Pu Yuan Xiang Yun Temple—one of the three great Taoist temples in the south of the Yangtze River

Pu Yuan Xiang Yun Temple was originally named Xuan Ming Temple, and later renamed to Xiang Yun Temple. Along with Xuan Miao Temple in Suzhou and Xiu Zhen Temple in Wuzhen, it is one of the three great Taoist temples in the south of the Yangtze River. The existing Shanmen (mountain gate) is the oldest building in Pu Yuan. According to the 'Xuan Ming Temple Stele Records', the creator was the master Wu Fa from the Five Dynasties period. The temple suffered destruction by military forces several times, and in the first year of the Yuan Dynasty's Zhi Da period (1309), it was still called Xuan Ming Temple. In the third year of Yuan Tong (1335), the San Qing Pavilion was built. The 'San Bao Bao Ge' and 'San Yuan Bao Dian' plaques were written by the famous calligrapher Dong Qichang at that time, but unfortunately, they have not been preserved. During the Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty, the temple was renamed Xiang Yun Temple to avoid using the emperor's name, and it was rebuilt in the forty-first year of Qianlong's reign (1776), including the lacquered opera stage and the Zhen Wu Xing Gong (True Martial Palace). In the tenth year of the Qing Dynasty's Xianfeng period (1860), Xiang Yun Temple was destroyed, leaving only the Shanmen intact. The Shanmen faces south with its back to the north, and the water of the temple bridge port flows gently in front. The Shanmen is a brick and wood structure with an overhanging eave using the stack-folding method, and the eave uses a gutter head to drip water. Below this, brick carvings are applied, and all the dougong (bracket sets) are in relief, reflecting the superb skills of the brick carvers at the time. There are three gates, with the central one being a rectangular main gate. The lintel above the main gate bears the four large characters 'Xiang Yun Gao Tiao', written by the Left Censor Dou Guangnai in the fifty-first year of Qianlong's reign when he visited the area. The two side gates are horseshoe-shaped, and the east and west lintels are each engraved with the characters 'Chun He' and 'Qiu Shuang', also in running script. During the Cultural Revolution, these were erased, but fortunately, the inscriptions were not chiseled away, only covered with a layer of lime. The inscription above the main gate was changed to the four red characters 'People's Warehouse', and the east and west lintels were painted white without any writing, so they have been preserved to this day. After the liberation, the statues of Bodhisattvas or deities in most temples and Taoist temples were largely destroyed, and these buildings either became temporary offices for local governments or granaries. Xiang Yun Temple was no exception, becoming an important granary under the jurisdiction of the Pu Yuan Grain Management Office. The main hall is quite large and can store a large amount of grain. Directly opposite the Shanmen is a river port about ten meters wide, which is a dock for farmers to transport grain by boat. During the grain harvest season, small and large farming boats fill the waterway in front of the temple bridge port, and the farmers carry the harvested grain into the temple to be weighed. If the inspectors find the grain not dry enough, it is spread out on the stone slabs between the opera stage and the main hall to dry before being sold.