#Temple of Prince Guangren Travel Recommendations for 2024 (Updated in Jul)
Historical Sites
Memorial Temples
Address:
Four kilometers north of Ruicheng County, Yuncheng City, Shanxi Province
Recommended sightseeing time:
1-2 hour
An almost forgotten place, yet people flock here for the iconic photo spot
Studying ancient architecture naturally leads one to Guangrenwang Temple. Although not widely known or the most magnificent, it dates back to the fifth year of the Tang Dynasty's Dahe era. The single-eaved Xieshan roof preserved today is typical, simple, and unique.
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The entire scenic area is meticulously arranged, with pavilions and towers, and interestingly designed turns and pauses. You can take stunning photos here in no time.
The name of Guangrenwang Temple is also intriguing. Located not far northwest of the famous Yongle Palace, this village is called Longquan Village. In the early years, a spring called Longquan emerged from the high ground north of the village, irrigating the fertile fields, leading locals to build a Dragon King Temple for worship. Inside the temple, the Five Emperors Dragon Kings are enshrined (as seen in the pictures, the statues are quite cute, possibly newly painted, very vibrant).
Because of the Five Emperors Dragon Kings, the place was initially called Wulong Temple. It is said that Nuwa once conferred titles upon the five dragons, with the Azure Dragon God as the leader, governing all dragons, and was titled Guangrenwang. Hence, Wulong Temple is also known as Guangrenwang Temple.
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Driving there, there's no dedicated parking lot in front of the temple, you can park anywhere in the village.
The scenic area is not crowded, you can register and visit for free, and take photos as you like.
Isla_Wild3r
Just four days, a complete guide to ancient architecture in Shanxi (Southern Shanxi edition)
You asked for it, and here comes the Southern Shanxi guide!
Day1 Yuncheng
·Yongle Palace—Guangren King Temple—Jiezhou Guandi Temple
Stay: Hejin
Highlight 1: Yongle Palace
One of the world's largest existing ancient mural art treasures, the 'Chaoyuan Tu' of Yongle Palace is the pinnacle of group composition development in the history of world painting, a rare masterpiece. (For details, refer to the video on the homepage)
Highlight 2: Guangren King Temple
This is one of only 3.5 Tang Dynasty wooden structures in all of China. It is recommended to arrive in the afternoon, bring your own tea, find shade on the stage opposite the temple, drink tea, and watch the ancient architecture shine. (For details, refer to the video on the homepage: Guangren King Temple)
Highlight 3: Jiezhou Guandi Temple
The earliest Guandi Temple in the country, I personally think the highlight is in the last building, the Spring and Autumn Tower. On the second floor of the Spring and Autumn Tower, you can see the highly artistic value of the chrysanthemum caisson and the true image of Guandi. (For details, refer to the video on the homepage: Jiezhou Guandi Temple)
Day2 Linfen
·Xixian Xiaoxitian—Guangsheng Temple
Stay: Hongtong
Highlight 1: Xixian Xiaoxitian
The most shocking place along the way, known as the 'ultimate song of hanging sculpture art'. The full wall of hanging sculptures that have survived three hundred years are presented before you, and that visual shock can only be felt when you come to Xiaoxitian. Also, for game enthusiasts, this is the filming location for the upcoming blockbuster 'Black Myth: Wukong' (I filmed a documentary about Old Wang, the temple keeper of Xiaoxitian, interested friends can find my video online: Shanxi Temple Keeper)
Highlight 2: Guangsheng Temple Lower Temple Water God Temple Murals
It is recommended to arrive at Guangsheng Temple around 3 pm. Guangsheng Temple is divided into upper and lower temples, start with the lower temple, the highlight is the Water God Temple murals, which contain a large number of Yuan Dynasty life scenes, these are murals included in history textbooks.
