Ten thousand Buddhas monastery

Built in the mid-20th century on a hill overlooking the entire Sa Dien area, northeast of the New Territories, Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery attracts tourists by its unique architectural features, symbolizing Chinese culture. Flowers and especially the way to the main hall, you will admire thousands of statues sculpted with many different shapes, sizes and expressions.

The monastery was built in 1951 by monk Nguyet Khai from Mainland China, who came to Hong Kong to propagate Buddhism in 1933. In the early days, the monastery was built entirely "by hand" with All raw materials are transported from the foothills. By 1957, the monastery was completed with funds contributed from people in the area; Buddha statues in turn were placed everywhere in the grounds of the monastery after that and to this day there are more than 10,000 statues with many different shapes and sizes. Monk Nguyet Khe died in 1965, eight years after the monastery first opened, and his grandsons took over and maintained the monastery in the following years. The difference of the monastery from other temples is that there are no monks living here, the complex is managed and maintained by parishioners in the area with strong faith in the Buddha. Since opening to welcome visitors, the monastery has undergone 4 restorations and renovations and is listed as a national historical work.

On the hillside with a panoramic view of Sa Dien area, visitors have to climb 430 steps to reach the main hall, visitors will easily recognize thousands of statues of Arhats, expressing their compassion. Enlightenment of the Buddhadharma, made by artisans from Yunnan, Guangdong, China, modeled after the statues at a famous temple in Kunming, the hometown of monk Nguyet Khai. After about 25 minutes on the slope with three steps, you will come to the main hall of the monastery decorated in red tones and with dragon motifs as the main theme; Inside the temple are delicate Buddha statues with various postures sitting on the wall. The body of monk Nguyet Khai is preserved with precious diamonds and placed in the center of the main hall for visitors to admire. You will have the opportunity to admire countless Buddha statues with different sizes, from small hands to giant Buddha statues sitting on green scales. Each statue is dressed in gorgeous colorful costumes, different hairstyles. Or you will experience the contemplation of the great statues in pure zazen posture.

Opposite the main hall is the 9-story tower, the symbol of Hong Kong that you will easily find on 100 dollar bills. Visitors can choose to climb to the 9th floor of the tower to admire the panoramic view of Sa Dien and New Territories with modern skyscrapers. The monastery has been chosen as the setting for many famous movies and television series such as Vanishing Son or Infernal Affairs. This place is a famous pilgrimage site and also a place where you can check-in with beautiful photo angles.

The monastery is open daily from 0900 AM to 0500 PM, you can enjoy special vegetarian dishes at the vegetarian restaurant next to the monastery, open for service from 1030 AM to 0400 PM (closed every Thursday). However, depending on weather conditions, the monastery may close earlier for safety reasons.