Mati Temple Grottoes in the Cliff – China
The main entrance of Mati Temple
Mati (马蹄) Temple, also known as Horse Hoof Temple, is located deep in the heart of Gansu (甘肃) province in northwestern China. It is a magnificent Buddhist temple complex consisting of a large group of caves, divided into seven smaller groups, that stretches up to 30 kilometres (18.64 miles) long. Mati Temple was first built in the Jin (晋) Dynasty, with the first cave dug about 1,600 years ago by a man named Guo and his disciples. It was originally a school and later it was converted to a temple when the Buddha statues were made.
The unique name of the temple derives from a legend that a Long Ma (Chinese Pegasus) descended from the heavens and left a hoof print on the place where the temple was established. The legendary hoof print is preserved and visible up to this day in the Mati Hall in Puguang (普光) Temple. Mati Temple, together with Mogao (莫高) Grottoes in Dunhuang (敦煌) and Yulin (榆林) Grottoes in Anxi (安西), is regarded as one of the Three Artistic Treasured Grottoes of Hexi Buddha Holy Land.
The legendary horse hoof print at Mati Temple
Thirty-Three Heavens Grottoes
The entire Mati Temple is divided into different attractions such as the South Temple, North Temple, Golden Pagoda Temple, Pagoda Forest, and Thousand-Buddha Temple. The main temple of the whole complex is the Thirty-Three Heavens Grottoes. It is a pagoda-shaped temple that climbs up over 60 metres (197 feet) of a sheer cliff face, consisting of seven floors that houses 21 grottoes in total. The entire interior of the cliff face consists of elaborate tunnel mazes, steps and caves, which house many Buddha statues that were carved over hundreds of years ago. On the top floor of the grottoes, there is a Tibetan altar with a statue of Green Tara as its main image of worship.
According to the legend, a monk saw a light emitting from the top of the cliff where the Thirty-Three Heavens Grottoes are located. He risked his life by climbing the cliff and discovered the source of the light: a three-inch malachite Green Tara statue. Then, he commissioned a one-metre-tall Green Tara statue in the image of the statue he found and inserted the malachite Green Tara statue into it. After that incident, Green Tara became the main deity of worship at Mati Temple.
Green Tara altar at the top floor of Thirty-Three Heavens Grottoes
The grotto adjacent to the Green Tara altar houses a White Tara statue. White Tara is known as the Child-giving Bodhisattva by the locals. According to local custom, couples who wish to have their own children must come to pray to this statue.
The Standing Buddha Hall
The Standing Buddha Hall is also known as the Tibetan Buddhist Hall. It is the largest single grotto not only in Mati Temple, but in the whole of China. This hall was excavated during the Northern Wei Dynasty and is composed of an antechamber, a prayer hall and a corridor. The 48 statues in this hall were sculpted in the Yuan Dynasty. There is a special well on the right side of the corridor which is three metres deep and it produces water known as “the eight virtue water”. It was said that whoever drank the water would have a healthy body and smooth life.
Golden Pagoda Temple
Sculptures in the Golden Pagoda Temple
The Golden Pagoda Temple is located in the southeast of the Thirty-Three Heavens Grottoes. It is 60 meters (197 feet) from the ground and only has two grottoes in it. However, it contains the best relics and cultural artefacts, including 200 precious statues and sculptures carved in the Northern Liang (北凉), Northern Wei (北魏), Sui (隋), Tang (唐), and Xi Xia (西夏) dynasties and others. Among the sculptures, the apsaras sculptures in this temple are one-of-a-kind and known as the Eastern Essence of Apsaras with their lifelike postures and expressions.
Thousand-Buddha Grottoes
The Thousand-Buddha Grottoes are smaller and newer. They were constructed during the Yuan Dynasty in 1271–1368. These grottoes are carved out of a cliff face and consist of only two floors. There is a large number of shrines in grottoes, with a staggering number of 500 shrines.
Pagoda Forest
There are dozens of pagodas in different shapes and sizes, densely carved into the cliff wall and they form a holy forest. Most of them were built in the Yuan (元) Dynasty and many of them still possess their bright colours and shapes even though they were built a long time ago. The carving techniques applied in these pagodas are rarely found in the other grottoes in China, but it resembles the techniques used in Wuge Grottoes in Cambodia.
King Gesar’s Palace
Statue of King Gesar and his consort in King Gesar’s palace
There is a single grotto in Mati Temple that is dedicated to King Gesar, a famed ancient ruler who vanquished all evil from the land. The grotto contains statues of King Gesar and his 36 generals on horses and bearing weapons, ready to fight off any impending evil forces. The ancient story of King Gesar can be found in the grotto.
How to Get to Mati Temple
Address: Sunan (肃南), Zhangye (张掖), Gansu (甘肅), China
Mati Temple is located in Sunan, which is 65 kilometres (40.39 miles) away from Zhangye City. It is easy to get there by bus or taxi.
