Puning Temple, located 2.5 kilometers northeast of Chengde Mountain Resort, was built between 1755 and 1759. Because the temple houses a 22.28-metre statue of Avalokitesvara (Goddess of Mercy) with a thousand eyes and a thousand hands, it is also called Temple of the Great Goddess by the local people.
Dacheng Pavilion and its attached buildings at the rear of the temple were built after the fashion of Wuce Hall at Sanmoye Monastery in Tibet. Since Wuce Hall has four pagodas in different colors, red, green, black and white, at its four corners, Dacheng Pavilion followed suit. However, the size and shape of the pagodas attached to Dacheng Pavilion are different from those of the Tibetan temple. An archway was opened in the base of each pagoda for monks and worshipers to pass through. The main body of each pagoda is composed of two "alms bowls," one on top of the other. One of the pagodas has both "bowls" facing upward. On the other three pagodas the "bowls" are inverted. Decorated with Dharma wheels and Vajra pestles, the pagodas have special magnificence.
