Dear group members:
Hello everyone! Welcome to Nanyue Hengshan for sightseeing. I am very happy to visit the Nanyue Temple, known as the "Jiangnan Little Forbidden City" with you. I am honored to spend a good time with you. I wish you all a happy tour and fun. Have fun!
Dear group members, the palace-style ancient building complex now presented to us is the famous Nanyue Temple, located at the northern end of Nanyue Ancient Town, under the Red Emperor Peak. It is a group of buildings that integrates folk temples, Buddhist temples, Taoist temples and royal palaces. It is also the largest temple in southern my country and the Five Mountains, covering an area of ??98,500 square meters. The year of its construction is unknown. The temple recorded in local chronicles was first built in the 13th year of Kaiyuan of the Tang Dynasty (AD 725). It has gone through six fires and sixteen times of reconstruction and expansion in the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. The existing building was built in the Qing Dynasty. Rebuilt in the eighth year of Guangxu (AD 1882), it is a palace-style ancient building complex modeled on the Forbidden City in Beijing, so it is known as the "Jiangnan Little Forbidden City". The main building on the central axis consists of Lingxing Gate, Kuixing Pavilion, Zhengchuan Gate (Main South Gate), Yubei Pavilion, Jiaying Gate, Yushu Tower, main hall, bedroom and north back gate with nine entrances and four courtyards. There are eight Taoist temples in the east and eight Buddhist temples in the west. The central axis is decorated with Confucian architectural style. Although Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism have different beliefs and pursuits, they have long lived in harmony, developed together, and coexisted and prospered. Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism all exist in one temple, which is the first among temples in our country and even in the world. As early as the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the temple was known as the "Three Wonders of Jiangnan" for its excellent wood carvings, stone carvings and clay sculptures. At the same time, it is characterized by eight hundred dragons. No matter whether it is the beams, pillars, eaves, pillar bases, sacred seats, or even door frames and brackets of the temple, dragons with different expressions can be seen everywhere. It turns out that there is a legend that eight hundred dragons protect Nanyue here since ancient times.
The stone arch bridge we are standing on now is called the "Shoujian" bridge. Under the bridge is the Shoujian water. It is widely said that "taking water from Mount Yue can prolong life." Because Nanyue is Shoushan and Shouyue, so This bridge is named after water. According to legend, whoever can cross this bridge in three steps will live a long life.
Everyone, please look up and see what the main entrance of the temple is called? Can anyone recognize the first word? (Pause) This lady is right. Many people cannot recognize the pronunciation of the word "ling" when pronouncing it. This is no wonder, because it is rare to use the word "棂" to name a temple gate. I wonder if you have ever been to the Confucius Temple in Shandong. The main entrance of the Confucius Temple is the Lingxing Gate. In fact, there are only two "Lingxing Gates" in China. Why? Because the Ling star is originally one of the 28 constellations, it is called the Tiantian star. According to the "Star Book": the gate is named after "Lingxing", which means that talents come out in large numbers and are used by the country. Therefore, ordinary temples should never be named after "Lingxing". To crown a temple with a "Ling star", three very stringent requirements must be met: first, it must be a large-scale and magnificent temple; second, it must be a place where talents are born in large numbers; third, the emperor must issue an edict. . Only when the above three conditions are met can the Lingxing Gate be built. It can be seen that our Nanyue is indeed a Feng Shui treasure land with outstanding individuals. Anyone who enters and exits this door will become a pillar of the motherland on all fronts. Please take a closer look at the couplet on Lingxingmen and see who can pronounce it correctly? The old man read it accurately: the lattice ring is surrounded by swastikas, the sill is surrounded by palindrome, and the Yangtai Pavilion is brilliant, which is called the Palace of the Immortal Emperor. . This is the newly engraved couplet of the Vice-Lao couplet, which highly praises the coexistence of Buddhism and Taoism in the temple, the splendor of its architectural scale, and the great situation of the motherland. On the white marble stele above the Lingxing Gate, there are the two words "Yuemiao" shining in gold, which were written by Kang Hesheng, a scholar from Hengshan. The gate was originally made of wood, but was replaced with a granite gate in the 21st year of the Republic of China (1932). The gate is 20 meters high and 20 meters wide, and 1.1 meters thick. It is the widest existing stone archway gate in my country. On the top of the archway, there is a circle within the square, and there is a square within the circle. Think about it, what is this? Yes, it's a stone seal, symbolizing the jade seal of the Holy Emperor of Nanyue, indicating the supreme status of Nanyue Temple. In front of the door, these two simple, generous and lifelike stone lions (the one in the west is a male lion playing with beads, and the one in the east is a lioness playing with cubs) squat here all year round, welcoming guests from all over the world to enter this auspicious door.
