The Great Buddha Hall is a large and beautiful building designed similar to that of the Kuan-Yin Hall in China.  When you walk up Buddha path, you will feel like you have gone across the globe and entered a little piece of the Orient right here in Putnam County. The exterior design of the buildings are in the style of architecture of the Tang Dynasty (618 AD - 907 AD) and are constructed without internal pillars supporting the ceiling. This results in a spacious, unobstructed interior that reflects the spirit of Chuang Yen Monastery.  Buddha Hall is 84 feet tall, contains 24,000 square feet of space and can accommodate 2,000 people in the main hall. Inside the Hall is a 37-foot statue of the Buddha Vairocana - the largest Buddha statue in the Western hemisphere. Encircling the large statue are 10,000 small statues of the Buddha on a lotus terrace.  The construction of the Great Buddha and the building took 8 years. The Great Buddha has to be complete before the building. Otherwise, it would be very difficult to bring a huge Buddha into the building. Professor C.G. Chen spent 2 years just to complete the Great Buddha itself. The little Buddhas are also designed and fabricated by Professor C.G. Chen.

Special Note: January 2,2009 - March 31, 2009

The Chuang Yen Monastery will not be open to visitors.  The winter weather is always cold and often icy, so the roads become too treacherous to drive on. Visitors have often had accidents, although fortunately, no one has been seriously hurt. The Monastery wishes to avoid any future potential accidents or injuries that may occur, so we have made this decision.

They wish visitors would not come to CYM when the weather makes the roads too dangerous. If any accident occurs they cannot take responsibility for it.

However, they will be opened for Chinese New Year Eve and New Year, Jan 25th & 26th, inclusive. Beginning April 1st, they will resume their normal schedule, 9:00am to 5:00pm, all week.

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