Dingxiang Guanwang Temple

Dingxiang Guanwang Temple

Dingxiang Guanwang Temple is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Dingxiang Guanwang Temple is located at Beiguan in Dingxiang County, Xinzhou City, Shanxi Province. In its early days, it served as the west side hall of Shousheng Temple. The original main hall was dedicated to Li Da’en, the King of Dingxiang during the Tang Dynasty, and to Li Jing, the Spirit-Manifesting King, during the Song Dynasty’s Xuanhe era. The east side hall enshrined the Jade Emperor, while the west side hall enshrined Guanwang. Later, the temple fell into disuse, and now only the west side hall remains. Inside the hall, there is a stele from the Yuan Zhi Zheng era and a stone tablet from the eighth year of the Jin Taihe era.

The stone tablet erected in the eighth year of the Jin Taihe era, "Record of the New Construction of Guanwang Temple," states: “A general should be guided by righteousness, supported by bravery and martial prowess, in order to stand above public criticism. Looking to the Three Kingdoms period, one finds such a man in the Shu general, Lord Guan. According to his biography, his name was Guan Yu, style name Yunchang, and he was a native of Xie in Hedong. At that time, his might shook the Central Plains, and his military achievements were numerous. His deeds became widely known, leading to his posthumous title as the Martial and Peaceful King of Zhao Lie. Among the common people, he was often worshipped as a deity.” Accordingly, in the eighth year of the Jin Taihe era (1208 AD), the county of Dingxiang created a statue of Guanwang, making this one of the earliest known Guanwang temples still in existence in China.

The Guanwang Temple faces east and has three bays in width and two in depth. It features a single-eave hip-and-gable roof, ornamental ridge tiles with colorful glaze, green-glazed tiles with trimmed edges, round ridge-end tiles, and triangular water spouts. The roof ridge is adorned with polychrome glazed figures; the ridge-end ornaments curve inward, originally green-glazed but now revealing the red clay beneath due to glaze wear—exuding an ancient charm, likely dating to the Ming Dynasty. The central columns of the front eaves have been shifted 183 cm outward from the side bays, resulting in an unusually large central bay, which is three times the width of the side bays. The central bay is fitted with a panel door, whose frame is original, adorned with two horizontal rectangular door knockers. On either side of the door are lattice windows—no longer original but likely in their original positions. The door is equipped with a casing made using smooth-surfaced edging and textured surface techniques, resulting in great aesthetic appeal. The door casing dates to the sixth year of the Zhi Zheng era, though the door panels are no longer present. The side bays and the gable walls are solid structures built from adobe bricks, coated inside and out with white lime and painted with red earth on the exterior.

In May 2006, Dingxiang Guanwang Temple, as an ancient building from the Song Dynasty, was approved by the State Council for inclusion in the sixth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Beiguan Village: Beiguan is one of the five villages within Jinchang Town. It has 1,908 mu of arable land. In 2009, the total grain output reached 955,000 kg, total rural economic income hit 23.53 million yuan, and per capita income reached 5,938 yuan. The village currently has 55 collective and private enterprises, employing 750 people, with business revenue totaling 187.7 million yuan in 2009.

…… More details about Beiguan Village ++

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units