South Bao'en Temple

South Bao'en Temple

South Bao'en Temple is a Sichuan Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Bao'en Temple is situated at the junction of Gaoling and Shuangqiao villages in Guangzhong Township, with a construction area of 26,036 square meters. It features a uniquely charming ancient architectural style and majestic presence, adding luster to the long-standing and vibrant community of Guangzhong. Approved as a municipal-level key cultural relics protection unit in 2003, historical records indicate that the temple originated during the Tang Dynasty. Having endured for hundreds of years, it has become a sacred Buddhist site for both local residents of Guangzhong and surrounding towns, attracting countless worshippers who come to pray and make wishes each year. Today, it stands as a scenic attraction not only for the local area but also for Nanbu County and Nanchong City. Before 2003, Bao'en Temple shared its land and buildings with Guangzhong Township No. 2 Primary School in Nanbu County—essentially a school within a temple and a temple within a school. Children who studied there have particularly deep emotional connections to Bao'en Temple. Especially memorable is the grand cypress tree symbolizing the temple, which generations of second-grade pupils wrote about in their diaries and compositions, often under titles like "My School" and "Bao'en Temple."

Due to Bao'en Temple’s remote location and weak local cultural relics protection efforts—even instances of locals damaging relics in the past—the site was not designated as a cultural relics protection unit until 2003.

It wasn’t until June 2003 that the Nanchong Municipal Government announced the second batch of 26 municipal-level cultural relics protection units, which included Bao'en Temple in Guangzhong Township, Nanbu County.

After 2003, restoration work on Bao'en Temple began along with enhanced cultural relics protection. Guangzhong Township No. 2 Primary School was relocated to the town center of Guangzhong. In 2007, Bao'en Temple was officially listed as a Sichuan Provincial Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit. The temple truly became an independent place of worship and a dedicated protected cultural heritage area. Currently, the protected site includes structures such as the Mahavira Hall, Heavenly King Hall, Guanyin Hall, Kṣitigarbha Hall, Bell and Drum Towers, among others.

The Mahavira Hall is a single-eave, hip-and-gable roof structure with bracket sets, facing east and west. The total width spans three bays at 18 meters, with a depth of 11.2 meters. The eave columns are 6 meters high, and the central ridge reaches 9 meters. The roof is covered with blue tiles, though the once elaborate and ornate ridge decorations were damaged during the Cultural Revolution. The roof framework consists of an eight-rafter system with front and rear breast rafters supported by five columns and four rafter pairs. There are two corner bracket sets, two column-top bracket sets, and four intercolumnar bracket sets, all following the fifth-grade, heart-skipping style. Each bracket projects diagonally at a 45-degree angle from the ang, all carved in the shape of elephant trunks. The entire timber structure uses exceptionally large materials, with column diameters generally around 60 centimeters, circular column bases about 80 centimeters in diameter, though only protruding about 5 centimeters above ground level.

Bao'en Temple is not recorded in the "Nanbu County Annals," but it is mentioned in the "Baoning Prefecture Annals": "The tomb stele of Tang Daoxi is located in Bao'en Temple." Inscriptions found on the beams state: "Zhao Hao □ built Spider Hermitage, rebuilt and renamed Bao'en Temple during the Zhengde era of the Ming Dynasty. On the first day of the first lunar month in the eleventh year of the Shunzhi reign of the Qing Dynasty (year of Jiaxu), the main hall was restored to its former glory." The meaning of "Zhao Hao" inscribed on the beam is unclear. Among Chinese dynastic reign titles, only two include the character "Zhao": in 189 AD, when the Eastern Han’s Emperor Shao Liu Bian changed the reign title to Zhao Ning after Emperor Ling; and in 1678, when Wu Sangui declared himself emperor of the short-lived Zhou dynasty in Yunnan, using the reign title Zhao Wu for just two years before his death, after which his son Wu Shifan changed it to Zhao Wu. Thus, the meaning of "Zhao Hao" remains puzzling. The □ character is illegible, but based on the mention of reconstruction during the Zhengde era of the Ming Dynasty, it can be inferred that the temple was built prior to the Zhengde period. The term "Spider Hermitage" is suspected to be a mishearing or misspelling of "Purple Bamboo Hermitage."

Originally, Bao'en Temple was a large complex, featuring halls such as the Heavenly King Hall, Mahavira Hall, Guanyin Hall, and Kṣitigarbha Hall, along with numerous inscribed couplets and plaques. However, these were destroyed in the 1950s and during the Cultural Revolution. Given its historical and scientific significance, it has since been designated as a provincial-level cultural relics protection unit.

Protected Area: The site extends 15 meters eastward to Yuannao Ding Mountain, 35 meters southward to the original school gate, 20 meters westward to the ancient cypress tree, and 10 meters northward.