介绍:
If Confucius is deemed to be one of the greatest literary scholars in Chinese history, then Guan Yu is his equivalent in military leadership. Today, many people in China and abroad still pray to him for courage, victory, and sometimes, even wealth. Outside of the Chinese city of Yuncheng in the province of Shanxi sits one of the oldest and biggest temples built in dedication to Guan Yu.
I am here in the small township of Haizhou in the south of China's Shanxi province. We are just a few kilometers from the ancient capital city of Xi'an. It is widely believed by the people here that this is Guan Yu's place of birth. The official name of this temple is the Emperor Guan Temple in Haizhou, since there are many other temples dedicated to the warrior across China. But locals have fondly called it the Temple of Guan Yu.
The temple has a total area of 220,000 square meters and is divided into residence, worship halls and a garden. This place has a long and illustrious history. It was first built in 589 C.E. and reconstructed during the Song Dynasty and the Ming Dynasty. In 1702, during the reign of Emperor Kangxi in the Qing Dynasty, it was destroyed in a fire but was rebuilt again in a little more than 10 years. Now, it is a national heritage conservation site and a 4-A level tourist site.
The Temple of Guanyu, from the outside, is surrounded on four sides by orange-colored walls. The entrance gate has statues of lions on each side. The top of the gate has carvings of lotus flowers. While the main entrance has the name of the temple on it, the side entrances have ancient idioms carved at the top.
Right now is the first month of the New Year and there are a lot of visitors here. Mr. Zhang is one of the tour guides here.
"A lot of locals came today. There are about one or two hundred people in the temple right now. They are praying to the gods for good health and success in their studies or careers in the upcoming year."
Entering the temple, you can see a statue of Guan Yu himself. Since he lived so long ago, nobody really knows what Guan Yu looked like. But the most popular description of his appearance can be found in the Ming Dynasty historical novel, Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He is known to have a red face, eyes like a phoenix and his eyebrows resembled silk worms. He also has a saber in his hand, called "guandao" in Chinese.
Here in Chongning Hall, there is a gigantic statue of Guan Yu dressed in full warrior costume, which seems to be made of jade or ivory. There are a lot of people here praying for luck and fortune. Zhu Tong is in his last year of high school.
"I'm praying for safety for my family and I would be admitted to a prestigious college as well as success in my college entrance examinations."
Unlike most Buddhist and Taoist temples filled with worship halls and statues of gods and goddesses inside, the Temple of Guan Yu is structured rather like a palace with gates, gardens and even a Royal Library.
At the back of the temple, there is a garden that's similar to the Royal Gardens in the Forbidden City in Beijing. Although it's winter right now and leaves have fallen from the trees, you can see evidence of an abundance of greenery in this area. That's one of the things I've always enjoyed about visiting temples.
By taking a tour of the Temple of Guan Yu, you can really appreciate how much love and respect the people in this area of China have for this person who lived thousands of years ago. It's interesting to see how he is remembered and commemorated by people of today.
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