Highlight 3: Guangsheng Temple Lower Temple Lost National Treasures Overseas
Go to the Daxiong Hall of the lower temple, where only some remnants of murals remain today. The original murals on the walls, the Yuan Dynasty 'Blazing Light Buddha Assembly' mural on the east mountain wall of the rear hall is displayed in the Chinese Temple Hall of the Nelson Museum, and the Yuan Dynasty 'Medicine Buddha Assembly' mural on the west mountain wall is displayed in the Sackler Gallery of the Metropolitan Museum of Art; the two Ming Dynasty murals 'Blazing Light Buddha Assembly' and 'Medicine Buddha Assembly' in the front hall are displayed in the Chinese Rotunda of the University of Pennsylvania Museum. (For details, search online for my video: Failed Temple Keeping)
Highlight 4: Guangsheng Temple Upper Temple Feihong Tower
The best-preserved glazed tower in the country, remember to arrive before sunset. Birds circling the tower at sunset is a spectacular sight, as the upper temple is on high ground, perfect for watching the sunset below the tower, where you can feel the romance of the ancients.
Day3 Jinzhong
Shuanglin Temple—Zhenguo Temple
Stay: Taiyuan
Highlight 1: Shuanglin Temple The World's Number One Weituo
The name of the Shuanglin Temple, the hall of Eastern colored sculpture art, comes from 'Both forests enter nirvana', and the representative sculpture here is the 'Eastern David', the world's number one Weituo statue.
Highlight 2: Shuanglin Temple Ksitigarbha Hall
Here, the philosophy of life from death is expressed, showing the ancient view of life, with an alternative group of statues.
Highlight 3: Zhenguo Temple Great Bell
At Zhenguo Temple, I found the answer to why Shanxi people have preserved so many intact cultural relics. It all started with thinking about a great bell here, for which I filmed the old man selling mineral water in the Erlang Hall of the temple. He told me a lot of valuable information.
Day4 Taiyuan
Northern Qi Mural Museum
Highlight 1 Northern Qi Murals
China's first tomb mural art museum of archaeological site type, Chen Danqing said these murals represent the highest realm of Chinese line aesthetics, with explorations of the Northern Qi people's cultural demeanor, as well as various depictions of beasts from the 'Classic of Mountains and Seas' in the tombs, especially recommended: Ascension Diagram
Highlight 2 VR Walk into the Tomb
You can experience wearing VR glasses and use high-tech means to walk into the tomb to appreciate the murals.
This is a four-day easy and comfortable journey through the essence of ancient architecture in Southern Shanxi. Of course, Shanxi's treasures cannot be seen in one go. If you have any good suggestions, feel free to add them in the comments section to provide more clues for those about to set off. More extended video content is on my homepage, feel free to follow me. I am the documentary director Bai Song, hoping to accompany you on every journey, making it worthwhile.
DAVIS GARZA
China·Shanxi Ruicheng
Shengshou Temple. Shengshou Temple is located on Sheli East Street in Ruicheng County, where the Dharma flows continuously and the virtue shines in all directions, with eminent monks and great virtues emerging from Shengshou Temple. It was founded in the 10th year of Yongping during the Eastern Han Dynasty, and because Shengshou Temple enshrines the true body relics of Buddha Sakyamuni, it became one of the earliest Buddhist holy places in China. The pagoda of Shengshou Temple was built by Emperor Ashoka, originally named Ashoka Temple. The Buddhist pagoda of Shengshou Temple was rebuilt during the Song Dynasty's Tiansheng era (1023—1032), and after more than thirty years of construction, it became a royal building. Its architectural form, as well as the combination of Tang and Song dynasty styles, makes it the oldest, highest-level, and most well-preserved relic pagoda in the country.
