Fanghu Rock Temple

Fanghu Rock Temple

Fanghu Rock Temple is a cultural heritage site protected at the provincial level in Fujian Province.

Fanghu Rock is located in Shuiwei Village, Pangu Township, Yongtai County, and gets its name from the mountain and rock formations that resemble the shape of a teapot.

The main complex of Fanghu Rock consists of structures such as the Holy Lord Hall, Guanyin Hall, Qielan Hall, Buddha Hall, Wenchang Pavilion, Study Tower, meditation rooms, rain shelter, and memorial archway—all built using traditional folk methods with stone and wood structures and hip-and-gable roofs. The slopes are relatively gentle, differing from the architecture of the Ming and Qing dynasties in northern China. In front of the memorial archway stands a pair of stone lions with an ancient design, heavily weathered, believed to be originals from the Song Dynasty.

Behind the temple, a stone path leads up the mountain. The rock formation is small and resembles a rock garden, with interconnected caves and peculiar rocks densely scattered across the scenic area—all related to the legends of Zhang Shengjun.

Additionally, on a nearby hilltop of Fanghu Rock, there is a “Heavenly Lake.” Folklore claims it to be a piece of jade lost by Nüwa while mending the sky, but it is actually a reservoir formed by dam construction in recent years, with crude pavilions and bridges.

In the ninth year of the Shaoxing era of the Song Dynasty (1139 AD), Zhang Sheng was born in Yuezhou Village, Songkou Town, Yongtai County. In the twelfth year of Shaoxing (1142 AD), he moved with his mother to the Lian family in Pangu after her remarriage. Growing up, he made a living by gathering firewood and selling hoe handles, earning the nickname “Zhang Hoe Handle.”

In the third year of the Chunxi era (1176 AD), Zhang Ciguan, along with Xiao Faming and Lian Zongqiang, traveled to Mount Lu in Jiangxi (present-day Longhu Mountain) to study Taoism under the Celestial Master Zhang. After completing his studies, he traveled across Fujian, Jiangxi, and Zhejiang, eliminating evildoers, bringing peace to the land, healing the sick, and saving lives—gaining widespread fame. (Folklore also tells of him slaying snakes, driving away evil spirits, and relieving the people’s hardships.) Zhang Shengjun pioneered martial arts styles such as the Ox Style and Monkey Style, which differ significantly from northern martial arts and came to be known as “Southern Fist,” spreading far and wide.

In the tenth year of the Chunxi era (1183 AD), Zhang Shengjun passed away. Local officials reported his deeds to the imperial court, and he was posthumously honored with the title “Great Master Linlei Sanyuan Pujidashi of the Universal Heaven Law.” The villagers built the “Fanghu Temple” using his skull to create a statue for worship, referring to it as the “Mother Hall of Zhang Shengjun.”

In the second year of the Zhizheng era of the Yuan Dynasty (1342 AD), Wang Yongwen, Xue Chaowu, Zheng Ye, and Hu Zundao visited Fanghu Rock and inscribed a stone tablet to commemorate the visit.

In the second year of the Longqing era of the Ming Dynasty (1568 AD), Fanghu Temple was rebuilt.

In the fifteenth year of the Chongzhen era (1642 AD), Cao Xuequan visited Fanghu Rock and inscribed the words “Shanzhuang Xiu Yu” (meaning “The landscape is beautifully nurtured”).

In 1967, during the Cultural Revolution, Fanghu Temple was destroyed.

In 1980, the resident monk of the mountain, De Tong, along with his disciple Sun Zhaoyou, rebuilt Fanghu Temple.

In November 1992, Yongtai County was awarded the title of one of the first “Martial Arts Towns” in China by the State Physical Culture and Sports Commission.

In November 2009, as an affiliated cultural relic of the “Fanghu Rock Cliff Inscriptions,” it was listed as a seventh-batch provincial-level cultural heritage site.

Shuiwei Village: Shuiwei Village is located in the central part of Pangu Township in the northwestern mountainous region of Yongtai County, approximately 26 kilometers from the county seat. The village governs six natural villages, 19 villager groups, with a total of 467 households and a population of 1,893. The total land area of the village is about 7,044.11 mu, including 1,931.57 mu of arable land and 4,208.91 mu of forested land. In 2009, the per capita net income of the villagers was 5,274 yuan.

Shuiwei Village has a subtropical mountain climate, with an average annual temperature of 19.2°C, extreme high temperature of 38.6°C, extreme low temperature of -3.5°C, and a safe growing period for rice of 1... More detailed information about Shuiwei Village++