Nanshan Buddhism Center

Nanshan is the largest Asian center of Buddhism. Its territory is a huge park in the form of a temple complex with amazing landscapes of 50 square kilometers. This place is a significant attraction of Hainan, which is very popular with tourists and Buddhist pilgrims.

A landscape park and a Buddhist temple appeared here relatively recently - in 1999, and six years later on an artificial island connected to the shore by a thin isthmus, the temple of Guanyin - the temple of the Goddess of Mercy - was erected. Above the temple is a 108-meter statue of the goddess, much higher than even the famous American Statue of Liberty in New York. Nanshan Buddhism Center is a truly sacred place that embodies the highest harmony of Man with Nature and Society. This center is closely connected with the philosophical teaching of feng shui, the standard of which it is. This Taoist practice, so fashionable in the Western world, has been known on Chinese soil for more than three millennia and is still actively used by residents of the country to decorate residential and office space. In the Buddhist center of Hainan, a variety of celebrations and rituals associated with this amazing culture are constantly held, which attracts many supporters of religion and ordinary tourists from around the world. The center of Hainan Buddhism is among the picturesque landscapes, against which you can meditate in silence to the sounds of Buddhist mantras.

When entering the park area of the center, visitors are immediately attracted by the “heavenly gates of non-duality”, erected in the style of the Northern and Southern dynasties.

Next, you should visit the “Merciful Liberation Park”, which is an area that is divided by a lake into 2 banks. It is built in the style of classical Chinese gardens, providing for the presence of a reservoir, bridge, arbor, inscribed in an unusually beautiful landscape.

Of course, the main object of the tour is a temple with a majestic statue cast by hand, the golden goddess Guanyin, whose total value is almost 200 million yuan. It is made of pure gold weighing 140 kilograms and is decorated with large precious stones. The pedestal on which the statue is installed is made of white jade in the form of a lotus flower - a symbol of purity in Buddhist culture. Tourists really like to admire the calm and sweet face of the eight-handed goddess holding objects that symbolize wisdom, willpower, mercy and health.

The sculpture of the goddess Guanyin in Hainan is listed in the Guinness Book and is considered the greatest Buddhist shrine, since it contains particles of the ashes of Buddha Shakyi-Muni, the founder of religion, who lived in this world two and a half thousand years ago.

"Valley of longevity" is a favorite place of elderly people. Its main attractions are the rock hieroglyph of longevity and the family of turtles in the square, considered a symbol of happy old age. There is also a gallery with photos of the oldest residents of Hainan, who, thanks to good ecology, are more here than in many other countries of the world.

In the Park of Longevity all conditions for full relaxation are created. For this, in particular, there is a magnificent recreation and lunch area. At the top of a small hilly clearing, where various trees grow, there are tablets with the names of those who planted them. It is nice to walk here, admiring nature.

You can move around the territory on small electric cars, it costs about 20 yuan.