Songshan Shaolin Scenic Area (Dengfeng)
The cradle of Chan (Zen) Buddhism: the temple was founded in 495 in the Northern Wei dynasty, where Bodhidharma faced a wall in meditation for nine years and founded the Chan school; the saying "all kung fu under heaven comes from Shaolin" has made Shaolin kung fu a calling card of Chinese culture
Visitor info
- Opening hours
- 08:00-17:00
- Ticket
- CNY 80
Price is indicative — final quote on inquiry.
The ancestral home of Chan (Zen) Buddhism, the temple was founded in 495 in the Northern Wei dynasty, where Bodhidharma faced a wall in meditation for nine years and founded the Chan school; the saying "all kung fu under heaven comes from Shaolin" has made Shaolin kung fu a calling card of Chinese culture. The halls of the main monastery complex (Changzhu Yuan) unfold along a central axis; the worn foot pits in the Thousand Buddha Hall are traces left by generations of warrior monks practicing kung fu. The Pagoda Forest holds 248 pagodas standing since the Tang dynasty and is the largest extant pagoda forest in China—one pagoda, one monk, one story. For the free performance sessions at the martial arts hall you often need to arrive early to secure a spot; the mass morning drills of 30,000 students from martial arts schools such as Tagou make a spectacular sight. In 2010 it was inscribed on the World Cultural Heritage list as part of the "Center of Heaven and Earth" historic building complex.
Getting there: Coach from Zhengzhou Station/Zhengzhou East Station approx. 1.5h, or self-drive (90 km)
Photos
More in Zhengzhou
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