The Hanging Monastery is located in the north of Shanxi province, about 65 kilometers from the old capital city of Datong (Photo by Aron Deepankar/For chinadaily.com.cn)
Everything was proceeding perfectly as planned. We were in perfect company — people from all parts of world in a group filled with fun and laughter. I was moving from one pavilion of the temple to another on the staircase. Suddenly, it hit me, giving me goose bumps as an uncanny feeling pervaded my being.
For we were climbing down a ladder suspended in the air, 50 meters above the ground on a steep mountain cliff, with one step fastened to another with iron plates and bolts. What if the bolts gave way or if there was a stampede, I wondered.
My photographer friend, Isidoro Ramirez Cebador, a well-built, sturdy-looking Spanish gentleman, later confided that he had been scared also, but he came away smiling, like all of us. It's not a surprise then that the Hanging Monastery on Hengshan Mountain, called Xuankong Si in Chinese (si meaning temple), was listed by Times magazine in 2010 as one of the "Top 10 Precarious Buildings".
Located in the north of Shanxi province, about 65 kilometers from the old capital city of Datong, the monastery has been clinging to the cliff for an incredible 1,500 years, and has borne witness to the flourishing trade between the Mongols, Manchus and Chinese, blending the influences of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism in its 80-odd statues which cover all three belief systems to cater to the spiritual needs of all the traders, military personnel and general public passing by.
The monastery has pavilions hanging from the steep cliff, joined with narrow ladders and corridors. Originally built in the Northern Wei dynasty (AD 386-534), it has survived the vicissitudes of time and nature, although parts have been rebuilt over time. One local belief is that it was built to tame the river that flows 50 meters below so no floods would come, a reason that is said to also be behind the building of the Leshan Giant Buddha in Sichuan province.
The Hanging Monastery is an engineering marvel. When you look at it, you are deceived into believing that the vertical beams that support it are the ones on which the temple rests.
The main load is actually carried by horizontal and lateral beams that were drilled into the seemingly impregnable mountain cliff in an era that had neither machines to drill with nor dynamite to blast with. Li Jing, our knowledgeable tour guide, told us that to begin with, the builders hammered ladders into the cliff and after the construction was complete, the ladders were removed.
She added that the Buddhist statues inside are unique, as they are made of silk, while most others are carved from stone.
Our prayers were answered when, after the previous day of constant rainfall, the sun, although subdued, made an appearance, however brief, penetrating the cover of clouds and making the Hanging Monastery shine on the barren cliff.
Two monks dressed in the typical gray robes greeted us at the base of the mountain as we descended and an almost spontaneous chanting of the Tibetan Buddhists, "'Om mani padme hum" started echoing through the valley. As some of our group took photographs, others joined in chanting the mantra.
It was a perfect ode to the Hanging Monastery!
