Guangsheng Temple (Guangsheng si), standing on the southern slope of Huoshan Mountain, 17km northeast of Hongdong County, was originally built in 147AD in the eastern Han Dynasty. However, due to the warfare and fires in the ensuing years, the current complex is indicative of large-scale renovations in the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911 AD).

The temple is now comprised of two parts with the Upper Temple (Xia si) at the top of the mountain and the Lower Temple (Shang si) at its foot. Beside the Lower Temple, however, is another temple, the Temple to the God of Water (Shuishen miao). The temple is well worth visiting simply for the fact that it sees very few tourists through its doors, although the beauty of the temple and the simplicity of the monks is a welcome relief as well.

Highlights in the temple are many. The best bit of the Upper Temple is the Flying Rainbow Pagoda (Feihong tai), that you can see from well before you arrive at the temple gate. This 37m-tall, 13 storey pagoda is covered with multi-coloured glazed tiles, that makes it both the tallest and oldest still existing glazed tile pagoda in China. On sunny days the pagoda gleams with light, reflected off tiles that are covered in various figures, mostly animals, Buddhist guardians or human beings. It is probably worthwhile climbing the pagoda, that can be ascended to its 9th floor, however, this is not for the fearful, the winding steps ascend in the dark, with few handholds to help.

Other highlights are mostly found in the Temple to the God of Water, that was originally built as a center for prayer against the droughts that frequently plagued this region. Within the temple are various colourful murals, mostly depicting the worshipped God of Water (Shui shen), his feats and the local folks praying for water. The murals are mainly from the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368 AD) and have long been considered a good depiction of the society of that time.

How to get there: From Hongdong village (see Susan Prison for details), you may hire a cab to cover this short distance (about half an hour). A return trip, including one hour's wait, should cost around RMB50, but you will need to establish this price before you go.
Cost: RMB16 for the Upper Temple; RMB10 for the Lower Temple.
Opening hours: 09:00-17:00.

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About Linfen

. Transportation in Linfen . Dining Overview in Linfen . Hotel Overview in Linfen . The Palace of Eternal Joy (Yongle gong) . Susan Prison . Hukou Falls . Guangsheng Temple . Linfen Climate . Linfen Introduction

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