Shijiazhuang Zhenxiang Temple

Shijiazhuang Zhenxiang Temple

Shijiazhuang Zhenxiang Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

Zhenxiang Temple is located in Nanjianliang Village, Qiaoxi District, Shijiazhuang. It is said that the temple was built in the first year of Emperor Wu of Han, originally named Yinlong Temple, and was renamed Zhenxiang Temple in the second year of Xiping during the Northern Wei Dynasty. Inscriptions in the temple record that it was built in the first year of Xianqing during the Tang Dynasty, when a General Zhang constructed a three-bay Buddha hall, a three-bay rear hall, a five-bay scripture lecture hall, and two corridors on either side. If the records are accurate, the scale of the temple complex during the Tang Dynasty was not particularly grand, and it only ranked as a medium-sized temple.

The original temple complex covered over forty acres, featuring five main halls, two auxiliary halls, and earthen walls. These included a three-room Hall of Heavenly Kings, a five-room Mahavira Hall, a three-room Guanyin Hall, a three-room Vajra Hall, and a five-room Dharma Hall. On either side of the Mahavira Hall were two auxiliary halls dedicated to Sangharama and the Patriarchs. The Hall of Heavenly Kings also had bell and drum towers on its sides. It is said that in the old days, from the upper floors of the Mahavira Hall at Zhengding’s Great Buddha Temple, one could see the Mahavira Hall of Zhenxiang Temple more than twenty li away—illustrating just how grand the main hall of Zhenxiang Temple was. The scale of the temple's construction also exceeded the Tang Dynasty scope described in the inscriptions.

During the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty, Jianliang Village was hit by floods and split into three parts: East, West, and South Jianliang Villages. Historical records from Qing Dynasty county annals describe the Zhenxiang Temple Fair as a famous fair in Huailu County, commonly known as the “Three Jianliang Temple Fair.” It gained renown across Hebei, Shanxi, Beijing, and Tianjin, becoming a grand event and developing into a large-scale goods exchange market. At the time, the Zhengtai Railway even added an extra train service to accommodate the fair, demonstrating its massive scale and influence.

Before liberation, the temple had already fallen into disrepair—the bell and drum towers were destroyed, and the Mahavira Hall was repurposed as a watchtower. After liberation, the rear hall was converted into a school in response to the “Convert Temples into Schools” movement. Later, during the Cultural Revolution, the temple was completely demolished. During the restoration process, four pieces of white marble Buddha statues were discovered at the temple ruins. According to experts, these statues date back to the Northern Qi period and are of extremely high cultural value, providing evidence of the temple’s long history and representing a rare Buddhist relic in Hebei’s Buddhist community.

Transportation Guide

Location: Nan Sanjian Road, Qiaoxi District, Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province

Transportation: Take bus routes 11, 61, or others within Shijiazhuang city and get off at Zhenxiang Temple stop.