Wanfotang, Kongshui Cave Stone Carvings and Pagodas are a group of Buddhist cultural relics located in Wanfotang Village, Hebei Town, Fangshan District, Beijing, People's Republic of China. The site consists of Wanfotang, built during the Tang dynasty; the Kongshui Cave stone carvings, excavated from the Sui and Tang dynasties to the Jin dynasty; a Liao dynasty flower pagoda; and a Yuan dynasty dense-eaved pagoda. Kongshui Cave is a natural karst cave in the local area. During the Tang dynasty, Zhu Xicai, military governor of the Pinglu Circuit, funded the construction of a temple above the entrance to Kongshui Cave, which became the original temple to which Wanfotang belonged. The temple was later repeatedly destroyed by war and rebuilt several times. During this period, two Buddhist pagodas were successively built around Wanfotang. During the Zhengde reign of the Ming dynasty, the Tang-dynasty white marble reliefs on the cliff behind Wanfotang were moved into Wanfotang. In 1979, Wanfotang and Kongshui Cave were listed as Beijing municipal cultural relics protection units. In 2001, “Wanfotang, Kongshui Cave Stone Carvings and Pagodas” was listed as a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National LevelThe *Shui Jing Zhu* (Commentary on the Waterways Classic), Volume 12, "Holy Water," states: "The Holy Water originates in Shanggu... The water flows from the Holy Water Valley in the southwest of the prefecture, southeast past the eastern end of Dafang Ridge. At the foot of the mountain is a stone cave, opening to the northeast, about four or five zhang high and wide. Entering the cave, it becomes even deeper and higher, with water inside. Elders say that long ago, a monk named Huimi, who was fond of secluded things, once searched for it by firelight. He entered the cave more than three li away by the water. The cave split into two, one much smaller, exiting to the northwest, its destination unknown; the other exiting to the southwest, requiring five or six days to return, its depth also unfathomable. The water is cold in summer and warm in winter. In spring and autumn, white fish emerge from the cave, returning after several days. People catch and eat them, finding them a delicious and common delicacy, likely the same kind of fish found in the Bing Cave.".
History The earliest record of Kongshui Cave appears in the Commentary on the Water Classic . Related records are also corroborated by the Suizhoujun Tujing of the Sui dynasty, and Buddhist niches excavated during the Sui dynasty have also been found inside Kongshui Cave.
During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, from 713 to 755, Zhu Xicai, military governor of the Pinglu Circuit, funded the construction of a temple around Kongshui Cave. The specific construction work was overseen by a Buddhist nun known as Xilaoren. The temple was originally named Longquan Temple. Later, during the Dali era of Emperor Daizong of Tang, it was renamed Longquan Dali Chan Temple. The temple name was bestowed by Emperor Daizong after Zhu Xicai submitted a request to the throneA Buddhist hall was built on the platform above the exit of Kongshui Cave, and this hall became Wanfotang.
At the end of the Liao dynasty, the temple was destroyed in warfare. In the early Jin dynasty, Chan Master Haihui restored the temple. However, at the end of the Jin dynasty, it was destroyed by the Mongol army, and reconstruction was completed between the second and seventh years of Ögedei Khan’s reign. During the Dade era of the Yuan dynasty, Longquan Chan Temple was again repaired.
In the early Ming dynasty, Longquan Chan Temple was once more destroyed by war. During the Yongle reign, the mountainous area surrounding Longquan Chan Temple was granted as a fief to Zhang Fu, Duke of Huguo. Zhang Fu’s younger brother Zhang Suo arranged for his granddaughter Wuxing to serve as abbess of Longquan Chan Temple, after which Wuxing restored the temple During the Zhengde reign of the Ming dynasty, Longquan Chan Temple was also repaired and a commemorative stele was left behind . During this restoration, the monks removed the heavily damaged relief known as the Manjushri and Samantabhadra Assembly of Ten Thousand Bodhisattvas, which had originally been embedded in the cliff, and placed it inside Wanfotang .
The last repair record found in historical materials was completed in the seventeenth year of the Wanli reign of the Ming dynasty, namely 1589 .After the Qing dynasty, most of the buildings in the temple were converted into a Guandi Temple, but were later abandoned .
In 1960, the Fangshan Coal Mine of the Beijing Mining Bureau moved its mining office next to Wanfotang. From then on, Wanfotang was incorporated into the office and factory area of the Fangshan Coal Mine .In 1982, because the spring water in Kongshui Cave had become silted up, workers from the Fangshan Coal Mine entered the cave to clear the silt. During the clearing work, they discovered seven Tang dynasty bronze “golden dragons” of varying lengths, the shortest measuring centimeters and the longest centimeters .
Structure Wanfotang, Kongshui Cave Stone Carvings and Pagodas are located in Wanfotang Village, Hebei Town, Fangshan District, Beijing. The site is divided into four parts: Wanfotang, Kongshui Cave, the Liao dynasty flower pagoda, and the Yuan dynasty multi-eaved pagoda.
