Guangrenwang Temple (Wulong Temple)

Guangrenwang Temple (Wulong Temple)

Guangrenwang Temple (Wulong Temple) is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Guangrenwang Temple (Fifth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units)

Era: Tang Dynasty

Location: 4 km north of Ruicheng County, on the northern side of Zhonglongquan Village

The temple is named after the Five Dragon Springs in front of it and enshrines the Water God, who was granted the title “Guangrenwang” (Broad-Mercy King). Locals respectfully call him the “Five Dragon King,” hence the temple is also known as “Wulong Temple.” The exact date of the temple’s founding is unknown. The existing main hall is a structure dating back to the fifth year of the Taihe era of the Tang Dynasty (833 AD), making it one of only four surviving wooden structures from the Tang Dynasty in China. The front performance pavilion was rebuilt during the Qing Dynasty.

The temple faces south and is relatively small in scale, consisting of a stage, side rooms, and the main hall. The main hall has a five-bay-wide and three-bay-deep structure with a single-eave hip-and-gable roof. It has a square floor plan, with a platform base 1.2 meters high. There is no terrace in front of the hall. The central bay of the front façade features a plank door, the two adjacent bays have lattice windows, and the two side bays are slightly smaller. Sixteen perimeter columns are all built into the walls. Only architraves are used on the columns, with no plate rails; at the corners, the architraves do not protrude. Under the eaves, only column-top bracket sets are installed, while those on the secondary beams are absent. The bracket arms are short. The roof eaves are gently upturned. The lower parts of the side columns feature carved beams and painted rafters. The upper parts of the front and rear columns are exposed, creating a strong contrast between light and shadow. The wooden structure is simple yet elegant, exuding an ancient charm.

Four stone steles with inscriptions are embedded in the walls of the two side bays of the front eaves of the main hall. Among them, two are from the Tang Dynasty: one is the “Record of Guangrenwang Dragon Spring Temple” by Pei Shaohui of Hedong in the third year of the Yuanhe era (808 AD), and the other is the “Record of the Dragon Spring” from the sixth year of the Dazhong era (832 AD). These are important historical materials for studying the history of Guangrenwang Temple and the development of ancient Chinese water conservancy.

Attraction Location

4 km north of Ruicheng County, Yuncheng City, Shanxi Province, on the northern part of the ruins of the ancient Wei city of Guorui

Opening Hours

Open to enter the hall on the first and fifteenth days of the lunar month; normally closed but the courtyard can be accessed through an opening

Transportation

Transportation is relatively inconvenient; about a 20-minute walk from the Yongle Palace or hire a car to get there

Further Reading:

· Fifth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units