Lixiang Temple

Lixiang Temple

Lixiang Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

Lixiang Temple in Quangang District has long been renowned for its ancient history. According to the 1563 *Hui’an County Annals* from the Ming Dynasty’s Jiajing era, the temple was originally built in the sixth year of the Tianyou era of the Tang Dynasty (909 AD). Legend has it that the original structure was grand in scale, featuring a nine-courtyard layout—something quite rare for the area at the time. Of course, as time has passed, it is now difficult to see what the temple looked like over a thousand years ago. By the early 1990s, an ancient well from the Tang Dynasty was still preserved on the site. The well’s walls were built with small stones, and its mouth was carved out of a single large slab of stone. The water was clear and pure, and the temple’s daily water supply came from this well. Unfortunately, when the Yifeng Highway was constructed, the well happened to be right in the middle of the road and had to be filled in.

Lixiang Temple is located at the northeast corner of the roundabout on Yifeng Highway in the central industrial zone of Quangang, about 40 to 50 meters from the road. The temple faces south and has a two-courtyard, three-bay layout, constructed with brick and stone. On both the east and west sides are two-story wing rooms, and there is a spacious stone-paved courtyard in front, enclosed by a stone wall. Unlike traditional temple architecture, the front hall of Lixiang Temple has only one door, positioned slightly to the right. Above the door is embedded a stone plaque inscribed with “Ancient Site of Lixiang.” The upper hall is the Mahavira Hall, featuring a flush-gable roof with red glazed tiles depicting two dragons facing a pagoda along the ridge. The hall is three bays deep and wide, with several pairs of finely polished stone pillars that are smooth and gleaming. Above, there are colorful, gold-trimmed brackets and beams, while the floor is paved with red bricks, complemented by gilded and inscribed pillar couplets, giving the space a grand and elegant appearance. In contrast, the lower hall appears more simple and austere, as the two halls were built in different eras. The three pairs of stone pillars in the courtyard and lower hall, along with one pair in the upper hall, are among the few remaining ancient structures. The calligraphy on the couplets features smooth, rounded strokes, with seal script that is plain and regular script that is restrained—very much embodying the Buddhist ideal of being “free from worldly smoke and fire.” Couplets such as “Leaving behind the myriad sufferings of the mundane world, arriving with a heart full of compassion” and “Leaving all worldly disasters behind, arriving at the boundless void of the ten-direction realm” carry profound Zen meanings and are considered one of the temple’s most thought-provoking Buddhist cultural landscapes. The lower hall is the Mahakarunika Hall, enshrining Guanyin Bodhisattva, facing the Mahavira Hall in the upper hall where Sakyamuni Buddha is worshipped. This arrangement is also unique compared to other temples.

Lixiang Temple has a long history, and the legends and anecdotes associated with it are equally rich and vivid. It is said that the original structure was not a temple but an academy, known as Lixiang Academy, built by Guanglu Doctor Zheng Jishi. At that time, two retired officials lived in the academy together, teaching local village children to read and write, as well as imparting lessons on how to conduct oneself. From then on, the local culture of valuing education flourished, greatly benefiting the villagers and scholars, and Lixiang Academy became well-known in nearby and distant villages. By the Yuan Dynasty, a man named Lu Qin oversaw the renovation of Lixiang Academy. Perhaps to honor the two retired officials who once taught and promoted culture there, or perhaps due to a dialectal homophone, the academy was renamed “Erxiang Academy” (literally “Two Officials Academy”).

Further Reading:

· Fifth Batch of Shanxi Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units