Yongquan Temple

The Yongquan Temple (Gurgling Spring Temple) on Gushan Mountain in the eastern suburbs of Fuzhou is another famous Buddhist establishment in Fujian Province. The name of the temple, which was founded during the Five Dynasties, is derived from a gurgling spring in front of it. In 999 (2nd year of the Xianping reign, Song Dynasty), Emperor Zhenzong bestowed a name board in his own handwriting on the temple, calling it the "Gurgling Spring Temple on the White Peak of Gushan Mountain." During the Ming Dynasty the name was abbreviated as the "Yongquan (Gurgling Spring) Temple." During the period from 1408 (6th year of the Yongle reign) to 1542 (21st year of the Jiaqing reign) in the Ming Dynasty, the temple caught fire twice, but on both occasions it was rebuilt. Significant expansions were made during the Qing Dynasty so that despite the temple's thousand-year long history, the buildings remaining are mostly a Qing legacy.

The temple is hailed as a fine example of classic Chinese architecture. All its main structure – the Hall of the Deva-kings, the Mahavira Hall, and the Preaching Hall – as well as its ancillary halls and domiciles are integrated by a labyrinth of corridors to form a gigantic engineering phenomenon that covers the entire length of a mountainside. Among the Yongquan Temple's collection of precious artifacts are three renowned treasures: a fireproof almsgiving table made of iron wiring and wood that dampens whenever it is raining; a thousand-year-old sago cycas (Cycas revolute) that blossoms every year, and 657 volumes of Buddhist scriptures written with blood. The picture-perfect mountains around the temple are favorite tourist destinations.