Donglin Buddha, Bronze statue at Donglin Temple, Jiujiang, China

The Donglin Buddha is a 48-meter gilded bronze statue of a standing Amitabha with a topknot and draped robes, his right hand raised palm-forward and his left hand holding a lotus at his chest. He stands on a 48-petal lotus base atop a wide stone staircase, sheltered by a tall pointed arch with a pinkish rim. Two smaller gilded figures on lotus bases flank the steps in front.

Construction began in May 2007 with approval from the State Administration for Religious Affairs, and the statue was completed in 2013, with a ceremony held that August. It was built by the Donglin Temple, founded in 402 CE and regarded as the cradle of the Pure Land school. Funding came entirely from donations by believers worldwide; by early 2013 the central-axis works had cost 437 million yuan.

The main gate of the Pure Land Garden carries the plaque "Xiangguang Zhuangyan" (Adornment of Fragrant Light), a phrase from the Shurangama Sutra passage on Mahasthamaprapta's practice of nianfo. The 48-petal lotus base and the 48-metre height both stand for Amitabha's 48 vows. Pilgrims still perform the three-steps-one-bow rite up the 949 stone steps.

Reaching the statue means climbing 949 stone steps; some pilgrims perform three steps and one bow along the way. The site lies in Wenquan Town, Lushan City, with Mount Lu behind and Poyang Lake to the south. The grounds are free to enter and not commercialised.

The statue's design drew on the Kamakura Daibutsu in Japan as a reference, according to the sources. The pedestal area beneath the figure holds halls introducing the history of Donglin Temple, the vows of Amitabha and the thirteen patriarchs of the Pure Land school, plus a space for repenting karma.