Small Wild Goose Pagoda
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Called Jianfu Temple, a Small Wild Goose Pagoda, it is one of the two important landmarks of the ancient metropolis of the Tang Dynasty (the other is the Big Wild Goose Pagoda). Built in the Years of Jinglong reign (707-709 AD.),55 years after the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, This is the origin of the name of Small Wild Goose Pagoda. It is smaller than the latter. It was part of the well known Buddhist temple Xian fu and was renamed Jianfu in 609 AD. by Empress Wuzetian, the only empress in China's history.
Small Wild Goose Pagoda is a fifteen-storey multi-eave, square brick structure. Originally, it was 46 meters high but now only 43.3 meters, because its steeple was destroyed. It has a square pedestal and a huge first storey, whose sides measure 11.38 meters long each. Doors on the north and south sides of the first storey have frames built of black stone. Carved on the lintel are images of arhats and designs of grasses, their excellent workmanship reflects the artistic style of the early Tang Dynasty. The pagoda has fifteen pent roofs. Each storey is very low with small windows only on the south and north sides to let in light and air. The eaves are formed by designs in the shape of chevrons and fifteen tiers of overlapping bricks, each tier wider than the one below, thus making the eaves curve inward, a characteristic of multi-eave pagodas in the Tang Dynasty. The exterior of the pagoda tapers gradually from the bottom. From the first to the fifth storey it tapers very little, but from the sixth storey up, it reduces drastically, giving the pagoda a smooth curved contour. The tubular interior of the pagoda has wooden flooring and a winding flight of wooden steps leading to other storeys, but there is little space and it is rather dark inside the pagoda. Since people cannot look at the view from the top of the pagoda, it was not built for people to climb up.
In the 1,200 years history of its existence, there have even been many "magic healings" of the Pagoda. In 1487, there was an earthquake of 6 points on the Richter scale and a one-foot crack formed in the Pagoda from the top to the bottom. However, in 1521, 34 years after the quake, there came another one. The crack healed overnight, which amazed the local people. Therefore they began to call it the "Magic Healing". In September 1555, an official from the capital, named Wang He, stayed in the temple for a night on his way home. After he heard the story of the "Magic Healing" from a monk called Kan Guang who had personally witnessed the incident, out of disbelief, he engraved this story on the lintel of the Pagoda's north gate. However, when repair work started after 1949, it was found that the healing was not "magic", but "human". The early builders of the pagoda had made the foundation into the shape of a hemisphere in accordance with the geographic nature of Xi'an. The foundation therefore evenly divided the stress of the earthquakes. Thus, after enduring 70 quakes, the pagoda still stands as firm as when it was first established. Looking at this, we can only admire the marvelous workmanship of the ancient builders. In 1555, there was another earthquake in Huaxian County of this province. As a result, the top two storeys of the pagoda were destroyed and the present structure has only 13 storeys. In 1965, the Government embarked on a repair program on the Small Wild Goose Pagoda in the spirit of "returning the old to the original". The body of the pagoda was enforced with steel and concrete. Every brick, every piece of stone was checked or replaced. The stair- case of the pagoda was also rebuilt. And a lightening rod was fixed on top of the pagoda as well.
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