Temples and Buddhas of Taiwan

Temples are everywhere in Taiwan, from tiny shrines at street corners to large monastery complexes in the hills. Religious life on the island mixes Buddhism, Taoism and folk belief, and many temples honour figures from more than one tradition under the same roof.

The first photographs show the largest scale: golden Buddha statues, seated and standing, rising above trees and pagodas. Statues like these are made to be seen from far away, and they work best photographed against open sky, where the gold catches the light. In Kaohsiung, a huge deity statue stands at the end of a bridge, turning the whole approach into a kind of procession.

Closer in, the detail takes over. Taiwanese temple roofs are among the most ornate in the Chinese-speaking world, with carved, painted and gilded eaves, figures and dragons crowding every ridge. Inside, the scale drops again to the human level: flowers and offerings arranged in front of the altar, renewed by worshippers day after day.

---

Photos: falco, llqfhj, travelphotographer, stevenstung, viarami on Pixabay, used under the Pixabay Content License. These are not my photographs.