Eastern Han Dynasty Yinzi Temple

Eastern Han Dynasty Yinzi Temple

The Eastern Han Dynasty Yinzi Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

Yinzi Temple is located in the western suburbs of the former Nanchuan County seat and enjoys widespread fame. In every respect, Yinzi Temple holds significant historical and cultural relic value.

The origins of Yinzi Temple have a certain historical background. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, the scholar Yin Zhen established a school in Nanchuan to give lectures, making great contributions to later generations. In the fifth year of the Guangxu reign of the Qing Dynasty, Magistrate Huang Jifei and scholar Xu Dachang built Yinzi Temple to commemorate Yin Zhen’s contributions. Since then, literati and scholars visiting Nanchuan often composed poems and verses in tribute to Master Yin, making it widely renowned far and wide, and establishing Nanchuan as one of the cradles of eastern Sichuan’s culture. Yinzi Temple is also one of only three ancient academies still existing in Chongqing today.

The wooden structure, large roof architectural features, carved beams and painted rafters, as well as the architectural aesthetics of harmony between man and nature designed in accordance with the mountain and water terrain of Yinzi Temple, are highly appreciated for their aesthetic value. In 1984, it was listed as a county-level cultural relics protection unit. On May 13, 2005, Wu Tao, Secretary-General of the Historic and Cultural City Protection Committee of Chongqing and senior engineer, along with his team, visited Yinzi Temple to assess its current condition. Secretary-General Wu Tao believed that Yinzi Temple possesses high cultural relic value in terms of history, culture, environment, and architecture, and fully deserves to be elevated to a municipal-level protected unit in Chongqing.

Eastern Han Dynasty Yinzi Temple opening hours: 8:00 AM – 5:30 PM.

“Learning first began in the southern region with Yin Zhen.” This refers to the great scholar Yin Zhen, who in the Eastern Han Dynasty walked thousands of miles to study under Xu Shen and Ying Feng from Runan, learning classics and cosmological charts. After completing his studies, he returned to his hometown to teach and was known as a distinguished figure of the southern regions. To commemorate the local scholar Yin Zhen, the former Fuyuan County built the “Yin Zhen Hometown Memorial Archway.”

Yin Zhen (79–162), courtesy name Daozhi, was a native of Pingyi County (now Fuyuan County, Yunnan Province). His birth and death dates are unknown, and he is known as the one “who initiated learning in the southern region.” In ancient times, the South Book Hall was built where the current county library stands, later referred to as the South Academy. A wooden memorial archway, about 7 meters high, was erected on Weipo Summit at the east gate street of the county seat... More details about Yin Zhen ++