Cao'an Manichaean Temple

Cao'an Manichaean Temple

Cao'an Manichaean Temple is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

It is the only surviving Manichaean temple in China, located at the southern foot of Huabiao Mountain in Jinjiang. It serves as an important physical reference for the study of world religious history and the history of cultural exchanges between China and foreign countries, and is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit. Historical records indicate that Manichaeism was formerly known as "Mingjiao" in China. Its doctrines blend elements of Buddhism, Christianity, and Zoroastrianism. It was founded in the mid-3rd century AD in Persia and introduced to China in the first year of the YanZai era (694 AD) during the reign of Empress Wu Zetian of the Tang Dynasty. By the early Ming Dynasty, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, disliking the religious name for its similarity to the imperial title, expelled its followers and destroyed its temples, leading Manichaeism to gradually merge with other religions. The Cao'an Manichaean Temple in Quanzhou remains the only precious historical relic. The temple was initially built during the Shaoxing era of the Song Dynasty, originally constructed with thatched materials. In the fifth year of the Zhiyuan era (1339 AD) under Emperor Shundi of the Yuan Dynasty, it was rebuilt as a stone structure with a hip-and-gable roof. In the early 1980s, a porcelain bowl from the Mingjiao sect of the Song Dynasty was excavated here, confirming the active presence of Manichaeism in Quanzhou during that period. In August 1987, Lund University in Sweden hosted the first International Academic Symposium on Manichaeism, where the statue of the Manichaean Buddha at Cao'an was used as the commemorative mascot of the conference. In February 1991, the UNESCO "Maritime Silk Road" comprehensive survey team, after visiting Cao'an, regarded it as the "greatest discovery" of the expedition.