As religious shrines, pagodas and towers, which originate from India, are unique to Buddhism. Sakyamuni is said to have his body cremated after he died, and his disciples found in his ashes numerous holy relics--hard, bright pearl-like things that were material testimony to his attainment of utter wisdom and enlightenment.5 The holy relics were then divided, sent to different places and, for worshipping, buried in stupas--earthen mounds in the shape of a semi-circle with an umbrella-

like object on the top, which constituted the earliest form of Buddhist towers.

    Like Buddhism itself, stupas in China eventually became incorporated with the Chinese culture, culminating in pagodas and towers with distinct Chinese characteristics. Towers in their earliest form have all perished, but stone engravings excavated from Han Dynasty tombs provide us with full pictures of such structures. These are, in fact, multi-story buildings open on all sides for a full view of what is below and all around in the distance, with inter-connected verandas round each floor for ascending and descending. As Buddhism was gaining influence, stupas became high towers, as people believed that holy relics found in ashes of Buddhist saints should be placed high. As time went by, "stupa towers", so to speak, underwent constant changes in structure and style and came to be established as an important part of China's traditional architectural art.

    Most Buddhist towers in China resemble a multistory building in traditional style. The earliest of such towers are wooden structures modeled after secular structures. The oldest Buddhist tower of timber is in the Buddha Palace Temple in Yingxian County, Shaxi Province. The Sakyamuni Pagoda, an octagonal structure 67.3 meters high, was built in 1056. One may take it as a five-story structure before getting into it. But once inside, one will find that it actually has nine floors

with winding terraces and Buddhist sculptures placed on every floor for worshipping. The wooden tower is still in good shape even though in the past 900 years, several major tremors have struck the area.

    Wooden structures are liable to catch fire, and high-rise wooden structures, in particular, face the danger of being struck by lightning. In view of this problem, ancient Chinese engineers and workmen developed a kind of Buddhist towers built with both timber and bricks--brick towers with a wooden "coat" that makes the structures look traditional in style. In case of a fire, the wooden "coat" may be destroyed but the tower itself will remain intact. Brick-timber towers are found mostly in south China. One example is the Pagoda of Dragon Glory in Shanghai, a seven-story octagonal structure built in 977. The Cloud Rock Temple in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, also a seven-story octagonal structure, was built in 961 and its wooden "coat" was destroyed in fire a long time ago. The brick tower, however, is known as the "Chinese leaning tower" though it may not be as famous as the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Fortunately, the tower has stopped declining thanks to measures taken by Chinese engineers to strengthen its foundation with concrete.

    Buddhist towers built entirely of bricks or stone can also be found in China. Among these fireproof structures, the best known is the Pagoda of Perfect Purity in Tiantai, Zhejiang Province, which was built in 598. Some Buddhist towers are coated with glazed tiles all over, such as the Pavilion of Buddha Fragrance on the Longevity Hill in the Summer Palace, Beijing.

    In China, there are towers that architects choose to call "close-eave structures". The ground floor of such a tower is always the highest, while the upper floors are low, in fact as low as possible, so the eaves of the different stories are close to one another. "Close-eave" towers

are mostly brick structures, in the shape of a square, hexagon or octagon. The earliest "close-eave" towers were built in the Tang Dynasty, which were to become popular in north China in the Song Dynasty.

    There are differences between those of the Tang Dynasty and those of the

succeeding dynasties. "Close-egve" towers built in the Tang Dynasty are in the shape of a square, with staircases inside for ascending and descending. In comparison, those built after the Tang Dynasty are mostly octagonal in shape and are solid, thus denying ascending and descending

from inside. Moreover, the ground floor is on a raised platform, the walls and the platform both beautiful with Buddha images and floral and animal designs. Even though nobody can enter a "close-eave" tower, artificial doors and windows are carved on the wall of each floor, which

are also exquisitely decorated. Moreover, the eaves are constructed in such a way as to resemble those of traditional structures of timber. The Pagoda in the Temple of Celestial Tranquility in Beijing is a best representative of the "close-eave" towers.

    Pagodas found in areas inhabited by ethnic Tibetans are markedly different from those found elsewhere in the country. Ethnic Tibetans believe in Lamaism, and pagodas in ethnic style of theirs are often referred to as "lama pagodas". These are white structures, resembling an alms bowl placed upside down, and on it top there is a large, round heartland, as the ynasty s Mongol rulers were Lama~sm devotees. On of the best known "lama pagodas" is found in the Temple of Divine structure containing the ashes of a revered lama. During the Yuan Dynasty, large numbers of "Lama pagodas" were built in China's Response. Beijing. The pagoda, designed by a Nepalese architect, was built in 1221.

    Buddhism found its way into different parts of China at different historic periods. Besides, ethnicity, cultural background and natural conditions vary from region to region in so vast a country. As time went by, three schools of the religion came into being: the Han ethnic school of Buddhism. the Tibetan school of Buddhism and the Sthaviravada school of Buddhism. People of the Dai ethnic group living in south Yunnan province believe in the Sthaviravada school of Buddhism that originates from the neighboring Thailand and Myanmar, and Buddhist towers there are generalized as "Myanmar pagodas" for an architectural style popular in parts of southeast Asia, Myanmar in particular.

    The Manlong Flying Pagodas, which were built in 1204 in what is now Damenglong of Jinghong in Yunnan Province, is a typical example of such structures. These nine pagodas form a neat group. The principal pagoda, 16.29 meters high, stands in the middle, round which eight smaller pagodas, all 9.1 meters high, form a circle. The nine pagodas, like a grove of bamboo shoots, roughly are of the same shape and architectural style as "lama pagodas" -- the main part standing on a raised platform with an alms bowl-like structure placed upside down on its top.

    When Buddhism was first introduced to China, pagodas were always built in the center of a temple. As time went by, Buddhist sculptures replaced pagodas as the sacred subjects for worshipping and, in temples, pagodas were often built in front of the principal hall or behind it,

forming the so-called "pagoda courtyards". While becoming increasingly diverse in architectural style, Buddhist towers, including pagodas, were no longer purely religious structures.

    The Wild Goose Pagoda in Chang'an, capital of the Tang Dynasty, became famous not only as a religious shrine but also as the venue for gatherings of successful candidates in imperial examinations for officialdom. After the results of an imperial examination were announced, those candidates who had emerged victors would, individually or in groups, ascend the pagoda and write poems on the walls along with their autographs --obvious to make themselves remembered eternally. The Six-Harmony Pagoda stands majestically on a hill overlooking the Qiantang River in Zhejiang Province. In ancient times, lanterns hung from its flying eaves would be lit at night to direct boats sailing in the river.

   Buddhist towers and pagodas add glory to Buddhist shrines which, as we have said, arc mostly in places of seclusion noted for scenic beauty. This has inspired the Chinese to build towers that blend in natural beauty of scenic spots, towers that have nothing to do with religion.