Hongfu Si

The people of Guiyang regard the Hongfu Si (Hongfu Temple), situated on Qianling Mountain 1.5 km west of downtown Guizhou and built in 1672 (11th year or the Kangxi reign, Qing Dynasty), as primary Buddhist sanctuary for their city. But the temple did not acquire its present size without repeated repairs and expansions that have been undertaken in the intervening years. During the decade-long chaos of the “cultural revolution” (1966-1976), the Hongfu Temple fell victim to wonton vandalism. The temple as we see it today was restored to its former glory in 1978 with the support of the local government and the donations of Buddhists from all walks of life.

In terms of size, Hongfu Temple compares unfavorably with major counterparts in other parts of the province, but in Guiyang it is definitely the largest. The temple is in possession of 30 halls and monks’ dormitories, the major ones being the Front Hall, the Middle Hall, the Mahavira Hall, the Guanyin Hall, the Preaching Hall, and the Tripitaka Pavilion. In each of these halls a complete array of the deities of the Buddhist pantheon are presented in finely crafted statues. A Qianlong edition of the Tripitaka is found in the collection of scriptures of the Tripitaka Pavilion. The vicinity of the temple is strewn with sites of cultural interest, including the Unicorn Cave, the Old Buddha Cave, the Alms Bowl Washing Pool on Qianling Mountain, and the “Holy Spring” behind the mountain. The temple itself is in the sequestered repose of towering trees that have been growing there for ages, and it draws droves of pilgrims and travelers from all over the world on a yearly basis.