2024 Cultural 'Summer' Journey (Ten): Chongqing Temple

Chongqing Temple, a fourth batch of national key cultural relics protection units, is located on the southern slope of Ziyun Mountain, north of Ju Village, Setou Town, 22 kilometers southeast of Changzi County. The temple is built against the mountain and faces the valley, with beautiful surroundings. The exact date of its establishment is unknown. I once saw a statement that the three most artistically representative groups of Chinese colored sculptures are Chongqing Temple, Faxing Temple, and Jinci Temple in Shanxi. This time, I finally had the opportunity to visit Chongqing Temple in Changzhi! However, even if you come for the colored sculptures of Chongqing Temple, you must not miss the Song Dynasty architecture in the temple! Chongqing Temple was built in the ninth year of the Dazhong Xiangfu period of the Northern Song Dynasty (1016 AD), and it was repaired many times during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. In 1996, it was announced by the State Council as the fourth batch of national key cultural relics protection units. The Song Dynasty sculptures in Chongqing Temple are relatively well-preserved, and the most splendid ones are in the Hall of the Three Great Beings, also known as the Arhat Hall~ The colored sculptures of the Eighteen Arhats here are truly wonderful! The size and proportion of the Eighteen Arhats are similar to real people. Besides the smooth and flowing folds of their clothes, the most important aspect is the natural and vivid depiction of the Arhats' expressions. Many times, you can see a trace of familiarity on the faces of the Arhats, perhaps resembling someone you have seen in your life, a certain moment, or a certain expression. As an important representative of Song Dynasty sculptures, the Arhat statues here can fully let you feel how the sculptors used facial depictions and character actions to echo each other, thereby more profoundly expressing the characters' psychology. Ancient architecture expert Chai Zejun once said that the Song Dynasty Arhat statues in Chongqing Temple are not only precisely dated but also superbly crafted. They inherit the robust and vigorous style of Tang Dynasty Arhats and greatly develop the realistic style, making them a masterpiece of their time, extremely precious. Another hall, the Dizang Hall, is also not to be missed! As the name suggests, Dizang Hall showcases another world of the underworld. It was built in the Ming Dynasty, and the glazed tiles on the roof and the doors and windows are all relics from the Ming Dynasty. Inside the hall, Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva is enshrined, flanked by the Ten Kings of Hell, with six judges sculpted on the side walls. The surprising part here is that above each colored sculpture, the craftsmen used a combination of comic strip and stage layout techniques to create pavilions, towers, and various character stories of the underworld with suspended sculptures. Therefore, when you come to Chongqing Temple, you can not only see the heavens but also the earth! Moreover, you can see all beings in the Song Dynasty Arhat statues! Chongqing Temple