Kuoda HuiLong Temple

Kuoda HuiLong Temple

Kuoda HuiLong Temple is a cultural heritage site protected at the provincial level in Sichuan Province.

In Fazi Tou Village, Kuoda Tibetan Township, Pingwu County, there is a HuiLong Temple with a history of over 300 years. In its heyday, HuiLong Temple served as an important post station along the route from Longzhou to Songpan, Gansu, and beyond, while also functioning as a theater. It is the best-preserved Qing Dynasty ancient building in northwestern Sichuan that combines both a theater and a post station.

HuiLong Temple faces south and sits against a mountain, with the Fu River flowing directly in front of it. Research suggests that the temple was originally built in the 13th year of the Kangxi reign during the Qing Dynasty (1674), making it an early Qing-period structure. It consists of a performance stage (theater), the main hall, and side halls arranged in a traditional quadrangle courtyard. Flanking the theater are additional wooden structures, all two-story, similar to the theater itself. The theater also serves as the main gate, with entrance to the temple passing beneath the stage. The theater stage faces inward toward the courtyard; it features carved bracket arms, central beams adorned with carved figures in theatrical costumes, ornately carved panels at the front edge of the stage, and traditional local polychrome paintings on the upper beams. Murals adorn the side walls—detailed and refined, though most have unfortunately been damaged.

According to historical accounts, during the Qing Dynasty, this location was a bustling waterfront dock, post station, and garrison post, attracting considerable activity and leading to the formation of a small market town. As a result, a temple—and a theatrical stage—were constructed here to serve holiday fairs and religious festivals.

According to officials from the county’s cultural relics management office, HuiLong Temple retains a complete traditional layout representative of folk temple fairs. Its architecture showcases high craftsmanship; it functions as a shrine unifying Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, and is one of the few well-preserved ancient theatrical stages remaining in northwestern Sichuan. It serves as important material evidence for the study of ancient post road culture, temple fair traditions, and the history of Sichuan opera. In 2006, HuiLong Temple was designated as a provincial-level cultural heritage site.

Protected area: 20 meters outward from the theater in the south, 5 meters outward from the main hall in the north, up to the small stream east of the side halls, and 2 meters outward from the side halls in the west.

Construction control zone: 20 meters beyond the protected area boundary.