[2025 Pingyao Attraction] Travel Guide for cixiangsi (Updated Jul)

Cixiang Temple is located northeast of Jiguo Village, Hongshan Town, Pingyao County. The temple is spacious and grand, with ancient halls, a towering pagoda, and verdant cypress trees, creating a serene and elegant environment. The temple follows the traditional Chinese temple architectural style of "central axis symmetry" in its layout, with the mountain gate, music tower, Guandi Hall, main hall, and Luta Pagoda arranged in a line from south to north, and bell and drum towers and east and west corridors on either side. The temple houses over 10 steles from the Song Dynasty's Qingli period to the Qing Dynasty's Guangxu period, which detail the history and restoration of Cixiang Temple, providing valuable historical materials for studying the temple's history and architecture.

| A temple with a nine-story octagonal pagoda. Cixiang Temple is located in the north of Jiguo Village, east of Pingyao County, Shanxi Province. It was originally named Shengju Temple. The Luta Pagoda was built during the Qingli period of Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty, and the temple was renamed Cixiang Temple in the third year of the Huangyou period (1051). The temple and pagoda were later destroyed by fire, and the pagoda was rebuilt on the original site during the Tianhui period of the Jin Dynasty, along with more than ten halls and pavilions. Today, only the main hall and brick pagoda remain from the Jin Dynasty, while the rest of the structures were rebuilt during the Qing Dynasty. The temple faces south and has three courtyards. It is backed by hills to the south and faces the Yingjian River to the north, creating a spectacular view. The complex includes the mountain gate, opera stage, front hall, main hall, and Luta Pagoda, with bell and drum towers and corridors on the east and west sides. The temple also has eight steles and five ancient cypress trees. The main building, the Mahavira Hall, has five rooms and a hanging gable roof with exposed beams. The hall houses the "Three Buddhas" statues and over 100 square meters of murals, all masterpieces from the Jin Dynasty. The Luta Pagoda is an octagonal, nine-story brick pagoda. The pagoda base has a porch door to the south and 16 caves around it. The second to seventh stories of the pagoda have dougong brackets, while the eighth and ninth stories have plain surfaces. The top of the pagoda has an octagonal base with an upturned lotus, a stupa, and a jewel. The second story has early Thousand Buddha murals on the inner walls. Address: Jiguo Village, 8 km east of Pingyao County, Jinzhong City, Shanxi Province Opening hours: 8:00–17:30 all year round

|One hall, two towers, three heavens! Pingyao Cixiang Temple|One hall, two towers, three heavens Cixiang Temple, located 7.5 kilometers east of Pingyao County in Shanxi Province, was originally named Shengju Temple. It was built during the reign of Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty, and was renamed Cixiang Temple in the third year of Huangyou (1051). At the end of the Song Dynasty, the temple and tower were destroyed by fire, and during the Jin Tianhui period, a new tower was built on the old site, and more than ten halls and pavilions were repaired. Except for the main hall and brick tower, which are relics of the Jin Dynasty, the rest are rebuilt during the Qing Dynasty. The temple faces north and south, with three courtyards in front and back. The south is backed by a hill, and the north is facing the Yingjian River, covering an area of 22,427 square meters, with mountains and rivers reflecting each other, which is spectacular. From south to north on the central axis are the mountain gate, stage, front hall, main hall and Lutai Tower, with bell and drum towers and corridors on both sides. In addition, there are 8 steles and 5 ancient cypresses in the temple. The main building, the Daxiong Hall, has five rooms, with a hanging mountain style roof, a clear and bright structure, and large and simple materials. There are now "Three Buddha" statues and murals of more than 100 square meters in the hall, all of which are works of the Jin Dynasty and are masterpieces. The Lutai Tower has an octagonal plane, is 48.2 meters high, and is a nine-story tower with a Q-shaped brick tower. The tower base is a Baixiamen in the south, with 16 kiln holes built around it. The tower body is built with bucket arches from the second to the seventh floor, and the eighth and ninth floors are plain. The top of the tower is a lotus petal shape, and the tower has been destroyed. The tower is hollow, with floors and wooden ladders between each floor, and windows are opened to the north and south on each floor. The "Shengju Temple Lutai Mountain Stele" of the Song Dynasty in the temple, which is more than five meters high, is extremely exquisite in calligraphy and is a valuable material for studying calligraphy art. Cixiang Temple