Shuicheng Guanyin Temple

Shuicheng Guanyin Temple

Shuicheng Guanyin Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

Shuicheng Guanyin Temple, originally named Guanyin Pavilion, is located in Zhonghuan Community, Hecheng Subdistrict Office, Zhongshan District (within the old city). It was built during the Jiaqing reign of the Qing Dynasty. Later, due to wars, the temple fell into disrepair, monks dispersed, and incense offerings dwindled. Nevertheless, devout worshippers still frequently came here to pray. In 1993, benefactors from all over formed a preparatory committee, with Yang Mingxian as the director, and raised over 8,000 yuan under the guise of restoring cultural relics to rebuild Guanyin Pavilion. The foundation-laying ceremony was held on May 19, 1993, attended by Zhou Shaobang, Vice Chairman of the Municipal People's Congress, Lu Guanhua, Director of the Municipal Ethnic Affairs Commission, Kong Lingzhong, Secretary of the Shuicheng County Party Committee, and religious figures such as Master Shengzhong, head of Hongfu Temple. In 1994, Shi Tongguang was recommended by Master Shengzhong of Hongfu Temple to become the abbot of Shuicheng Guanyin Pavilion. On November 13, 2000, the People's Government of Shuicheng County officially approved Shuicheng Guanyin Pavilion as a formal Buddhist activity site in the document Shuifu Fa [2000] No. 65, and listed it as a key cultural relic protection unit.

On June 10, 2003, the temple raised 724,000 yuan to construct the Mahavira Hall. In early April 2004, 160,000 yuan was raised to bring six white marble Buddha statues (including a 13-ton statue of Sakyamuni Buddha) from Ruili. On July 9 of the same year, during the installation of the statues and the demolition of the Kuixing Tower, a stone stele was unearthed in the west wall, measuring 139mm in length and 78mm in width, with intact inscriptions. The beginning of the inscription reads, "Constructed in March of the 13th year of the Jiaqing reign, with the names of benefactors who donated to the Guanyin Temple Mountain Gate listed below," and the end bears the words, "Early summer, 18th year of Jiaqing." This confirmed that Shuicheng Guanyin Temple was indeed built in the 13th year of the Jiaqing reign (1808), making it 199 years old. According to the stele, 53 people collectively donated 436.5 taels of silver for the construction of the "Guanyin Temple Mountain Gate," including local government officials such as "Zhang Baolan of the Shuicheng Qing Army Prefecture and He Ziwen of the Shuicheng Zhaoting Office." In March 2005, based on the stele’s records, Shuicheng Guanyin Pavilion submitted a report to the Shuicheng County Ethnic and Religious Affairs Bureau requesting a name change, which was approved on March 7, officially renaming it Guanyin Temple.

In 2005, the Shuicheng County government relocated to Shuangshui, and the old city area where Shuicheng Guanyin Temple is located was assigned to the Zhongshan Development Zone. Due to geographical constraints, the Shuicheng County Ethnic and Religious Affairs Bureau faced many difficulties in managing the temple. Consequently, the bureau submitted a report (Shuimin Zongzi [2006] No. 17) to the municipal ethnic and religious affairs bureau, requesting that the Zhongshan District Ethnic and Religious Affairs Bureau take over management. On December 4, 2006, the municipal bureau issued the document Shizong Fa [2006] No. 1, approving the transfer of management to Zhongshan District in accordance with the principle of territorial administration. The temple was then managed by the Zhongshan District Ethnic and Religious Affairs Bureau, with registration and certification procedures carried out in line with the Regulations on Religious Affairs. On April 6, 2007, the Zhongshan District Ethnic and Religious Affairs Bureau officially took over the temple with the issuance of Zhongzu Zongfa [2007] No. 3.

The temple currently has one Mahavira Hall, a three-story Guanyin building, a temporary dining hall, and a temporary guest reception room. It houses 29 full sets of white marble Buddha statues, has five resident monks, around 800 Buddhist disciples, and a nine-member temple management team. It is currently the only legally recognized Buddhist activity site in our district.

Hecheng Subdistrict: Hecheng Subdistrict is located in Zhongshan District, Liupanshui City, Guizhou Province. Overall, Hecheng Subdistrict has unique development advantages, primarily its superior geographical location. Situated in the city center, it enjoys convenient transportation and a special geographic position. It borders Shuangshui in Shuicheng County to the east, Huangtupo Subdistrict Office to the west, Fenghuang Subdistrict Office to the south, and Faqing Township of Shuicheng County to the north. The local economy is developing rapidly. Secondly, it benefits from well-developed urban infrastructure. As a direct beneficiary of the district committee and government’s efforts to accelerate urban infrastructure construction and promote the “Cool City · Liupanshui” brand, Hecheng Subdistrict has seen continuous improvements alongside the “11th...” More details about Hecheng Subdistrict ++