Houyan Observation Spot

Houyan Observation Spot

Houyan Observation Spot

Houyan Observation Spot is located in the west of the village and is a county-level cultural heritage site. During the Yuan Dynasty, it was the villa of the Song family. In the Ming Dynasty, it was converted into a Taoist temple, consisting of the Zhenwu Hall, the Three Pure Ones Hall, and the Sanyuan Pavilion. It was destroyed by fire during the Republican era but was later restored through funds raised by the local church. In the eighth year of the Shunzhi reign (1652) of the Qing Dynasty, Qian Bangqi, the governor of Guizhou, visited here and inscribed a plaque on the mountain that read “...”

In the eighth year of the Shunzhi reign (1652), Qian Bangqi, the governor of Guizhou, visited here and inscribed a plaque on the mountain that read “Why Must It Be Stone Bridge?” In the eleventh year of the Shunzhi reign (1655), Qian Bangqi became a monk at Pushong Tashan in Yuqing, where he had retired, adopting the monastic name Dacuo. Later, he visited Houyan twice more and stayed for some time. The *Weng'an County Annals* contain poems and essays by Qian Bangqi such as *Staying at Houyan: A Gift to Mountain Owner Song Yun* and *Record of Houyan at Caotang*. During his stay at Houyan, Qian Bangqi also named several of the mountain’s peculiar peaks and rocks, such as “Horned Stone,” “Five Elders Peak,” “Concave Rock,” “Exquisite Stone,” and “How Different from Penglai,” though most have eroded over time and are no longer clearly visible.