Dafang Temple

Dafang Temple

Dafang Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

Dafang Temple, anciently known as Fangyan Temple and also called Five Buddhas Golden Light Temple, is located in the southern valley of Longji Mountain, within Jiangtuan Administrative Village, Lieshan Town, Lieshan District, Huaibei City. According to the "Suixi County Annals," Dafang Temple was first built during the Eastern Han Dynasty. Local legend has it that the temple was once the place where Zhang Guolao, one of the Eight Immortals, became a monk and practiced in his youth. Here, surrounded by mountains, the dense forest covers the sky, including a nearly 1,000-acre area of primeval forest. Outside the north gate of the temple stands an ancient blue sandalwood tree over a thousand years old. In the late Qing Dynasty and early Republican period, the temple complex still covered more than 50 acres. During the late Qing Dynasty and the later Republican era, the temple was occupied by bandits and was destroyed in the war. After enduring wind and rain, only stone foundations, stone tables, stone drums, stone pillars, a spirit pagoda, and several ancient steles remain today. Modern people have rebuilt Dafang Temple on the original site, which now covers an area of 850 square meters, with a courtyard 30 meters long and 27 meters wide. It includes three main halls and seven wing rooms, making it an excellent place for monks to reside and practice Buddhism. The ruins of Dafang Temple represent a rare ancient temple site in the Huaibei region and are of great significance for the study of Huaibei’s Buddhist culture.

During the late Qing Dynasty and the later Republican period, the temple was occupied by bandits, the Buddha statues were destroyed, and the temple buildings were damaged by war. Later, due to wind, rain, and years of neglect, the temple eventually deteriorated, leaving only the wall foundations. The ancient steles inside the temple were vandalized during the Cultural Revolution, with some inscriptions chiseled off. One stone pillar with carvings was also broken. Modern people have rebuilt Dafang Temple on the original temple site.

Lieshan Town: Lieshan Town in Lieshan District is located in the southeast of Huaibei City. It was formed by merging five villages of the former Lieshan Town and Xincun Town, bordering Suixian County to the east and adjacent to Duji District to the north. The town covers an area of 116 square kilometers, with 51,000 mu of arable land and 62,000 mu of mountainous area, and a total population of about 73,200 people. It administers 20 villages and 190 villager groups. The eastern outer ring road of the city and the Hefei-Xuzhou Expressway run through the territory, while roads such as Su Huang, Xincun, Caisi, and Qingning form a grid-like transportation network in the town. With vast mountainous areas and abundant resources, there are large reserves of limestone, coal, and other minerals, as well as a national medium-sized water... More details about Lieshan Town++