temple stands at the southern foot of Huoshan Mountain, 17 kilometres northeast of Hongtong County. It was first founded in the first year of the Jianhe reign of the Eastern Han Dynasty (147 AD). It was expanded and renamed Guangsheng Temple in the Tang Dynasty. The original buildings were destroyed by an earthquake in the Yuan Dynasty, and the existing halls were rebuilt in the Yuan period. During the Zhengde and Jiajing reigns of the Ming Dynasty (1515–1527), the glazed Feihong Pagoda was added to the Upper Temple.

Guangsheng Temple consists of two parts: the Upper Temple and the Lower Temple. The Upper Temple is laid out as a rectangular courtyard on the summit of the southern slope of Huoshan Mountain. Along the central axis from south to north are the Mountain Gate, Feihong Pagoda, Amitabha Hall, Mahavira Hall, Vairocana Hall, Guanyin Hall, Ksitigarbha Hall, as well as side halls and covered corridors.

The Mountain Gate is covered with cylindrical tiles and features an overhanging gable roof. It extends four rafters deep and spans three bays in width. Hanging prominently in the centre is a wooden plaque inscribed with “Guangsheng Chan Courtyard”, written by Zhang Ruiji, a local gentleman from Zhaocheng County in the early years of the Republic of China. Two guardian generals stand on either side of the gate with glaring eyes, exuding overpowering solemnity.

Stepping through the gate, visitors will catch sight of the towering glazed pagoda, Feihong Pagoda, piercing the sky. According to the Buddhist travel record Great Tang Records on the Western Regions, it ranks among the nineteen major Buddhist pagodas across China. This exquisitely designed glazed pagoda was completed in the Ming Dynasty. Inscriptions on restoration steles record that construction first began in the Tang Dynasty, only to be ruined by a violent earthquake in the Yuan Dynasty. Reconstruction started in the 10th year of the Zhengde reign (1515 AD) and was finished in the 6th year of the Jiajing reign (1527 AD). This octagonal monumental project took twelve years to complete. More than ninety years later, an encircling corridor was added over two years (1622–1623 AD) in the 2nd year of the Tianqi reign.

The pagoda is octagonal with thirteen storeys, standing 47.13 metres tall. The winding stairwell inside is ingeniously designed to lead all the way to the top, a rare architectural feature nationwide. The tower is built of blue bricks, with glazed overhanging eaves on every level. The lowest three tiers are especially elaborate, featuring brackets beneath upturned eaves, delicately moulded lotus columns, and brightly coloured reliefs of Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, guardian deities, coiled dragons, crouching tigers, exotic beasts and rare birds.

Solid as bedrock, Feihong Pagoda has stood intact after more than four hundred years of wind and frost. It survived the magnitude-8 earthquake in the Pingyang Basin in the 34th year of the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty (1695 AD). An inscription recording the earthquake remains on the top storey, providing precious material for seismic research. According to the pagoda construction stele, the designer was a monk named Dalian from Chai Village in present-day Xiangfen County. Monk Dalian spent more than forty years perfecting the design and another twelve years overseeing construction. Building such a towering glazed pagoda with limited ancient technology was a remarkable achievement in Chinese architectural history, fully demonstrating the extraordinary wisdom and craftsmanship of ancient working people.

The whole tower is clad in earth-toned glazed tiles. Under bright sunshine, it glows resplendently from afar, just like a colourful rainbow — hence the name Feihong, meaning “Flying Rainbow”. When the wind blows, 112 iron bells on the pagoda chime melodiously, creating a peaceful and refreshing atmosphere. As inscribed by the Ming scholar Wang Han: An exquisite tower pierces the blue sky;

Autumn wind sweeps through green cypresses all over the hill.

Clouds linger around the hall where monks meditate;

The sacred Sumeru Peak remains out of reach.

The Amitabha Hall is the front hall of the Upper Temple, reconstructed in the 11th year of the Jiajing reign (1532 AD). It spans five bays wide and six rafters deep, topped with a single-eave hip-and-gable roof. Inside sits a bronze Amitabha Buddha together with a thousand-petalled lotus throne, standing over three metres high. The Buddha’s wide lap resembles a small uneven platform, with a vivid and lifelike expression. Flanking the Buddha are Guanyin and Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattvas. The graceful statues lean slightly forward with flowing robes, bearing the artistic style of Song-dynasty sculptures and winning high praise from artists past and present. Amitabha, Guanyin and Mahasthamaprapta are collectively known as the Three Saints of the Western Paradise.

A large mural covering heaven, the mortal world and purgatory decorates the eastern wall. Another huge mural on the fan-shaped partition wall depicts “All Bodhisattvas Paying Homage to the Buddhas of Three Ages”. Painted with meticulous brushwork and gorgeous colours, it dates back to the hall’s original construction. Below the murals, a Maitreya Buddha with a big belly sits on a one-metre-high platform, laughing heartily with an amusing look. Visitors cannot help being touched by his open-mindedness and indifference to mortal trivialities. Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty once wrote a couplet for him: A broad belly holds all the intolerable troubles under heaven;

A kind smile laughs at all the ridiculous mortals in the world.