Confucian Temple

Lonely Planet review

Most historic Chinese towns worth their salt boast a temple dedicated to Confucius, although the iconoclastic spasms of the Cultural Revolution left many battered and bruised. A modest and pretty retreat, this well-tended temple to the dictum-coining sage is cultivated with acers, pines, magnolias and birdsong.

Originally dating to 1294 - when the Mongols held sway through China - the temple moved to its current site in 1855, at a time when Christian Taiping rebels were sending much of China skywards in sheets of flame. The layout is typically Confucian, its few worshippers complemented by ancient and venerable trees, including a 300-year-old elm. The towering Kuixing Pavilion (Kuíxīng Gé) in the west is named after the God of the Literati. The main hall for worshipping Confucius is the twin-eaved Dacheng Hall (Dàchéng Diàn), complete with a statue of the sage outside. The magnolia grandiflora on either side of its main door is garlanded with ribbons left by the devout. In line with Confucius championing of learning, a busy second-hand book market of (largely Chinese language) books is held in the temple every Sunday morning.