Chinese Pagoda - History

History

The pagoda is evolved from the stupa from the Indian subcontinent, a tomb-like structure where sacred relics could be kept safe and venerated. The architectural structure of the stupa has spread across Asia, and the original dome-shaped structure of the stupa from India was gradually fused together with the design of ancient Chinese towers to form the shape of the Chinese pagoda.

The Chinese word for stupa, ta, is an abbreviated translation (from tapo) of the Sanskrit Stupa. The origins of the word Pagoda are obscure. In modern usage, the word Stupa and Pagoda refer to the same thing.

The Pagoda's original purpose was to house relics and sacred writings. This purpose was popularized due to the efforts of Buddhist missionaries, pilgrims, rulers, and ordinary devotees to seek out, distribute, and extol Buddhist relics.

The earliest base-structure type for Chinese pagodas were square-base and circular-base. By the 5th-10th centuries the Chinese began to build octagonal-base pagoda towers. The highest Chinese pagoda from the pre-modern age is the Liaodi Pagoda of Kaiyuan Monastery, Dingxian, Hebei province, completed in the year 1055 AD under Emperor Renzong of Song and standing at a total height of 84 m (275 ft). The pagoda was built of brick and stone and has the classic gradual tiered eaves marking each storey, and has a section of its walls partially open at one side, which allows one to view the interior of the pagoda, the inner column shaped as another pagoda inside, and the thickness of the pagoda's walls. Although it no longer stands, the tallest pre-modern pagoda in Chinese history was the 100-metre-tall wooden pagoda (330 ft) of Chang'an, built by Emperor Yang of Sui. The Liaodi Pagoda is the tallest pre-modern pagoda still standing, yet in April 2007 a new wooden pagoda at the Tianning Temple of Changzhou was opened to the public; this pagoda is now the tallest in China, standing at 154 m (505 ft).