Zhangjiajie Puguang Temple

Puguang Temple is an ancient temple with a long history and far-ranging reputation. It was built in the eleventh year of Yongle in Ming Dynasty (1413 AD), seven years earlier than the Forbidden City in Beijing, four years earlier than the Golden Temple of Wudang Mountain in Hubei, and Xianfeng Temple in Mount Emei in Sichuan. Yubaoguo Temple was built more than 100 years ago, with a large number of worshippers, and it is known as the "Famous Temple in the South of the Yangtze River". Legend has it that more than 600 years ago, the forest was lush and ancient trees towering to the sky. Yongjian, the commander stationed in Yongding in the Ming Dynasty, chased a group of white sheep on the hillside to no avail. The white sheep got into the ground. Yongjian was surprised. A pile of gold, so he used the money to build this temple. Yongjian reported it to Zhu Di, the ancestor of the Ming Dynasty, and Zhu Di gave it the name "Puguang Temple", and because of the white sheep, the temple was also called "The Ancient Temple of Aries". Later, Confucian Temple, Wu Temple, Chenghuang Temple, Songliang Academy, etc. were built around Puguang Temple, and now only Puguang Temple, Wu Temple and Wenchang Temple remain. The whole building of Puguang Temple adopts traditional bucket arch and caisson structure, which is exquisitely designed and magnificent. When visiting Puguang Temple, the first sight is Dashanmen and Ershanmen. They form a huge building complex with the Bell and Drum Tower, Luohan Hall, Wu Temple, etc. Today, the temple is dedicated to Sakyamuni, Guanyin, Jade Emperor, Manjusri Bodhisattva, Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, Four Heavenly Kings, Eighteen Arhats, "Sanqing" (ie Yuanshi Tianzun, Lingbao Tianzun, Taishang Laojun) and Guan Gong and many other statues. The special features of Puguang Temple can be seen from the couplet of "temple, view, pavilion, ancestral hall and workshop, Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, literature and martial arts combined together".