Xuanmiao Temple

About

Xuanmiao Temple — the 'Temple of Mystery' — stands at the centre of the historic walled city of Suzhou. The east–west street that passes before its gate is called Guanqian, today one of Suzhou's most celebrated pedestrian thoroughfares; a lane named Gong Xiang runs north–south to its very entrance.

The temple's history began in 276 CE, during the second year of the Xianning era of the Western Jin dynasty, when it was first established as Zhenqing Daoyuan. The precinct was destroyed in the wars of the Southern Song and rebuilt during the Chunxi reign-period of Emperor Xiaozong (1174–1189). It received the name Xuanmiao Guan in 1264. During the Qing dynasty's Kangxi reign, the temple was briefly renamed Yuanmiao Guan to observe the naming taboo around the emperor's personal name.

The first structure that meets the visitor is the Zheng Shan Men, an entirely wooden gateway oriented south-to-north with side entrances opening to the east and west. The original gate dates to the Tang dynasty; damaged in the eighteenth century, it was reconstructed in 1775.

The gate hall houses six statues of Taoist deities, alongside idols of four marshals and two generals. A tablet preserved at its flank commemorates the temple's restoration. Across the centuries Xuanmiao Temple has remained a working Taoist precinct at the spiritual centre of one of China's most enduring historic cities.

History

Xuanmiao Temple was founded in 276 CE, in the second year of the Western Jin Xianning era, under the name Zhenqing Daoyuan. After destruction during the Southern Song wars, it was rebuilt under Emperor Xiaozong in the Chunxi era, and given the present name of Xuanmiao Guan in 1264.

During the Qing dynasty's Kangxi reign, the precinct was briefly renamed Yuanmiao Guan to observe the naming taboo around the emperor's personal name. The Tang-dynasty wooden gate of the temple was reconstructed in 1775 after damage in the eighteenth century, and the wider precinct has been restored and maintained through successive generations of Taoist clergy and Suzhou residents.