On 1993, the Bureau of Religious Affairs of the State Council City, China and the Hainan Provincial People's Government officially approved the construction of Nanshan Temple, and approved the sculpture of a Guanyin icon 108 meters high in the sea in front of Nanshan Temple. This statue was built by Nanhai Guanyin Merit Foundation in Sanya, Hainan, and it is the tallest statue in the world. Zhao Puchu, President of the Chinese Buddhist Association, happily wrote the inscription "Nanhai Guanyin".

Guanyin at sea consists of three sides. Holding a lotus flower, holding a principal book and holding a Buddha bead. Guanyin at sea is six meters taller than the Statue of Liberty, so it is the largest stone statue in the world.

Guanyin Bodhisattva represents compassion in Buddhism, which mainly assists Amitabha in the afterlife of western paradise and helps Sakyamuni to promote enlightenment in her mother-in-law's world, that is, the real world.