Dafosi Grottoes (Chinese: 大佛寺石窟) is located at the foot of Qingliang (秦嶺) mountain beside Jing River (涇水), ten thousand meters west of Binxian (彬縣) County, Xianyang (咸陽) City, Shaanxi (陝西) Province, is the largest group of Grottoes in Shaanxi Province.
The Dafosi grottoes were first excavated in the Northern Dynasties (北朝; AD386-577) and basically completed in the second year of the reign of Emperor Taizong (唐太宗; AD628) in the early Tang Dynasty.
The Great Buddha cave is the center of the whole temple, and also the largest cave in the Great Buddha Temple.
The Great Buddha statue sits in the middle of the cave, it is 20 meters high and 13 meters wide, the largest in Shaanxi Province. The figure is solemn, dignified and majestic, unfortunately, there are many ugly scaffoldings around the statue.
There are two Bodhisattvas on both sides of the Great Buddha. On the west side is Guanyin (觀音) Bodhisattva, and on the east side is Dashizhi (大勢至) Bodhisattva, but the cave is too dark, you cannot see them clear.
Qianfo Cave (千佛洞) is located at the east of the Great Buddha cave, the cave has 696 statues. According to the inscriptions in the niches, most of the statues are the works of Empress Wu Zetian during her reign.
Next to Qianfo Cave there is a small lookout, from the lookout you can enjoy the panoramic view around the Dafosi Grottoes.
