Five-Pagoda Temple

Five Pagoda Temple in Hohhot, also called Jingangzuo Sheli Baota, is a unique temple in China as it features classic Indian style architecture. Located in Hohhot City, it was originally a building of the temple constructed during 1727-1732. Now the temple has disappeared, but the pagoda has remained. The temple is 16 meters (52ft) high and is covered with glazed bricks.

Temple of the Five Pagodas is a Buddhist temple located in the older part of the city in the vicinity of Qingcheng Park.  It is not actually a temple but the pagoda of the no-longer-standing Cideng Temple. The remaining pagoda was first built in 1732 and has since been restored.  The distinctive five pagodas surmount contains a temple with 1563 images of Buddha carved into its walls each differing slightly to the other. Inside is a rare Mongolian cosmological map carved into a large stone which illustrates the zodiac and positions of numerous stars.

The pagoda is 16 meters high (about 51 feet) and it is composed of three parts: the base, the seat and the top (five dagobas). The lower part of the seat is inlaid with inscriptions of Diamond Sutra written in Mongolian, Tibetan and Sanskrit. The upper part is niches holding gold-plated statues of Buddha. The body of the pagoda is glazed in greens and yellows.

 

Compared with other pagodas, Five-Pagoda Temple is unique in at least two aspects: its special structure, pagodas over pagoda, and the green and yellow colored glazes on the short eaves and tops of pagodas. Those make Five-Pagoda Temple quite special, a treasure of Hohhot City. And the government of Hohhot City plans to restore the sites in Five-Pagoda Temple. The projected will be finished in July according to the schedule.
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