Zhengding , a well-know historical and cultural city of state-class, is situated at 15 kilometers of Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei province. Facing Taihang mountain in the west and overlooking Hutuo river in the south . Zhengding had the reputation as "the ancient city in the south of Yan, and the barrier over the capital city and its environs" The county city has Jingguang Railway and Jingshen highway passing though the eastern and western side respectively and is a communication hub with transport facilities.
Zhengding has a long history. Archaeological materials have proved that early in the primeval Neolithic Age our forefathers had labored ,lived and multiplied on this land where the cultural relics of Shang and Zhou dynasties present the magnificent culture at that time . In the Spring and Autumn Period Xianyu Kingdom established capital within this region . In the Warring States period as well as the Qin and Han dynasties it belonged to Zhongshan , Hengshan and Changshan respectively. In more than one thousand years-from A.D.398 as Tuoba Gui of Xianbei nationality establishing Changshan Commandery there up to the middle of the Qing Dynasty, Zhengding had always been a political, economical and cultural center in the central part of Hebei Province.
The long standing and well-established history has provided Zhengding for many scenic sports and historical sites of various styles, However ,a lot of cultural relics had not existed because of the erosion by wind and rain as well as the historical disasters . Only magnificent Longxing Temple, Hua pagoda of Guanghui Temple, Changeling Pagoda of Linji temple, Summer Pagoda of Kaiyuan Temple .Bell building of the tang dynasty, Dashing Hall in the county Confucian stretching old city walls are still standing tall and upright in this vast land to present the elegant demeanor of this famous historical and cultural city. Among them Longxing Temple is a typical example of the magnificent historical culture in this land.
Longxing Temple first built in A.D.586 of the Sui Dynasty with name of Longcang Temple which had later been changes into Longxing Temple on the Tang Dynasty .In A.D.971 Emperor Taizu of the Song Dynasty ordered to construct a bronze statue ,Avalokitesvara (Goddess of Mercy) with thousand arms ,and it was completed in A.D.975. After that a group of magnificent architectures with Dabei (Great Mercy) Storied -Pavilion as main building had been shaped in an architectural style of the Song Dynasty. Later on it was recuperated and enlarged successively . In the Qing Dynasty the Emperor Kangxi built up a temporary dwelling place in the west of the Temple. Thus Longxing Temple had a disposition of monks residence in the middle and the imperial temporary dwelling place in the west . in 1713 Emperor Kangxi wrote an inscription praising Longxing Temple as "The First Treasured Temple in China."
After the founding of the People 's Republic of China the State Council proclaimed Longxing Temple a national key protected cultural unit in 1961.In 1953 a special unit in charge of the preservation of cultural relics was set up and from then on many recuperation and enlargements of the Temple have been carried out by the State .The old temple gradually has its style and features of the flourishing age restored).
The existing area of Longxing Temple has 82500 square meters with main buildings from south to north, Including glazed walls, single-hole stone bridges, Hall of Lokapaka (Heavenly Kings )Main Hall decorated archway , ordination altar , Cishi Storied -Pavilion, Turning the Wheel Storied Pavilion, tables with inscriptions of emperors Kangxi and Qianling of the Qing Dynasty, Great Mercy Storied _Pavilion Maiterya Buddha(Future Buddha) Hall and Longquan (Dragon Spring) Well Pavilion etc. The Longxing Temple is an important place for studying the Buddhist monasteries architectures of the Song Dynasty and the smelting and casting technology as well as the fine arts of sculpture and painting since the ancient Sui and Tang Dynasties .Every piece of the cultural relics preserved in the Temple with great charm attracts visitors form China and the world as well.
Longxing temple is Like the Bright moon in the old city Zhengding, And the four ancient pagodas and other ancient architectures are like the gleaming stars enhancing each other's beauty with Longxing Temple in a distance.
Lingxiao pagoda of Tanning Temple, recorded as 18 Zhang on height ,is a wooden-structured pagodas in huge building style which was very common in the early wooden structured pagodas. However , it is the only extant practical sample Hua Pagoda of Guanghui Temple is not such huge in structure like Lingxiao Pagoda, But its style of main pagoda encircles with four small pagoda is out of conventional shape and is also the excellent sample of the extant pagoda constructed in flower-style .Chengling Pagoda of Linji Temple is not huge like Lingxiao Pagoda, nor elegant like Hua Pagoda ,but it is the sarira-stupa of Buddhist senior monk Yixuan, the founder of Linji Sect of the Tang dynasty . So it is the birthplace of Linji Sect and attracts many Buddhist believers from home and a broad. The brick pagoda of Kaiyan Temple is simple and unadorned in a structural style of the Tang Dynasty and it stands together with the only extant Bell Building of Tang Dynasty in China in front of the Main Hall of Kaiyuan Temple .They become the typical samples for studying the disposition of Buddhist temples on the Tang Dynasty. Above all ,the earliest Dacheng Hall in county Confucian Temple of the five Dynasties period extant in China, the ancient city walls extending 24 li .The stele of "The Great Achievements of Qinghe Commandery Prince of the Tang Dynasty". The Liangs, Ancestral Temple with Liang mangling , the Grand Guardian of the Heir Apparent and the Minister of Personnel in the Ming Dynasty and LianQingbiao, The Minister of war ,of Rites , of Justice, of Revenue and later on the Grand Academician of Baohe Hall in the Qing Dynasty as Representatives ,LiangQingbiao 's "Palm Tree Study", the former residence of Executive Premier WangShizheng in the Period of the Republic of China and his Shang Jie Ancestral temple, etc, are all recorded with vicissitude of the ancient city in various forms.
Zhengding not only possesses many bright and colorful cultural relics in the ground, but also has plentiful treasures of the cultural relics underground Zhengding County Reservatory of Cultural Relics established in 1953 has collected more than several thousands cultural relics ,among them 173 belong to state first and second class cultural relics which have recorded the civilization history if several thousand years from the primeval Neolithic age in Zhengding.
The ancient city Zhengding with its Abundant resources , hardworking people as well as rich cultural relics cordially invite and warmly welcome all the friends at home and abroad to have a pleasant and wonderful visit here [an error occurred while processing this directive]