【Exploring the Xidun Jidu Temple in Zezhou: A Timeless Architectural Marvel】

🏰【Exploring the Xidun Jidu Temple in Zezhou: A Timeless Architectural Marvel】🏰 🌿 Imagine standing before an ancient temple, surrounded by Song Dynasty stone pillars and Jin Dynasty halls, as if traversing a tunnel through time. This is the Xidun Jidu Temple in Zezhou, a treasure hidden in the long river of history. 🏰 Entering the Jidu Temple feels like opening a door to the past. The main hall was built in the fourth year of the Xuanhe era during the reign of Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty. Craftsmen of that time used their skillful hands and ingenuity to construct this brick platform hall. It has three bays in width and six rafters in depth, with a front eave corridor, single-eave suspended mountain roof, and a roof covered with gray cylindrical tiles, giving it a solemn and mysterious appearance. 📜 The hall's framework consists of six rafter houses and four rafter beams with three columns. Every detail reveals the wisdom of the ancients. The front eave corridor columns are made of octagonal blue stone, with tapered column bodies and single-eave brackets with four layers of single eaves, each inch appearing so exquisite. 🌟 The middle bay's supplementary brackets are in the form of four layers of single eaves, with a bundle of bucket brackets extending at a 60-degree angle, showcasing the ancient architectural techniques. The absence of brackets on the rear eave design imparts a sense of simplicity. 🔍 The column bases, front eave columns, and beam components of the main hall are original items from the Xuanhe era of the Northern Song Dynasty, witnessing the vicissitudes of history. However, the brackets and some framework are not of Northern Song style; the brackets are from the Jin Dynasty, and the suspended mountain roof shows signs of being shortened, all marking the passage of time. 🌧️ The Jidu Temple is dedicated to the Jidu God. In ancient times, the Ji River, which flowed independently into the sea, was revered alongside the Yangtze River, Yellow River, and Huai River as one of the "Four Rivers." The Jidu God was believed to control clouds, rain, and the harvest of crops, and was highly esteemed by feudal emperors, serving as a guardian deity in people's hearts. 🌟 Come to the Xidun Jidu Temple in Zezhou and experience the awe of traversing a thousand years with me! 🌟