Dacheng Xian'an Temple () is a temple located in Dacheng Township,

Changhua County Changhua County (Mandarin Pinyin: ''Zhānghuà Xiàn''; Wade-Giles: ''Chang¹-hua⁴ Hsien⁴''; Hokkien POJ: ''Chiang-hòa-koān'' or ''Chiong-hòa-koān'') is the smallest county on the main island of Taiwan by area, and the fourth smallest ...

, Taiwan. The temple is dedicated to

Baosheng Dadi Baosheng Dadi is a Deity of Medicine worshiped in Chinese folk religion and Taoism. The deity is very popular in Fujian, Taiwan and the Chinese communities in Southeast Asia. Historical Personage Wu Tao or Wu Ben () was born in the villag ...

, the God of Medicine, and is protected as a county-level historical building.

History

The Dacheng area was settled by the

Han Chinese The Han Chinese () or Han people (), are an East Asian ethnic group native to China. They constitute the world's largest ethnic group, making up about 18% of the global population and consisting of various subgroups speaking distinctive va ...

in the late

Ming Dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

. In response to major disease outbreaks in the area, in 1666, a resident with the surname Wu traveled back to

Quanzhou Quanzhou, postal map romanization, alternatively known as Chinchew, is a prefecture-level city, prefecture-level port city on the north bank of the Jin River, beside the Taiwan Strait in southern Fujian, China. It is Fujian's largest metrop ...

to invite the spirit of Baosheng Dadi to Dacheng. In 1674, a small temple made of

rammed earth Rammed earth is a technique for constructing foundations, floors, and walls using compacted natural raw materials such as earth, chalk, lime, or gravel. It is an ancient method that has been revived recently as a sustainable building method. ...

was built to house the deity, which became the religious center of the town. The temple was given the name "Xian'an Temple" in 1824. In 1928, a worshipper named Wu Wan-yi (吳萬益) decided to rebuilt the temple. Funded by donations from the local townspeople, Wu completed the temple in 1930. He used imported stone and wood from mainland China and also hired craftsmen from China to decorate the temple with sculptures and paintings. The building remained largely untouched except for a few restoration projects in 1960 and 1972. Then, in 1986, a rear hall was added to the temple. On 11 April 2008, the

Changhua County Government The Changhua County Government (CHCG; ) is the local government of Changhua County, Taiwan. Organization * Magistrate * Deputy Magistrate * Secretary-general First Class Department * Department of Civil Affairs * Department of Finance * Depar ...

protected the building as a historic building for its well-preserved architecture and sculptures. In December 2019, the county government began renovating the building and preserve the relics inside.

Architecture

Xian'an Temple is a classic example of

Hokkien architecture Hokkien architecture, also called Hoklo architecture or Minnan architecture, refers to the architectural style of the Hoklo people, the Han Chinese group who have historically been the dominant demographic of the Southern Chinese province of Fujia ...

. It is primarily dedicated to

, who is seated in the main hall. The temple also has altars dedicated to other deities in

Taoism Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of Philosophy, philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of China, Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmo ...

and

Chinese folk religion Chinese folk religion, also known as Chinese popular religion comprehends a range of traditional religious practices of Han Chinese, including the Chinese diaspora. Vivienne Wee described it as "an empty bowl, which can variously be filled ...

. Though the temple itself is not large, it is intricately decorated with sculptures of people and creatures from Chinese folklore on its columns, beams, and roof. The temple also contains a stone furnace dating from 1827 and multiple wooden plaques crafted by well-known

calligrapher Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

s including and .

References

{{Reflist 1928 establishments in Taiwan Religious buildings and structures completed in 1928 Temples in Changhua County Historic sites in Taiwan