Dear friends, please follow me and walk into the Lingxing Gate to visit one by one, following the footsteps of the former royal palace nobles. Stepping into the Lingxing Gate, you will see a courtyard lined with green cypresses, towering ancient trees, and green grass. There are water and fire pools (commonly known as release pools) on the left and right sides of the courtyard, and there are east and west stele pavilions on both sides.
In the east pavilion, there is a stele "Record of the Reconstruction of Nanyue Temple" written by Shang Ren during the Chenghua period of the Ming Dynasty; in the west pavilion, there is a stele "Essays on Sacrifice to Heng Yue" written by Fan Chunren in the Song Dynasty.
The simple, elegant, exquisite and exquisite pavilion seen in front is called Kuixing Pavilion, also known as Panlong Pavilion. This is the second entrance to the temple. It is a hilltop building with double eaves and an area of ??139 square meters. Everyone saw the word "stage" on the attic. Indeed, this is the best-preserved ancient stage in Hunan Province. Why is it called "stage"? It is said that when emperors, emperors or court officials came to the mountain to worship the mountain god, local officials would invite some opera troupes and folk artists to come and sing to add to the festive atmosphere. There are four large copper coin holes on the stage base. What are the functions of these coin holes? They play the role of amplification, and at the same time they also symbolize the prosperity of the country and the prosperity of the country and the peace of the people. Now looking back at the inscriptions "Listen quietly" and "Think carefully" preserved on both sides of the stage, it is really emotional. On the central top of the stage, there is a huge wooden dragon carved from camphor tree. The carving technology is superb and the craftsmanship is exquisite. It can also rotate! Therefore, this pavilion is also called Panlong Pavilion.
Since it is a stage, it is also called Panlong Pavilion, so why is it called "Kui Xing Pavilion"? Everyone knows that Kuixing is the head of the literary stars. The "Book of Filial Piety" records: "Kui Zhu's Articles". Later generations further evolved Kuixing into the head of civil officials, responsible for the success or failure of literati. On the roof of the third-floor pavilion, there was originally a statue of Kuixing with a strong appearance, holding a pen in his right hand and holding a cup in his left hand, to show his admiration for literature. According to legend, whoever is chosen by him will win three consecutive prizes, namely Jieyuan, Huiyuan and Number One Scholar in the ancient imperial examinations. Nowadays, many parents who hope that their children will become successful bring their children to this magical Kuixing Pavilion to worship, hoping that their wishes will come true.
There are two bell and drum pavilions on both sides of the attic. The bell pavilion on the left originally had a nine-thousand-jin bell, and the drum pavilion on the right originally had a large drum with a diameter of 2 meters. It is said that the bells and drums can be sounded together. Suppress the flood, so that the Dragon King does not dare to cause trouble, so as to ensure the peace and prosperity of the country and the people.
The three semicircular gates in front of you that look like the word "Chuan" are called "Chuan Gate", also called the Zhengnan Gate. Made of blue bricks, Sichuan Gate is divided into Zhengchuan Gate and Dongxi Sichuan Gate. In ancient times, only emperors and court officials could pass through the Zhengchuan Gate. Common people could only use the East and Xichuan Gates. There used to be a large attic with a unique shape and lattice windows on the doorway. Unfortunately, it was bombed by the Japanese army in 1944. It was later renovated into a platform. From the platform, you can overlook the panoramic view of the temple. The attic we see now was rebuilt in 1997.