Chinese pagoda

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The Liuhe Pagoda (Six Harmonies Pagoda) of Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China, built in
1165 AD during the Song Dynasty.
For the landmark in Birmingham, see Chinese Pagoda.

Chinese Pagodas (Chinese: 塔; pinyin: Tǎ) are a traditional part of Chinese architecture. In
addition to religious use, since ancient times Chinese pagodas have been praised for the
spectacular views which they offer, and many famous poems in Chinese history attest to the joy
of scaling pagodas.

Contents
[hide]

 1 History
 2 Symbolism and geomancy
 3 Construction Materials
o 3.1 Wood
o 3.2 Transition to brick and stone
 3.2.1 Brick
 3.2.2 Stone
  3.2.3 Brick and stone
 4 De-emphasis over time
 5 Styles of eras
o 5.1 Han Dynasty
o 5.2 Sui and Tang
o 5.3 Song, Liao, Jin, Yuan
o 5.4 Ming and Qing
 6 See also
 7 Notes
 8 References
 9 External links

[edit] History

The Lingxiao Pagoda of Zhengding, Hebei, built in 1045 AD during the Song Dynasty, with
little change in later renovations.

The pagoda is evolved from the stupa from the Indian subcontinent,[1] a tomb-like structure
where sacred relics could be kept safe and venerated. The architectural structure of the stupa has
spread across Asia, and the original dome-shaped structure of the stupa from India was gradually
fused together with the design of ancient Chinese towers to form the shape of the Chinese
pagoda.[2]

The Chinese word for stupa, ta, is an abbreviated translation (from tapo) of the Sanskrit Stupa.
The origins of the word Pagoda are obscure. In modern usage, the word Stupa and Pagoda refer
to the same thing.[3]

The Pagoda's original purpose was to house relics and sacred writings. [4] This purpose was
popularized due to the efforts of Buddhist missionaries, pilgrims, rulers, and ordinary devotees to
seek out, distribute, and extol Buddhist relics.[3]

The earliest base-structure type for Chinese pagodas were square-base and circular-base. By the
5th-10th centuries the Chinese began to build octagonal-base pagoda towers. The highest
Chinese pagoda from the pre-modern age is the Liaodi Pagoda of Kaiyuan Monastery, Dingxian,
Hebei province, completed in the year 1055 AD under Emperor Renzong of Song and standing at
a total height of 84 m (275 ft). The pagoda was built of brick and stone and has the classic
gradual tiered eaves marking each storey, and has a section of its walls partially open at one side,
which allows one to view the interior of the pagoda, the inner column shaped as another pagoda
inside, and the thickness of the pagoda's walls.[5] Although it no longer stands, the tallest pre-
modern pagoda in Chinese history was the 100-metre-tall wooden pagoda (330 ft) of Chang'an,
built by Emperor Yang of Sui.[6] The Liaodi Pagoda is the tallest pre-modern pagoda still
standing, yet in April of 2007 a new wooden pagoda at the Tianning Temple of Changzhou was
opened to the public; this pagoda is now the tallest in China, standing at 154 m (505 ft).

[edit] Symbolism and geomancy

The Xumi Pagoda, built in 636 AD during the Tang Dynasty.

iconography of Han is noticeable in architecture of the Chinese Pagoda . The image of the
Shakyamuni Buddha in the abhaya mudra is also noticeable in some Chinese pagodas, Buddhist
iconography is also inside of the symbolism in the pagoda. [7] In an article on Buddhist elements
in Han art, Wu Hung suggests that in these tombs, Buddhist iconography was so well
incorporated into native Chinese traditions that a unique system of symbolism had been
developed.[8] he believed would influence the success of young students taking the examinations
for a civil service degree.[9] When a pagoda of Yihuang County in Fuzhou collapsed in 1210
during the Song Dynasty, all the local inhabitants believed that the unfortunate event was
directly correlated with the recent failure of many exam candidates in the prefectural
examinations for official degrees, the prerequisite for appointment in civil service.[10] The pagoda
was rebuilt in 1223 and had a list inscribed on it of the recently successful examination
candidates, in hopes that it would reverse the trend and win the county supernatural, cosmic
favor.[10]

[edit] Construction Materials

[edit] Wood
The 40-metre-tall (130 ft) Songyue Pagoda of 523 AD, the oldest existent stone pagoda in China.

From the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Southern and Northern Dynasties (~25-589) pagodas were
mostly built of wood, as were other ancient Chinese structures. Wooden pagodas are resistant to
earthquakes but they can also burn down really easily and get infested by insects or attacked by
flies and kill the art or rot.

Examples of wooden pagodas:

 White Horse Pagoda at White Horse Temple, Luoyang. China's first pagoda.
 Futuci Pagoda in Xuzhou, built in the Three Kingdoms period (~220-265).
 Many of the pagodas in Stories About Buddhist Temples in Luoyang, a Northern Wei text,
were wooden.

The literature of subsequent eras also provides evidence of the domination of wooden pagoda
construction in this period. The famous Tang Dynasty poet, Du Mu, once wrote:

480 Buddhist temples of the Southern Dynasties,

uncountable towers and pagodas stand in the misty rain.

The oldest extant fully-wooden pagoda standing in China today is the Pagoda of Fugong Temple
in Ying County, Shanxi Province, built in the 11th century during the Song Dynasty/Liao
Dynasty (refer to Architecture section in Song Dynasty).

[edit] Transition to brick and stone

The brick-constructed Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, built by 652 and rebuilt in 704, during the
Tang Dynasty.

