White Cloud Temple

Lonely Planet review

White Cloud Temple, once the Taoist centre of northern China, was founded in AD 739. It's a lively, huge and fascinating temple complex of shrines and courtyards, tended by distinctive Taoist monks with their hair twisted into topknots. Today's temple halls date principally from the Ming and Qing dynasties.

Near the temple entrance, worshippers rub a polished stone carving for good fortune. The halls at the temple are dedicated to a host of Taoist officials and marshals. The Hall of the Jade Emperor celebrates this most famous of Taoist deities, while Taoist housewives cluster earnestly at the Hall to the God of Wealth to divine their financial future.

Drop by White Cloud Temple during the Spring Festival for the spectacle of a magnificent temple fair ( miàohuì ). Worshippers funnel into the streets around the temple, lured by artisans, street performers, wǔshù (martial arts) acts, craft workers, traders and a swarm of snack merchants.

To find the temple, walk south on Baiyun Lu from the Capital Museum and across the moat. Continue along Baiyun Lu and turn into a curving street on the left; follow it for 250m to the temple entrance.