Mingxi Xianying Temple

Mingxi Xianying Temple

Mingxi Xianying Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

The temple was formerly known as "Madam’s Temple" and has enjoyed enduring incense offerings and deep reverence among the people of Mingxi. The "Madam’s Temple" commemorates Xinqiniang, a heroine from the Five Dynasties period who has been revered in Mingxi for over 1,000 years and is locally known as Lady Huili. In late 2011, the worship customs of Lady Huili were recognized as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Fujian Province, bringing a new highlight to Mingxi’s Hakka folk tourism.

Legend has it that Lady Huili was well-educated and skilled in medicine. During the Five Dynasties period, she accompanied her husband on a military campaign in Fujian, traveling through Mingxi’s Xuefeng Town (now Chengguan). Her husband unfortunately contracted an epidemic and died in Mingxi. To accompany his spirit, she settled in Mingxi, where she was known for her generosity toward local villagers. Using her medical knowledge and herbal remedies, she treated the local community free of charge, and later passed away at Mingxi Post. Moved by her virtue, the people of Mingxi revered her as a deity, built a temple in her honor, and even named the central bridge in the town “Huili Bridge.”

During the Jiading era of the Southern Song Dynasty (1208–1224), the imperial court conferred upon Xinqiniang the title “Lady Huili,” which was soon elevated to “Lady Huili Fushun (Blessed Prosperity).” In the Qing Dynasty, she was further honored with the titles “Pu’you (Universal Protection) Lady” and “Lingying (Spirit-Responsive) Lady,” extending her influence to areas such as Ninghua, Qingliu, Jianning, Changting, and Liancheng.

Wen Tianxiang, the national hero and prime minister of the late Southern Song Dynasty, greatly contributed to the thriving incense worship at “Madam’s Temple.” At the time, he fought against Yuan forces in Jiangxi and Fujian. In the second year of Emperor Duanzong’s Jingyan era (1277 AD), Wen Tianxiang passed through Mingxi while leading troops and paid homage at the Temple of Lady Huili. Deeply impressed by her noble character, he composed and inscribed a poem on the temple wall: “A million valiant troops sweep the comet’s blaze, / A homeland vast across ten thousand miles bestowed; / If a man cannot stretch forth his heaven-spanning hand, / He’d blush before Mingxi’s holy Seventh Dame.” (This poem is recorded in the Qing Dynasty’s Kangxi-era “Guiding County Annals” and the Republican-era “Mingxi County Annals” among other historical texts.)

To commemorate Lady Huili, the local people also hold grand celebrations. The 11th day of the sixth lunar month, her birthday, sees the largest temple fair in Mingxi County, known as the “June Festival.” In the old days, even imperial officials would attend. On that day, people welcome the divine image of Lady Huili in a procession of drums and gongs; locals visit Xianying Temple to worship and bring home bathed fragrant water for peace and safety; after the divine image returns to the temple, performances such as opera and other cultural programs are held.

The site of “Madam’s Temple” has moved several times. It was originally located at the West Gate inside the city (now the Propaganda and Culture Center). In the 46th year of the Qianlong reign (1871), the temple was destroyed by fire and rebuilt the same year. After the Liberation, the temple was repurposed, and the divine image of Lady Huili was moved to Guanyin Bridge at the North Gate. In 1984, with donations from the people of Mingxi, a new temple (now called Xianying Temple) was constructed in the northern suburbs of the county.

Today’s “Xianying Temple” has undergone multiple renovations, with both the temple structure and the memorial archway road in front freshly refurbished, making it a prominent attraction of Sanming’s Hakka culture. With the worship customs of Lady Huili now recognized as provincial intangible cultural heritage, they have become a treasured spiritual legacy for the people of Mingxi.

Lady Huili, whose secular name was Xinqiniang, lived during the Five Dynasties period and settled in Mingxi. Her birth and death dates are unknown. In her youth, Xinqiniang was knowledgeable and well-mannered, and she also understood medicine. Later, she followed her husband on military campaigns, and when they reached Mingxi’s Xuefeng Town (now Chengguan Town), her husband unfortunately fell ill and died. She took up residence there to accompany his spirit. At the time, Mingxi was poor and underdeveloped, and she treated the illnesses of the people and was eventually buried in Mingxi.

During the Southern Song Dynasty, a traveler stayed overnight at the Mingxi Inspection Post Inn, which was located next to Xinqiniang’s burial site. Moved by her life story, he wrote a poem on the inn’s wall:

I was once a virtuous maiden fair, Skilled in needlework and letters rare; ... More details about Xinqiniang ++