Atlas Obscura · People & society

Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery: A Misnomer

Despite its name, the Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery in Hong Kong houses over 12,000 statues and is not a functioning monastery as no monks reside there.

The complex, built between 1948 and 1957, is managed by laypeople and comprises five temples, four pavilions, a verandah, and a nine-story pagoda across eight hectares.

It features numerous deity statues and the embalmed body of its founder, Yuet Kai, exhumed eight years after his burial.

The monastery now overlooks the urban area of Sha Tin, offering a tranquil retreat.

A steep path leading to the temples is lined with 500 life-size, gilded fiberglass statues of Arhats, each in a unique pose, created by artists from Yunnan and Guangdong.

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