Po Lin Monastery: Tian Tan Buddha

CHINA, Hong Kong

Also known as the Great Buddha, this statue of Sakyamuni Buddha is located on Mount Muk Yue in front of Po Lin Monastery and is surmounted by a flight of 268 steps. It is one of the largest outdoor bronze seated Buddhas in the world. The figure itself measures 23 m high, while the lotus throne is 3.4 m high and rests upon a 7.6 m high white platform. The statue consists of 202 individual sections and is made from 250 t of bronze and over 2,420 kg of gold.
The Buddha is designed to feature many of the Thirty-Two Marks of Excellence: a usnisa, a right-turning urna, a round face, crescent eyebrows, elongated earlobes, and three lines on the neck. A Dharma wheel is visible on each palm and there is a swastika symbol on the chest. The Buddha is seated in full lotus position on a lotus throne with hands in the abhaya (fearlessness) and varada (wish-granting) mudras. The six heavenly beings making offerings about the throne symbolize the Six Perfections of Buddhism. The lotus throne rests upon a white platform, beneath which a museum enshrines a relic of the Buddha and other artifacts.