Situated in the Da Ci'en Temple, about four kilometres from the urban center, the Big Wild Goose Pagoda (also called the Da Ci'en Temple Pagoda) is one of the famous Buddhist pagodas in China.

Originally built in 589A. D. in the Sui Dynasty, the temple was named Wu Lou Si Temple. It was not until 648 A. D. , when Emperor Li Zhi, then still a crown prince, sponsored a repair project on the temple. This was a symbol of thanksgiving to his mother for her kindness, after she had suffered an early death. The temple then assumed the present name Da Ci'en Si (Temple of Thanksgiving). The Emperor was said to pay homage to the temple twice a day (in the morning and at dusk) by looking in its direction from the Hanyuan Palace. The temple, with 13 separate courtyards,contained 1, 879 magnificent looking rooms altogether and was a place of grand extent in the Tang Dynasty. However, it went into gradual decay after the Tang Dynasty. The halls and rooms that have survived the ages are structures that built in the Ming Dynasty.

The Tang Regime gave orders to build a chamber for the translation of Buddhist scriptures in an effort to have the then widely renowned Master Xuan Zang (Monk Tripitaka) agree to be the head of the temple.

Xuan Zang was both a great translator and traveller. At the age of 28 in 627 A. D. , he went alone to India to study Buddhist scriptures. He stayed there for 17 years, doing research into Buddhism in various places. He returned to Chang'an in 645 A. D. with 657 volumes of Buddhist scriptures, travelling 50,000 kilometres and suffering many hardships. His Travels in the Western Regions was based on what he had witnessed in the 128 countries and regions that he visited. He recorded their geographic locations and customs. This work has become an important 'reference for the studies of the history and geograghy of these regions. A famous novelist in the Ming Dynasty even wrote a novel which was set against the story of Xuan Zang's western journey for the Buddhist scriptures. The book became one of the four most famous novels in the history of Chinese literature. Xuan Zang also translated one of the Chinese classics Lao Zi into Sanskrit to be introduced into India. He was indeed a great contributor to the Buddhist cultural ex- changes between India and China in ancient times.

In 652 A.D. Xuan Zang made a proposal to the court for a pagoda to be built inside the temple, to store the scriptures and statues he had brought back from India. The Emperor not only readily agreed, but also raised funds by the sale of things left behind by deseased court maids. Xuan Zang was so pleased that he took part in the manual labour. He also designed the pagoda. The two fierce- looking stone lions before the front gate of the temple stand there as if they were two sentinels guarding the place.

The pagoda was finished in 652 A. D. Its five storeys are 60 metres in height. The decay of the earth-cored pagoda caused the new construction of a 10-storey pagoda from 701 to 704. However, the winds of war, in the years to come, reduced the pagoda almost to ruins, which in turn resulted in the construction of a 7-storeyed, 64-metre-high structure which we see today.

Limo Options	Railway Transfer	Xian One Day City Tour	Airport- Xi an downtown or vice versa	Half day Xi an	Xian-Huashan Day Tour (9 hours)	Terrocotta Wrriora Half day (4 hours)	Downtown - Famen + Qianling (9 hours)
Red Flag	$ 31	$ 81	$ 41	$ 51	$ 131	$ 80	$ 180
Passat	$ 50	$ 90	$ 60	$ 50	$ 150	$ 90	$ 200
Hyundai	$ 31	$ 81	$ 61	$ 51	$ 131	$ 80	$ 180
Audi A6	$ 81	$ 161	$ 100	$ 91	$ 251	$ 201	$ 300
MB S350	$ 140	$ 240	$ 140	$ 170	$ 350	$ 260	$ 400
Buick GL8	$ 71	$ 161	$ 91	$ 91	$ 251	$ 201	$ 290
Refine Van	$ 61	$ 131	$ 81	$ 81	$ 191	$ 100	$ 240
MB100 Van	$ 64	$ 141	$ 84	$ 84	$ 191	$ 120	$ 270
22 Seats Coaster Tour Bus	$ 80	$ 160	$ 110	$ 90	$ 300	$ 160	$ 300
33 Seats Tour Bus	$ 95	$ 185	$125	$ 110	$ 320	$ 180	$ 340
40 Seats Tour Bus	$ 110	$ 210	$ 130	$ 130	$ 320	$ 290	$360
50 Seats Tour Bus	$ 140	$ 240	$ 170	$ 170	$ 350	$ 300	$ 390

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