Cifu Temple

Cifu Temple

Cifu Temple is a cultural relic protection unit of Sichuan Province.

In Zhongcun Village, Shuangfu Town, at the northern entrance of Emeishan City, there lies a temple — Cifu Temple — the only one located outside Mount Emei. Originally named “Boyunsan Nunnery,” Cifu Ancient Temple was founded in the second year of the Jianyan era during the Southern Song Dynasty (1128 AD). It was a nunnery monastery, named after Boyun Mountain. In the early years of the Hongwu reign of the Ming Dynasty, it was rebuilt by Monk Zhiyuan and renamed “Pudu Temple.” Though not large in size, the temple houses the world’s largest porcelain Buddha. Over the centuries, it has gone through several name changes. What kind of ancient temple is this? What untold stories lie behind these changes?

Starting from downtown Emeishan City, cross the Chengdu-Kunming Railway at the border between Shuangfu Town and Jiajiang County. A short walk along the field ridges will bring you to the grounds of Cifu Temple. As you climb the steps, lush cypresses line both sides, and the scent of incense wafts into view from the temple above. This quaint, rustic, courtyard-style Buddhist temple is a unique combination of farming and monastic life. The entire structure is made of wood, featuring a post-and-lintel beam frame, a blend of hip-and-gable and suspended roof styles, and is covered with small green tiles — all bearing distinct characteristics of traditional architecture in western Sichuan.

Legend has it that in the early years of the Yongle reign of the Ming Dynasty, Monk Huiguang of the temple once traveled to Jingdezhen in Jiangxi to solicit donations for a porcelain statue of Guanyin, but returned empty-handed. On the eighth day of the fourth lunar month in the thirteenth year of Yongle (1415), a dispute arose between Jingdezhen porcelain merchant Xie Yuanfang and local businessman Tian Wan’ao while settling accounts in Emei. Monk Huiguang earnestly mediated, and eventually Xie and Tian reconciled. To show their gratitude, Xie and Tian pledged to commission the casting of a large porcelain statue of Vairocana Buddha in Jingdezhen. When the statue was transported to Emei and enshrined in the temple, the temple’s name was changed to “Cifu Temple.”