The Hanging Temple, Hengshan

The Hanging Temple clings to a cliff in the gorge below Mount Heng, its halls resting on wooden beams driven horizontally into the rock and propped by long thin poles that carry less weight than they appear to. Around forty small rooms and chapels are stacked on three levels, joined by plank galleries and staircases barely wide enough for one person. Inside are bronze, stone and clay figures, including a hall where Buddhist, Daoist and Confucian images sit together, which is unusual. From the valley floor the whole thing looks improbable; up on the walkways it is cramped, dark and creaking, and the drop is always close.

History

Legend says a single monk, Liaoran, began the temple in 491, at the end of the Northern Wei dynasty, on the west face of the Jinxia gorge about 75 metres above the ground. It rests on 27 wooden beams fitted into holes cut in the cliff, with its main supports hidden in the rock, and it was built to bring together Buddhism, Daoism and Confucianism, an idea traced to the Northern Wei court's wish for temples of both faiths in the north (Wikipedia, Hanging Temple).

What you'll find

• The view from below - the standard photograph, with the temple pinned to the cliff above the gorge.
• The plank galleries - narrow walkways and steep timber stairs linking the halls.
• The three-faith hall - a small chamber holding Buddhist, Daoist and Confucian figures side by side.
• The supporting poles - the thin timber props under the structure and the beams sunk into the rock.

When to go

May to October, when the road and walkways are free of ice. Numbers on the structure are capped, so at busy times you queue at the foot of the stairs and then shuffle along the galleries. Early morning is quietest. The gorge stays in shadow for much of the day, which suits photographs taken from below.

Things to know

The visit itself is short and the climbing ticket costs extra on top of the entrance fee. Once you are on the walkways you cannot stop or turn back, and in high season it becomes a slow single-file queue with people pressing behind you. Anyone uneasy with heights or narrow stairs will not enjoy it, and much of the timber has been renewed.

Nearby

Yungang Grottoes and Datong are an hour or so north, and the Yingxian wooden pagoda is a short drive west.

Key facts