Furong Temple

Furong Temple

Furong Temple is a cultural tourism attraction.

Furong Temple on Furong Mountain can be seen from many parts of Shaoguan City. It is located halfway up the mountainside beneath the peak that houses a radar installation. By walking up the steps from the entrance of the city tractor factory on Xinhua South Road, past the city cigarette factory, it takes about twenty minutes to reach the temple. The structure is entirely built with blue bricks and large stones, standing over twenty meters tall, solemn and majestic, ancient yet perfectly preserved. Perched high above, it boasts an extraordinary presence. The temple complex includes a front hall, rear hall, ancestral hall, and monk dormitories and side rooms on both sides, covering a total construction area of over a thousand square meters. Its roof ridges are adorned with dragon and gecko motifs, while its eaves and walls feature intricate carvings, all grand and spectacular. In front of the temple lies a spacious lawn that can accommodate around twenty cars (a road has been built all the way to the mountain top, and there is a dedicated parking lot on the right side of the temple). A pair of large and a pair of small stone lions guard the entrance on both sides, surrounded by ancient, gnarled trees that stretch toward the sky. Below the large lawn, there is also a small shrine dedicated to the mountain deity and local earth god. The entire temple is nestled within a lush, canopy-covered forest, beneath towering cliffs, giving worshippers and visitors a sense of deep mystery, evoking reverence and a tranquil sense of ancient times.

When local elders were asked, none could say exactly how old Furong Temple is; and when historical records were consulted, nowhere was there any mention of when the temple was built. Only during the Ming Dynasty did a lay Buddhist named Xiong Shida mention in his essay “Rebuilding Furong Nunnery”: “Furong Mountain, as prominent as Shaoguan, dates back to the Eastern Han Dynasty (25–220 AD – note by author), and was a place where recluses (referring to practitioners of Buddhism and Taoism – note by author) cultivated themselves.” One can imagine that the temple must have been established even earlier than when these monks and Taoists came to cultivate themselves here. That is to say, Furong Temple might have existed as early as the BC era. In the “Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch,” it is recorded that when the Sixth Patriarch Huineng resided at the Baolin Monastery in Caoxi, he was often invited by Wei, the prefect of Shaoguan Prefecture, to preach at the Dafan Temple in the city. The lecture hall was always packed with more than a thousand monks and Taoists listening to the Sixth Patriarch’s teachings. It is estimated that there were already many practitioners worshiping at Furong Temple at that time. Huineng came to Caoxi in the second year of the Yifeng era during the reign of Emperor Gaozong of Tang (677 AD), and he preached at Dafan Temple in Shaoguan for a total of thirty-seven years. A tombstone unearthed near Furong Temple in 1991 bears an inscription that reads: “Furong shines brightly. In the south of Qujiang County, Shaozhou Prefecture, Guangdong Circuit, the residence of the lay gentleman Kanghu, also known as… is buried to the right of Furong Nunnery…” The inscription is dated “the 32nd year of the Wanli era, the cyclical year of Jiachen.” The 32nd year of Wanli corresponds to 1573 AD, which means it has a history of over four hundred years (this stone tablet is now placed on the stone wall next to the Pinquan Pool behind the temple. Visitors should not mistake this location for the grave of lay gentleman Kanghu). To this day, two Qingying steles are embedded in the right corridor wall of the front hall. One of them, erected in the 34th year of the Kangxi era of the Qing Dynasty (1696 AD), commemorates the “rebuilding of the True Martial Emperor Hall on Furong Mountain.” The “True Martial Emperor” refers to the Taoist deity Xuanwu. This stele proves that more than three hundred years ago, Furong Temple was already occupied by Taoists. At that time, the site was a Taoist temple. The other stele records the “listing and accounting of funds for rebuilding Furong Temple,” but unfortunately, most of the remaining inscriptions are almost illegible due to heavy erosion. Although both steles are made of the same type of stone, the extent of weathering on this one indicates just how ancient it truly is.

The older the cultural relic, the more it stirs the imagination. Since Furong Temple has been home to both Buddhist monks and Taoist priests, it has become a sacred site shared by both religions. Monks came to preach Buddhism, and Taoists came to teach Taoism. Monks repaired the temple, and Taoists maintained the shrine. No wonder that to this day, Furong Temple retains an architectural style that is both monastic and shrine-like, with carvings that reflect both Buddhist and Taoist artistry — a rare marvel seldom seen elsewhere in China.

Before the War of Resistance, Furong Temple still had several monks in residence, but it was later abandoned due to the chaos of war, and at one point was even used as a prison. What was once called the “Pure Land” or “Earthly Paradise” suddenly became a hellish prison yard. The mountain gate fell into disrepair and was left completely empty. It wasn’t until 1983 that the municipal government began renovating Furong Temple. However, they struggled to find a senior monk willing to take up residence and manage the temple, so for a long time it remained an empty building — devoid of Buddha statues or Buddhist activities. In 1990, the city’s Religious Affairs Bureau sought assistance from the Provincial Buddhist Association, which then dispatched Master Guangfeng from Guangzhou to Shaoguan to manage Furong Temple. Over the years, through the efforts of Master Guangfeng and his disciples, along with support and sponsorship from people of all walks of life, the temple has not only been fully equipped with the “Three Jewels” of Buddhism, with gilded Buddha statues and regular religious ceremonies, but also enjoys flourishing incense offerings. Additionally, a long cement stairway was built halfway up the mountain, and a motorable road leading directly to the temple was constructed, greatly improving accessibility for visitors and worshippers. Plans are currently underway to expand the site with the construction of over two thousand square meters of new buildings, including a vegetarian dining hall, a stupa, a viewing platform, and a tea pavilion. Once completed, the site will truly embody the saying “Furong preserves its timeless beauty, the ancient temple graces the famous mountain.”