☰Sights

Mount Emei and Giant Buddha at Leshan

Minor corrections on 01 May 04

Sights

Mount Emei and Giant Buddha at Leshan

The first Buddhist temple in China was constructed on the summit of Mount Emei in the 1st century A.D. The addition of numerous other temples later promoted the mountain to rank as one of the Sacred Mountains of Buddhism. The mountain protrudes from lush sub-tropical forest and emerges often above a sea of clouds, especially at the Golden Summit at sunrise. Nearby Leshan is home to the 71-metre Giant Buddha carved into the cliffs where three rivers meet.

Mount Qincheng and the Dujiangyan Irrigation System

An official World Heritage Site, the temples of Mount Qincheng are closely linked with the birth of Daoism, historically one of the most influential religions of East Asia. The irrigation system at Dujiangyan was constructed in the 3rd century BC and continues to function to this day, delivering water to the Chengdu plain without the use of a dam.