During the Northern Wei and Sui dynasties (386-618) experiments began with the construction
of brick and stone pagodas. Even at the end of the Sui, however, wood was still the most
common material. For example, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty (reigned 581-604) once issued
a decree for all counties and prefectures to build pagodas to a set of standard designs, however
since they were all built of wood none have survived. Only the Songyue Pagoda has survived, a
circular-based pagoda built out of stone in 523 AD.

[edit] Brick

The earliest extant brick pagoda is the 40-metre-tall Songyue Pagoda in Dengfeng Country,
Henan.[11] This curved, circle-based pagoda was built in 523 during the Northern Wei Dynasty,
and has survived for 15 centuries.[11] Much like the later pagodas found during the following
Tang Dynasty, this temple featured tiers of eaves encircling its frame, as well as a spire crowing
the top. Its walls are 2.5 m thick, with a ground floor diameter of 10.6 m. Another early brick
pagoda is the Sui Dynasty Guoqing Pagoda built in 597.

[edit] Stone

The earliest large-scale stone pagoda is a Four Gates Pagoda at Licheng, Shandong, built in 611
during the Sui Dynasty. Like the Songyue Pagoda, it also features a spire at its top, and is built in
the pavilion style.

[edit] Brick and stone

The Iron Pagoda of Kaifeng, built in 1049 AD during the Song Dynasty

One of the earliest brick and stone pagodas was a three-storey construction built in the (first) Jin
Dynasty (265-420), by Wang Jun of Xiangyang. However, it is now destroyed.

Brick and stone went on to dominate Tang, Song, Liao and Jin Dynasty pagoda construction. An
example of such would be the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda (652 AD), built during the early Tang
Dynasty. The Porcelain Pagoda of Nanjing has been one of the most famous brick and stone
pagoda in China throughout history.

[edit] De-emphasis over time

Pagodas, in keeping with the tradition of the White Horse Temple, were generally placed in the
center of temples until the Sui and Tang dynasties. During the Tang, the importance of the main
hall was elevated and the pagoda was moved beside the hall, or out of the temple compound
altogether. In the early Tang, Dàoxuān wrote a Standard Design for Buddhist Temple
Construction in which the main hall replaced the pagoda as the center of the temple.

The design of temples was also influenced by the use of traditional Chinese residences as
shrines, after they were philanthropically donated by the wealthy or the pious. In such pre-
configured spaces, building a central pagoda might not have been either desirable or possible.
Jade Buddha Temple in Shanghai follows the Song Dynasty multi-courtyard design, and does not
feature a pagoda. The main hall is at the center.

In the Song Dynasty (960-1279), the Chan (Zen) sect developed a new 'seven part structure' for
temples. The seven parts - the Buddha hall, dharma hall, monks' quarters, depository, gate, pure
land hall and toilet facilities - completely exclude pagodas, and can be seen to represent the final
triumph of the traditional Chinese palace/courtyard system over the original central-pagoda
tradition established 1000 years earlier by the White Horse Temple in 67. Although they were
built outside of the main temple itself, large pagodas in the tradition of the past were still built.
This includes the two Ming Dynasty pagodas of Famen Temple and the Chongwen Pagoda in
Jingyang of Shaanxi Province.

A prominent, later example of converting a palace to a temple is Beijing's Yonghe Temple,

which was the residence of Yongzheng Emperor before he ascended the throne. It was donated
for use as a lamasery after his death in 1735.

[edit] Styles of eras

[edit] Han Dynasty

Examples of Han Dynasty era tower architecture predating Buddhist influence and the full-
fledged Chinese pagoda can be seen in the four pictures below. Michael Loewe writes that
during the Han Dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD) period, multi-storied towers were erected for
religious purposes, as astronomical observatories, as watchtowers, or as ornate buildings that
were believed to attract the favor of spirits, deities, and immortals.[12]

Ancient Chinese model of

two residential towers, Among a large set of
made of earthenware Side view of a Han A Western-Han model architectural models,
during the Han Dynasty, pottery tower model of a watchtower with three Eastern Han
2nd century BC to 2nd with a mid-floor human figures on its Dynasty watchtowers
century AD balcony and a balconies (including stand in the rear of this
courtyard gatehouse crossbowmen) and a display
flanked by smaller gatehouse and
towers; the dougong courtyard on the first
support brackets are floor
clearly visible.

[edit] Sui and Tang

Pagodas built during the Sui and Tang Dynasty usually had a square base, with a few exceptions
such as the Daqin Pagoda:

Four Gates Pagoda, The Three Pagodas, 9th

built in 611. The Daqin Pagoda, The Small Wild Goose and 10th centuries.
built in 640. Pagoda, built in 709.

[edit] Song, Liao, Jin, Yuan

Pagodas of the Five Dynasties, Northern and Southern Song, Liao, Jin, and Yuan Dynasties
incorporated many new styles, with a greater emphasis on hexagonal and octagonal bases for
pagodas:

The Huqiu Tower, Longhua Pagoda, built in Pagoda of Fogong The Liaodi Pagoda,
built in 961. 977. Temple, built in 1056. built in 1055
Pizhi Pagoda, built Pagoda of Tianning The Chengling Pagoda, Pagoda of Bailin
by 1063. Temple in Beijing, 1120. built in 1189. Temple, built by 1330.

[edit] Ming and Qing

Pagodas in the Ming and Qing Dynasties generally inherited the styles of previous eras, although
there were some minor variations:

Zhenjue Temple, built The Sarira Stupa of

in 1473. The Pagoda of Cishou The Fragrant Hills
Tayuan Temple, built in
Temple, built in 1576. Pagoda, built in 1780.
1582