Binxian - now Binzhou - sits on the old road west from Xi'an towards Gansu, and the cliffs beside the river there carry one of the largest but least visited Tang dynasty cave temples in China. The site is usually called the Big Buddha Temple, after the colossal seated figure at its centre, which rises through three storeys of a protective hall built against the cliff. If you have seen the Longmen caves in Henan or the Yungang caves near Datong, this is the same tradition, on a cliff, without the crowds.
The colossal Buddha and the caves
The main figure is a seated Buddha carved from the living rock and framed by an enormous arched niche, with two standing attendants flanking it. The scale is deliberately overwhelming; the temple building constructed around it exists to shelter it and to give worshippers a staircase up past its face. To either side a row of smaller caves and niches runs along the cliff, holding further Buddhist figures in high relief, many of them weathered but several still carrying traces of pigment. Dated inscriptions at the site place the main work in the Tang dynasty, with later additions and repairs.
Getting there and what else is nearby
The drive from Xi'an is around two and a half hours along the expressway towards Gansu, which places it on the Silk Road corridor rather than in the Xi'an tourist orbit. That obscurity is the point: you will often have the site almost to yourself. Binxian also has a pagoda and a small museum, and further on the same road lie the grottoes and temples of the Longdong and Pingliang areas, so the Big Buddha Temple works well as the first stop on a westward journey towards Gansu rather than as a there-and-back trip.
Practical notes
There is no convenient public transport from Xi'an; a car and driver or a booked day trip is the realistic option. The site charges an admission fee. Steep stairs and a narrow staircase inside the main hall mean the visit requires reasonable mobility, and the cliff exposure makes it cold in winter and hot in high summer. Photography is generally permitted outside but not of every figure - follow the on-site notices. Take water, since facilities nearby are basic.
