Xiangyuan Zhaoze King Temple

Xiangyuan Zhaoze King Temple

Xiangyuan Zhaoze King Temple is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Guozhuang Zhaoze King Temple is located in Guozhuang Village, Wangqiao Town, Xiangyuan County. It faces south and features a three-courtyard layout, measuring 26 meters east-west and 68 meters north-south, covering an area of 1,768 square meters. Originally built in the 27th year of the Dading era of the Jin Dynasty (1187), the main hall retains structures from the Jin Dynasty, while the other buildings date back to the Qing Dynasty. Along the central axis from south to north, only the mountain gate and the main hall remain; on both sides, there are five front-court east and west wing rooms, five east and west side towers, and three east and west side rooms respectively; in the rear courtyard, there are three east and west side towers, three east and west side rooms, and three east and west wing halls respectively; on both sides of the wing halls, there is also one small east and west cross-courtyard each, each with a three-room main hall, the west cross-courtyard featuring a Qing Dynasty round gate, and the east cross-courtyard gate being newly built. The main hall’s deep bracket joints prominently feature Jin Dynasty style, with front-eave bracket sets, substitute beams, and eave pillars all being Jin Dynasty relics; within the interior beam framework, felt hat-style camel humps and two-lobed camel humps, combined slabs,蜀 columns, forked hands, all maintain the architectural style of the Jin Dynasty, with three-wooden rafters being uniformly arranged, and the upper eaves remaining intact. The hall does not have side corridors, and the corner rooms are also absent. In 2006, it was announced by the State Council as a National Protected Unit.

The Zhaoze King is a deity unique to Xiangyuan. Legend has it that Taoist Jiao, whose secular name was Jiao Qi, was born on the fifth day of the seventh month in the ninth year of the Xiantong era of Emperor Yizong of Tang (869) in Situ Village, Changle Township, Xiangyuan County. It is said that on the night he was born, his home was filled with a fragrant aroma that lasted all night. Before the age of seven, his hands were clenched, and he neither spoke nor made a sound, leading his family to think he was mentally disabled. On the first day of the third month when he turned seven, suddenly his hands stretched out, his spirit brightened, and he spoke fluently. He told his mother, “Tomorrow my master will come.” The next day, indeed a Taoist came to the door and taught him books on astronomy, geography, the Book of Changes, and Qimen (mystic gates). Taoist Jiao studied daily, remembering everything he read and mastering it all. He then sought out various extraordinary masters, trained diligently, and acquired skills to subdue demons, ward off evil, ride clouds, and fog. Later, he cultivated himself at the Dragon Cave seventy li northeast of Xiangyuan County and ascended to immortality. Whenever he prayed for rain, it would come, and emperors throughout the dynasties bestowed titles upon him. In the second year of the Qingtai era of the Later Tang Dynasty (935), he was titled “Spiritual Marquis”; in the fourth year of the Tianfu era of the Later Jin Dynasty (946), he was further honored as the Zhaoze King. When Kublai Khan crossed the sea for southern campaigns during the Yuan Dynasty, he was additionally titled the Sea God King. In the seventh year of the Hongwu era of the Ming Dynasty, he was renamed the God of the Sea. At that time, people from surrounding regions such as Zhangde Prefecture, Shunde Prefecture, Shangdang Commandery, as well as counties like Wuxiang, Licheng, Liaozhou, Heshun, She County, and Linzhou, flocked to the Dragon Cave to pray for rain, and every prayer was answered. Successive titles were conferred, including “Sea Dragon King” and “Prosperous Sea God King.” Various states, prefectures, and counties erected stone tablets to commemorate these events. The people regarded him as a “dragon” who could command wind and rain, calling him the “Jiao Dragon God.”

There are many folk legends about Taoist Jiao. It is said that his mother became pregnant after eating a peach that floated down the Zhang River and was subsequently driven out of her home by his father, giving birth to him in the Dragon Cave. As he grew up, he worked as a farmhand for a landlord, often outwitting the landlord—making oxen thin or fat within a day, planting a single sorghum stalk that yielded a full granary, and so on. Another legend says he fought and killed the drought demon, bringing rain to the people. Beloved by generations, he was revered as a deity.

In May 2013, Xiangyuan Zhaoze King Temple was announced as part of the seventh batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Guozhuang Village: Basic Information about Guozhuang Village

Guozhuang Village is located in the southeastern part of Xiangyuan County, adjacent to the Wuyang Mining Field to the west, bordering the Lubao Group to the south, and close to the under-construction Xiangkuang Methyl Glycol Project to the north. The Xiangli Highway runs north of the village, and it is only 3 kilometers away from the Taijiao Railway and Yuhuang Highway. The village has 495 households, a total population of 1,936, with 5,325 mu of arable land and a total area of 8.5 square kilometers. It is one of the villages with larger land area in Wangqiao Town and even Xiangyuan County, boasting convenient transportation, vast land, abundant resources, and outstanding people.

Over the past few years, under the leadership of party committees and governments at all levels... Detailed information about Guozhuang Village++

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Shanxi Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Sixth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units