China Travel Forum

[micel]

I have recently been in Xi'an, and in the process of sorting the photos I took, a question arose. At the Da Ci'en Temple/The Big Goose Pagoda complex, there is a statue of the Buddhist monk, Xuanzang, in his traveling attire and walking stick, outside one of the gates.The question is, is this statue facing South?My concern is that I would like to annotate my photos from the top of the tower, taken from out each window. Since the "Silkroad" is to the West, I would imagine the Statue to be facing in that direction.I would really appreciate any help on this matter.Thank you in advance.

[jane]

the statue is facing south. I have been there for a few times, I remembered it was facing south; believe it or not, in Chinese culture on Position, one of the symbol of prominent status is to "Face the south", like the Forbidden City, the yamuns in old times, temples around the country, etc, almost all face south. I guess facing south can get more sunshine, accord with Fengshui culture.

[aynor]

It faces south.Geograhically, for most places in China, facing south means more sunlight.Historically, for centuries, invaders to China were from north, so people opened their doors to south.Later on, sitting north and facing south becomes a sign of the emperors and of high status.

[poik,]

If it faced west, we have the explanation, too, for somewhere (I am not sure where exactly) in West is the Buddhists' Elysium, it is also normal for the Buddha sculpture facing west.