By Bus:
- There are buses going to Mati Temple directly from Zhangye South bus station (张掖汽车南站)
- Daily, the first bus will depart to Mati Temple at 7:30 a.m. and the last bus will depart from Mati Temple at 7:30 p.m.
- The bus fare is RMB15 (RM9.14) per person.
By Taxi: RMB300 (RM182.82) for a day trip
Ticket Price: RMB35 (RM21.33) for Mati Temple and Thousand-Buddha Grottoes
Tips for Visiting Mati Temple
- Mati Temple can be visited in all seasons. However, if you are fond of colourful grassland, autumn will be the best time as the grassland will turn into red and yellow in colour
- Sunscreen is important.
- Sturdy and comfortable shoes are recommended.
- As there is no light in the grottoes, an electric torch can be quite handy.
- It is best to hire a driver to travel at the Mati Temple grounds as the distance between the temples can be as far as 13 kilometres (8.08 miles) apart.
Green Tara altar on the top floor at Thirty-Three Heavens Grottoes
Buddha Maitreya Thangka in the Thirty-Three Heavens Grottoes
Buddha Statue next to the entrance of the Thirty-Three Heavens Grottoes
Stupa sculptures at the Mati Temple
Tibetan Stupas at the Mati Temple complex
The main entrance of the Thousand-Buddha Grottoes
The Thousand-Buddha Grottoes
One of the cliff buildings at the Thousand-Buddha Grottoes
Statues of King Gesar’s entourage in King Gesar’s Palace
Statues of King Gesar’s entourage in King Gesar’s Palace
Mati Hall which houses the legendary horse hoof print
Sources:
- Mati Temple Grottoes, Top China Travel, https://www.topchinatravel.com/china-attractions/mati-temple-grottoes.htm (accessed: 13 May 2019)
- Matisi Temple – Grottoes in the Cliff, China Discovery, https://www.chinadiscovery.com/gansu/zhangye/matisi-temple.html (accessed: 13 May 2019)
- Wu, Annie, Shengrong Temple/Mati Temple Grotto, 17 July 2018, https://www.chinahighlights.com/zhangye/attraction/shengrong-temple.htm (accessed: 13 May 2018)
For more interesting information:
- 1,267 year old stunning Todai-ji Temple of Japan
- 900 Years Old Dafo Temple of the Grand Reclining Buddha in China
- The Gigantic Maitreya Buddha of Xumishan Grottoes, China
- Xiangshui (Perfume) Nunnery | 龙口南山香水庵
- Longkou Nanshan Giant Buddha | 龙口南山大佛
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Thank you Rinpoche for always sharing with us special holy places such as this Mati Temple. Not everyone has the opportunity to go overseas to visit, but this article has given us the chance to ‘visit’ the temple without having to be there physically.
Mati temple is very unique as it is carved out of a cliff face. It was not easy to build it but with faith and devotion to Buddhas, we have this beautiful heritage for us to continue to pay homage to the enlightened ones.
To some, Mati temple has a very high cultural and historical value but for a Buddhist, Mati temple is precious and invaluable.
Amazing place to visit…Mati Temple Grottoes which is one of the important Buddha grottoes in China. There is a legend behind this amazing grottoes set within the beautiful surroundings at the foothills of the Qilian Mountains deep in the heart of Gansu Province in north western China. Wow ….. the legend of Mati Temple was dated back to China’s Eastern Jin dynasty, from 317-420 AD and how it got its name. This Mati Temple boasts a wonderful Silk Road heritage and Buddhist Art along the cliff side till today. Amazing there are more than 30 grottoes in Mati Mountain alone with different shapes of the grottoes and many style of the Buddha sculptures found. Really interesting system of Buddhist cave temples in this area and has proven that Buddhist practitioners or Yogis have meditated in these caves and Buddhism has indeed comes this far. Looking at those beautiful pictures from strange peaks and fantastic grottos, experiencing the unique life-style and featured culture will also give us an enjoyable feeling.
Thank you Rinpoche for this wonderful sharing.
Amazing architecture of Mati Temple Grottoes. It’s fascinating that with little technology then, people are able to carve the huge Buddha statues, stupa and built the temples on the cliff. Hope that the China government will maintain this place and people can have opportunities to visit this holy place. Thank you Rinpoche for sharing these lovely pictures.
I find this temple has a very unique and unsual name ?. And has a very interesting history too. Mati (马蹄) Temple, also known as Horse Hoof Temple, is located deep in the heart of Gansu (甘肃) province in northwestern China. According to the legend, a monk saw a light emitting from the top of the cliff where the Thirty-Three Heavens Grottoes are located. He risked his life by climbing the cliff and discovered the source of the light: a three-inch malachite Green Tara statue. The statues in this temple are very colorful and beautiful. Really love to visit if there is a chance. Thank you very much Rinpoche and blog team for sharing this beautiful pictures of this grottoes.?????