Sichuan · Leshan
Carved straight out of a red sandstone cliff where three rivers meet, the Leshan Giant Buddha is 71 metres tall — the largest stone Buddha on Earth — and it has been gazing calmly over the water for more than 1,200 years. Work began in 713 AD, in the Tang dynasty, and took some ninety years to finish; the serene Maitreya figure still watches over the confluence of the Min, Dadu and Qingyi rivers, facing sacred Mount Emei across the water. Look closely and the engineering is as astonishing as the scale: a hidden network of drainage channels woven through the hair, collar and ears has kept rainwater from eating away the stone for over a millennium. Spring and autumn bring the clearest skies and mildest weather, and the wooded hillsides around the statue turn golden in late autumn.
Tips: Do it twice, from two angles: first take the short river cruise for the full frontal view — the only way to grasp the statue’s true scale — then walk the cliffside path and descend the steep Nine Bends Plank Road to stand at the feet, where each toenail is big enough for a person to sit on. Arrive before 8:00 AM to beat the queues, and pair the visit with Lingyun Temple above the statue and a bowl of Leshan’s spicy bowl-bowl chicken in the old town afterwards.
Photo: 王计 / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.5)