Thousand Buddha Cliff in Lhasa.

Thousand Buddha Cliff is a small tourist attraction in Lhasa, located on the cliff on the west side of Yaowang Mountain, southwest of the Potala Palace. The cliff is carved with thousands of colorful and large and small Buddha statues, so it is called "Thousand Buddha Cliff". This place is located on the Linkhkor circumambulation path and is an important Buddhist pilgrimage site for the people of Lhasa, but few tourists come here.
According to legend, the earliest stone Buddha statues here were created during the reign of Songtsen Gampo in the 7th century. According to the Records of Tibetan Kings and Ministers written by the Fifth Dalai Lama, one day Songtsen Gampo came to the Red Mountain and saw the phantom of the Six-Syllable Mantra naturally appear from the mountain. He immediately bathed and prayed silently. Afterwards, he saw statues of Avalokitesvara, Tara, Hayagriva and others in the light emitted by the Six-Syllable Mantra. So he asked people to carve images of Buddha, Bodhisattva and the "Six-Syllable Mantra" on the rocks according to what appeared naturally. Among the Tibetans in Lhasa, if a family member passes away but they cannot afford a thangka Buddha statue, they will buy some paint and paint the cliff-carved Buddha statue again, which can have the same merit as buying a thangka Buddha statue. This custom still continues today.

Post by AinoRinne | Nov 20, 2024