Ruicheng Guangrenwang Temple, named for the water deity enshrined within and titled 'Guangrenwang', is also known as 'Wulong Temple' due to the original Five Dragon Springs in front of the temple, where spring water gushes out along the temple's foundation. Located at the northern end of Zhonglongquan Village, 3 kilometers north of Ruicheng County in Yuncheng City, Shanxi Province, it faces the Yuan Dynasty Taoist temple Yongle Palace to the southeast. Guangrenwang Temple was founded in the fifth year of the Tang Dynasty's Dazhong era (831 AD). Facing south with its back to the north, the temple covers an area of 4,560 square meters. Inside the temple, there are a stage, wing rooms, and the main hall, surrounded by walls, forming a courtyard layout. The stage is three bays wide and three rafters deep, with simple bracket sets on the column heads, with dragon heads protruding from the central bracket set's large bracket mouth, elephant trunks on both sides, and dragon heads protruding from the bracket mouths between the rafters. In 1965, Guangrenwang Temple was announced by the Shanxi Provincial People's Government as a key cultural relic protection unit of Shanxi Province. On June 25, 2001, Guangrenwang Temple was announced by the State Council of the People's Republic of China as the fifth batch of national key cultural relics protection units.
cloying_brianna
A humble village temple transforms into a national heritage building | Guangren Wang Temple
🏆 One of the only three remaining Tang Dynasty earthen buildings in the country;
🏆 The oldest existing Taoist building;
🏆 A unique example of Tang Dynasty Taoist architecture;
⛩️ The discovery of Guangren Wang Temple was quite accidental. When the architecture and murals of Yongle Palace amazed the world, cultural heritage experts from all over the country gathered in Ruicheng, and everyone was excited about the murals that were another major discovery following those of Dunhuang.
🔍 After a busy day, an expert staying in a nearby village accidentally discovered a grand hall called the Five Dragon Kings Temple, which was simple and robust, with a distinct Tang Dynasty architectural style.
➡️ Later, experts identified it as a Tang Dynasty building, ranking it as the second oldest earthen building in the country, only after the Nanchan Temple main hall and 26 years older than the Foguang Temple main hall.
🏯 The main hall of Guangren Wang Temple was built in the fifth year of the Tang Taihe period, with a single-eave hipped-gable roof, four bays wide, and five trusses deep. It is a folk religious building of relatively small scale, dedicated to the deity of Longquan, Guangren Wang. Historically, there were five clear springs in front of the temple, hence it was also called the Five Dragons Temple.
🕋 After a major renovation in 2013, the surrounding environment was integrated to create a museum of ancient architecture centered around the main hall of Guangren Wang Temple.
📍 Address: North of the ancient Ruiguo Wei City ruins, 4 kilometers north of the city, Ruicheng County, Yuncheng City, Shanxi Province
🈺️ Opening hours: 8:30-17:00
🎫 Admission: Free
ElijahMacKay70
Guangrenwang Temple in Ruicheng, Shanxi
Guangrenwang Temple, named for the water god worshipped within, who was given the title 'Guangrenwang'. It is also known as 'Wulong Temple' because there used to be a Wulong Spring in front of the temple, with spring water gushing out from the front of the temple base. It is located on a high mound at the north end of Zhonglongquan Village, 3 kilometers north of Ruicheng County, Yuncheng City, Shanxi Province, and faces the Yongle Palace, a Yuan Dynasty Taoist temple, to the southeast. Guangrenwang Temple was first built in the fifth year of Dawai (831 AD).
Guangrenwang Temple faces north to south and covers an area of 4560 square meters. There are stages, side rooms, main halls, etc., surrounded by walls, with a courtyard layout. The stage is three rooms wide and three rafters deep. The brackets on the column heads are simple, with the central bracket sprouting dragon heads from the large bracket mouth, elephant noses on both sides, and dragon heads sprouting from the bracket mouths between the two rafters. The main hall of Guangrenwang Temple is a unique example of Tang Dynasty wooden architecture in the Hedong area. There are only four Tang Dynasty wooden structures in all of China, and the main hall of Guangrenwang Temple is one of them. The Tang steles in Guangrenwang Temple have important reference value for studying ancient water conservancy projects for the benefit of the people and the construction year of Wulong Temple.
On June 25, 2001, Guangrenwang Temple was announced by the State Council of the People's Republic of China as the fifth batch of national key cultural relics protection units.