Zijin Taoist Temple

Zijin Taoist Temple

Originally named Tianhou Palace, Zijin Taoist Temple is located at Feifenggang in Anliang, Zijin County, and serves as the center of Taoist activities in the area. The original site of Tianhou Palace was in the downtown area of the county seat and was first built during the late Ming Dynasty, boasting a history of over 400 years. After its construction, the temple repeatedly displayed miraculous signs, attracting continuous and enduring streams of worshippers. Due to various historical reasons, Tianhou Palace was eventually damaged. After the reform and opening-up period, devotees continued to worship at the original site, with incense burning growing stronger day by day and worshippers flocking in ever-increasing numbers. Considering the congestion, heavy incense smoke, and traffic disruptions caused by the temple’s central urban location, the government decided in 1992 to relocate it to Xinggong at Feifenggang in Anliang, Zijin County. In 1994, Master Hou Baoyuan, the leader of Hong Kong’s Ching Chung Taoist Temple, along with several other Taoist masters, visited the site multiple times for inspection and declared it to be: backed by Gongshan Ridge, facing Bijia Mountain, with a flag on the left and a drum on the right — all elements in perfect harmony, radiating a strong Taoist aura and symbolizing enduring divine fortune. They identified it as an auspicious site for enshrining deities, stating that constructing a temple there would surely bring divine power, national prosperity, and peace. As a result, they proposed expanding Tianhou Palace by adding two major architectural complexes at the front and rear, elevating it to the status of Zijin Taoist Temple. This proposal was approved by the government, and “Tianhou Palace” was thus upgraded and renamed “Zijin Taoist Temple.” Following the assessment by Master Hou Baoyuan and fellow Taoist masters, the foundation was laid on an auspicious day to begin construction of the front and rear palace complexes.

Approved by the government, Zijin Taoist Temple was allocated a land area of 36 mu. The main project consists of three grand palace complexes: front, middle, and rear. To date, the following have been completed: the 0 Hall, the God of Wealth Hall, the Tai Sui Hall, the Tianhou Hall, the Bell Tower, the Drum Tower, side halls, and the Three Pure Ones Palace — all designed in classic Chinese architectural style. Each hall is fully equipped with golden statues of deities, offering tables, and corresponding facilities. A liberation pond has also been constructed, enriching the Taoist cultural elements throughout the temple. Over thirty sets of pillar couplets and some murals have been crafted, with a total investment of more than 10 million RMB (including a donation of 2.78 million RMB in cash from the Board of Directors of Hong Kong’s Ching Chung Taoist Temple, approximately 1 million RMB spent on crafting the statues, totaling 3.78 million RMB). Today, Zijin Taoist Temple has taken initial shape, standing majestically as one of the major religious and tourist attractions in the Guangdong region.

Zijin Taoist Temple currently has nine disciples of the Ching Chung sect and 231 registered followers. Morning rituals are conducted regularly, and Taoist ceremonies are held on the first and fifteenth days of each lunar month. Although the temple has reached a basic scale, there are additional planned structures yet to be built: the front gatehouse, the main driveway, the parking lot, the Merit Hall, the Vegetarian Restaurant, the Cihang Hall, and the Jade Emperor Hall. Due to financial constraints, these projects await further funding. We sincerely appeal to philanthropists and people of goodwill to support this virtuous cause and help complete the overall construction of the temple as soon as possible.

Covering a land area of 24,000 square meters with a building area of 15,000 square meters, Zijin Taoist Temple was constructed with donations totaling over 30 million RMB from Hong Kong’s Ching Chung Taoist Temple and various sectors of society. Its design is modeled after Hong Kong’s Tianhou Palace, featuring red walls, yellow tiles, upturned glazed eaves, and carved beams and painted rafters.

The entire temple complex consists of three main halls: front, middle, and rear. The front hall is called the “- Hall,” with a pair of stone lions originally from the old site placed at the front. The temple gate is inscribed with the name “Zijin Taoist Temple,” and flanked by stone-carved couplets reading: “Purple aura and auspicious light spread profound mysteries; golden scriptures and jade halls ferry all beings.” The center of the - Hall enshrines the mighty deity Wang Lingguan. At the back of the hall, on the left and right sides, are the God of Wealth Hall, the Tai Sui Hall, the Merit Corridor, and the Liberation Pond. The middle hall is the “Tianhou Palace,” situated two meters higher than the - Hall, serving as a place for devotees to conduct morning and evening prayers and offer incense. At the front of the hall stands an iron incense burner cast in the 55th year of the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty (1790) by a person surnamed Li. The door pillars bear the couplet: “The Purple Mansion, a celestial abode aligned with the virtues of water, aids seafarers alongside the compassionate ferry; the jade towers and palaces, embodying the motherly figure of the Queen, shine anew in ancestral worship.” The central altar of Tianhou Palace enshrines the statues and seated images of the Three Goddesses — Chen, Lin, and Li. The rear hall is the “Three Pure Ones Hall,” tall and majestic, with the central altar dedicated to the Yuanshi Tianzun, flanked by the Lingbao Tianzun and the Daode Tianzun, each deity uniquely depicted. The entire temple complex is grand, solemn, and rich in traditional charm, earning the reputation as the premier Taoist temple in eastern Guangdong.