Temple of Wu Gong

Temple of Wu Gong

The Temple of Wu Gong is a cultural tourism attraction.

The Temple of Wu Gong is located to the right of the Elegant Gathering Pavilion. In ancient times, it was dedicated to Wu Xian, a minister of the Shang Dynasty, and his son Wu Xian. According to local records, during the Qingyuan era of the Song Dynasty, locals digging soil on Qinglong Hill in Yushan unearthed an ancient stele inscribed with five ancient characters: “Tomb of Wu Xian, Minister of the Shang.” Magistrate Sun Yingshi then built the temple in the side chamber of the Yanzi Shrine.

In the eighth year of the Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty (1529), Magistrate Hu Feng sought approval from Provincial Governor and Censor-in-Chief Chen Xiang, as well as Educational Commissioner Zhang Gun, and officially issued an edict to construct a hall and a banquet chamber, each with four bays, on the western side of Zhidao Taoist Temple on Yushan. A stone gate was erected, inscribed with: “Temple of Wu Gong, the Virtuous Minister of Shang,” and officials were assigned to conduct seasonal sacrifices. Chen Huan, a Grand Secretary of the Imperial College and local resident, wrote a record of the event. During the late Ming period, the temple was occupied and repurposed as an official office by military training officers.

In the tenth year of the Shunzhi reign of the Qing Dynasty (1653), Wang Mengding, Shao Deng, and others relocated the temple to the left side of the Reading Platform of Crown Prince Zhaoming. Qian Qianyi wrote a record of this, but the temple was soon abandoned. In the twenty-fifth year of the Kangxi reign (1686), Magistrate Yang Zhenzao converted an abandoned temple at Dongzhuang outside the eastern gate of Bintang into the new site for the Temple of Wu Gong, moving the wooden spirit tablet of Wu Xian there for worship. This iteration was also later abandoned. In the ninth year of the Qianlong reign (1744), Jueluo Ya'erhahsan, the Grain Storage Commissioner, rebuilt the temple next to the Youwen Academy and wrote a record, enshrining both Wu Xian and his son Wu Xian. Tao Zhenyi also composed a record. In the forty-first year of the Qianlong reign (1776), the worship was moved to the west hall of the Youwen Academy. It was destroyed in the tenth year of the Xianfeng reign (1860). In the twenty-ninth year of the Guangxu reign (1903), it was rebuilt again at the foot of the hill behind the academy.

After the founding of the People’s Republic of China, it was destroyed once more. In 1985, the Municipal Gardens Management Office funded its reconstruction at its current location at a cost of 56,000 yuan. It is now used as a teahouse in the park.