Wanfotang Wanfotang was built on a brick and stone platform in front of Kongshui Cave, constructed against the mountain slope. It is three bays wide and has a beamless xieshan-style roof covered with grey tubular tiles, with large ridge ornaments and beast-shaped decorations. A doorway is opened in the center of the front facade, while the two side bays each have one window. The doors and windows are framed with white marble arches, carved with reliefs of birds and flowers. Above the lintel is an embedded stone plaque inscribed in regular script with the words “Dali Ancient Site, Wanfotang Longquan Precious Hall.” Beside it is the inscription “Rebuilt on an auspicious spring day in the jichou year of the Wanli reign of the Great Ming.” The plaque is surrounded by lotus reliefs. Both windows are semicircular stone-arched windows, and their shutters are carved from stone with openwork net patterns.On the other three walls inside Wanfotang is an embedded stone relief titled Manjushri and Samantabhadra Assembly of Ten Thousand Bodhisattvas. The relief is 23.8 meters long and 2.47 meters high, and is composed of 31 rectangular white marble relief panels. At the center of the relief is a statue of Shakyamuni raising his hand to preach. He has snail-shell curls, a bare chest, and a wide robe with large sleeves. His right hand is raised flat with the palm extended, while his left hand rests on his leg. His legs hang downward, his feet are bare, and two yakshas and a mani jewel are placed below his feet.On both sides are protective images of Manjushri and Samantabhadra. Both figures wear jeweled crowns and are draped with necklaces and flowing ribbons. They are surrounded by donor bodhisattvas, heavenly kings, divine beings, and other figures. Above the image of Shakyamuni is a carved image of a god of the cakravartin, with wings on the back, a nude body, necklaces, the sun and moon held in the hands, and two dragon women under the feet.[a] Outside the main relief, there are also carvings of flying apsaras scattering flowers, musicians performing, and other scenes.In addition, images of a thousand Buddhas are carved on the left, right, and upper sides. On the southern gable wall is an inscription of a vow text, although the writing is incomplete. Among the surviving characters is an incised inscription dated “the eighth day of the third month of the fifth year of Dali.” Some adjacent stone carvings do not connect with one another in terms of their patterns. Above the stone reliefs, 19 surviving ink inscriptions can still be seen. The text indicates that they were used to mark positions, each marked on different white marble blocks. From this, it can be roughly inferred that these stone carvings were not originally connected, but were separately arranged on three gable walls. Their original arrangement, however, can no longer be determined
Kongshui Cave Kongshui Cave is located directly below Wanfotang and is a natural karst cave. Stone bricks were laid at the entrance of the cave. These bricks are carved with aquatic beasts, and there is a swimming dragon on each side. Spring water flows out from directly below the entrance. Traces of an original stone gate remain around the stone bricks, but only two stone beams at the top survive today.
After entering the cave, stone images and carved Buddhist scriptures from the Sui, Tang, and Jin dynasties can be seen on the stone walls. The images are located above the carved scriptures and consist of two niches, one on the left and one on the right. The left niche is an arched niche containing one Buddha and two bodhisattvas. On both sides of the niche are two images of Maheshvara riding bulls. The niche is 1.05 meters high and 0.65 meters wide at the base. On both sides of the niche are octagonal shuzhu columns, an ancient architectural term. The middle sections of the columns are decorated with reliefs of upturned and downturned lotus petals. The Buddha is seated, with an elongated oval face, a high ushnisha, and legs crossed in the lotus posture. Beside the Buddha are two standing figures, each standing on a lotus base and wearing wide robes with large sleeves.
Inside the right niche is a bodhisattva seated in the heroic cross-legged posture. The figure wears a floral crown, with an arched circular halo behind the head carved with flame patterns. The left arm hangs down, while the right hand rests on the left knee. The right elbow bends upward, and the fingers are damaged. The left lower leg is folded up, while the right leg hangs naturally downward.
Below the two niches, the rock wall is recessed and carved with Buddhist scriptures. The cliff-carved scriptures dated to the tenth year of the Daye reign of the Sui dynasty, namely 614, cover a cliff surface approximately 300 to 400 centimeters wide, although the height is unknown. The texts are the “Chapter on Longevity” from the Mahaparinirvana Sutra and the “Universal Gate Chapter of Avalokitesvara” from the Lotus Sutra. There are 49 lines of regular script, with about 20 characters distinguishable in each line. When the scriptures were discovered in 1979, the lower third of the text was submerged in the spring water of Kongshui Cave.
To the right of the Sui dynasty inscription is an inscription carved in the twentieth year of the Dading reign of the Jin dynasty, namely 1180. It is written in regular script, though some parts are missing. The legible characters include “Beiling beichuikou Dafang ancient monastery, Golden Buddha Hall ... Dading gengzi twentieth year” and “Minister of Personnel, imperial son-in-law commandant Wulin ... inscription by son-in-law Caohe ... Xiwanyan ... Geda, attendant inscription.” Due to years of water erosion, the carvings have become somewhat blurred.
Flower Pagoda A Liao dynasty flower pagoda stands halfway up the mountain northwest of Wanfotang. It is the only flower pagoda in Beijing apart from Zhengang Pagoda. The pagoda faces south and is 20 meters high, with an octagonal plan. The lower part of the pagoda body is a plain base, supporting a Sumeru pedestal. The lower molding of the Sumeru pedestal is octagonal. At the center of each of the eight sides is a carved lotus-leaf pier, with one pot-shaped niche on each side, decorated inside with lion heads.