TheDaqin Pagoda (Chinese:大秦塔) is a Buddhistpagoda inZhouzhi County ofXi'an (formerlyChang'an),Shaanxi Province,[1] China, located about two kilometres to the west ofLouguantai temple. The pagoda has been claimed as aChurch of the East in China church from theTang dynasty but there has been no conclusive evidence of such a connection.[2][3]
Daqin is the ancient Chinese name for theRoman Empire or, depending on context, theNear East, especiallySyria.[4]
The Daqin Pagoda is first attested in 1065, when the Chinese poetSu Dongpo visited it and wrote a well-known poem about it, "Daqin Temple". His younger brotherSu Zhe also wrote an "echoing" poem referring to the monks at the temple. Anearthquake severely damaged the pagoda in 1556 and it was finally abandoned. Due to the earthquake, many of the underground chambers of the complex are no longer reachable.
The seven-storeyed octagonal brick pagoda is about 34 meters high (was thought to be 32 in the past). Each side of the first storey measures 4.3 meters.[1]
The Daqin Pagoda was visited byAssyrian Church of the East bishopMar Awa Royel in 2012 as part of a follow-up visit to China in 2010, upon invitation from the Jingjiao Fellowship and director Mr. David Tam.[5]
In 2001 the pagoda was claimed byMartin Palmer, the translator of several popular books onsinology, includingZhuangzi andI Ching, as a form ofChristianity from the Tang dynasty, in his controversial bookThe Jesus Sutras. According to Palmer, the church and the monastery were built in 640 by early Church of the East missionaries.Daqin is the name for theRoman Empire in the earlyChinese-language documents of the 1st and 2nd centuries;[6] by the mid-9th century it was also used to refer to the mission churches of the Syriac Christians.[4]
Supporters of Palmer's claims have drawn attention to details which suggest that the monastery was earlier a Christian church, including a supposed depiction ofJonah at the walls ofNineveh, anativity scene (depiction of the birth of Jesus) andSyriac graffiti. The east-facing orientation of the complex is also advanced as evidence of its Christian origin since Chinese Daoist and Buddhist temple complexes face north or south.[7]
As a potential stimulus to the district's tourist trade, Palmer's claims have been given wide publicity by the local authorities but have also received approbation by Chinese academics. The exterior of the pagoda and its surroundings were featured in the first episode of the 2009 BBC programA History of Christianity.[8] The program also featured an interview with Palmer by the presenter ProfessorDiarmaid MacCulloch.
Despite the publicity they have received, Palmer's claims are controversial, and have been dismissed by Michael Keevak, the author ofThe Story of a Stele, and by David Wilmshurst, the author ofThe Martyred Church: A History of the Church of the East.[9]
James Morris of theUniversity of St. Andrews has stated of the pagoda that "until more detailed archaeological analysis of the site is undertaken [...] we must be content in maintaining that there are no proven direct archaeological remains for the presence of Christianity during theTáng period."[3]
Following the visit to the Museum of Steles, and on the route to the Jingjiao site to visit the Daqin Pagoda, a stop off was made at our sister Jenny Bai's house who had requested for His Grace to visit her home and offer prayers of blessings to her and her parents.
| Context and origin | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tang dynasty |
| |||||||||
| Yuan dynasty |
| |||||||||
| By region | ||||||||||
| Related modern people | ||||||||||
34°03′32″N108°18′27″E / 34.05889°N 108.30750°E /34.05889; 108.30750
.jpg)