Main Hall of Cui Fu Jun Temple in Zhangzi

Main Hall of Cui Fu Jun Temple in Zhangzi

The Main Hall of Cui Fu Jun Temple in Zhangzi is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Main Hall of Cui Fu Jun Temple in Zhangzi (Seventh Batch National Heritage Site) Era: Jin Dynasty Address: Inside Zhangzi No.1 Middle School, East Street, Zhangzi County

From the Tang Dynasty until the Ming and Qing periods, in the southeast Shanxi region—Shangdang and Zezhou (modern-day Changzhi and Jincheng)—a type of temple rarely seen elsewhere, known as “Cui Fu Jun Temple,” was commonly found among the populace. Few people today are aware of the background or reasons behind it. The so-called “Cui Fu Jun” was originally named Cui Jue, courtesy name Yuanjing, a native of Leping (modern-day Xiyang County, Shanxi Province) from the late Sui to early Tang period. In the seventh year of the Zhenguan era (633 AD) of Emperor Taizong’s reign, Cui Yuanjing served as the magistrate of Zhangzi County. During his tenure, he enforced the law impartially, eradicated evil, and promoted virtue, earning a formidable reputation. Cui had strictly prohibited the killing of living beings, but one day, it was reported that a tiger was attacking people around Fajiu Mountain. Cui Yuanjing then sent officers to capture the tiger. Upon seeing the officials, the tiger followed them back to the county yamen. Cui Yuanjing, presiding over the court, enumerated the tiger’s crimes of harming humans, whereupon the tiger immediately confessed its guilt and threw itself down the steps to its death. From then on, the fame of Cui Fu Jun spread even more widely across the region. Cui Jue had been the magistrate of Zhangzi County during the reign of Emperor Taizong, but over a hundred years later, during the An Lushan Rebellion, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang actually dreamed of him—and immediately upon waking, posthumously conferred the title of “Manifest Saint, Protector of the Nation, Auspicious Response Marquis” upon the long-deceased Cui Jue. This may explain why “Cui Fu Jun Temples” are commonly found in the southeast Shanxi area.

Walking Through the Land of Shanxi: Touching and Sensing No. 128 (Main Hall of Cui Fu Jun Temple in Zhangzi)

Facing south. According to the “Luan Prefecture Annals,” various extant editions of the Zhangzi County Annals, and inscriptions preserved within the temple, the construction of Cui Fu Jun Temple dates no later than the second year of Daguan during the Northern Song Dynasty (1108 AD), with subsequent renovations in various dynasties. The original complex included a mountain gate, dance tower, offering pavilion, main hall, and sleeping palace, but today only the main hall remains. It has been used by Zhangzi Middle School since the liberation.

The main hall is situated on a high platform, featuring a five-bay width and four-bay depth, with a hip-and-gable roof covered in cylindrical tiles.

In May 2013, the Main Hall of Cui Fu Jun Temple in Zhangzi was announced as part of the Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Further Reading:

· Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units