Fo Guang Shan Buddhist Memorial Complex

USA, California, Whittier

Fo Guang Shan Buddhist Memorial Complex, also known as Fo Guang Shan Buddhist Memorial Columbarium, is located at the summit of Rose Hills Memorial Park in Whittier, near Los Angeles.
Construction of this complex was initiated by the founder of Fo Guang Shan, Master Hsing Yun, in 1995 on a 1 ha lot. The Chinese pagoda houses 21,690 niches and the landscaped garden contains 1,500 stupas in marble of various hues. It took four years to build and was opened in 1999.
The Memorial Complex offers a funerary service to Buddhists and is the largest Buddhist memorial complex in the United States. The 30 m high pagoda has three stories and is constructed in both traditional and contemporary styles. The exterior walls are covered in Italian granite and contains 60 reliefs of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas within niches on all sides, as well as the Four Heavenly Kings at the entrance. The main hall inside the pagoda is distinctive and statues of Amitabha Buddha and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva are enshrined there. The interior is finished with mainly ivory and burgundy colored granite and the niches contain marble, glass, and bronze Buddha statues. The stupa garden surrounding the pagoda is beautifully landscaped.