[November 2016, April 2017, and March 2026]
[Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwan_Area ]
Kaohsiung
City is one of Taiwan's six ″special municipalities″. This
administrative entity covers a vast geographical area stretching from its
coastal urban core to rural areas located inland in southern Taiwan. With a
population of 2.7 million people, it is the third most populous city in Taiwan,
after Taipei and Taichung. With Keelung in the north, these are Taiwan's two
main ports. This page and its companion page (Part 2/2)
present photos I took during three visits to Kaohsiung City, in November 2016,
April 2017, and March 2016. Most of these photos were taken in urban areas of
Kaohsiung. A smaller number are from more rural areas of the municipality: the
small towns of Qishan and Meinong, roughly 35 to 40km northeast of the city's
urban center, and the Fo Guang Shan monastery, 20km inland.
This
page is dedicated to photos taken in the urban center of Kaohsiung. Each
consecutive series of photos taken during the same trip is labeled by the date
of that trip, beneath the last photo of the series.
General
views of the coastal center of Kaohsiung:
View at sunset. Cijin island is visible in the
background, with the lighthouse marking the entrance to the inner port of
Kaohsiung standing at its northern tip.
Kaohsiung's skyline seen from Cijin island. The
tall building on the right in the first and third photos below is the
347.5m-high 85 Sky Tower, the second tallest building in Taiwan after Taipei
101.
[November
2016]
[March 2026]
The old and
new Kaohsiung train stations:
The small building in the center of the photo is the old station, built
in 1941 during the Japanese colonial period. In 2002, it was relocated to clear
the space needed for the construction of the new station, situated underground
beneath the two new large buildings visible in the photo. The old building was
reinstalled at its original location in 2021.
[March 2026]
Dome of
Light (光之穹頂), the
Formosa Boulevard station of the Kaohsiung MRT (Mass Rapid Transit):
It is 30m in diameter and is made up of 4500 glass panels covering an
area of 660sq.m. It took 4.5 years to complete and opened in 2008.
[November 2016]
In one of the
multiple night markets of central Kaohsiung:
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[November 2016]
At the Gushan ferry pier (鼓山輪渡站):
Built along a water
canal at the entrance of the inner Kaohsiung's harbor, it is the place to board
ferries connecting the main land to Cijing island (旗津區).
Ferry traffic between the main land and Cijin
island (visible in the background).
[November 2016]
Decorated ferry in the water canal bordering the ferry pier. The
red-brick building at the top-left corner of the photo is the old British
consulate built in 1865. The other red building at the center-top of the photo
is the Sizihwan temple of the Eighteen Lords (西子灣靈興殿十八王公廟). Both the former consulate and the temple stand on top of a hill west
of the ferry pier.
[March 2026]
Another view of the old British consulate from the ferry pier.
[November 2016]
Colorful houses next to the ferry pier.
[March 2026]
Cijin Tianhou temple (旗津天后宮):
Originally built in 1673, this temple was the earliest temple to worship
the Sea Goddess Mazu (媽祖) in the Kaohsiung area. It was rebuilt and remodeled several times,
while trying to preserve its ancient appearance. The last restoration lasted
three years and was completed in 2020.
Left: Entrance of the temple. Right: Stone bas-relief in the temple.
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Main altar, with Mazu at the center.
[March 2026]
Hollow effigies worn by individuals during processions to clear the path
for the statue of Mazu. They represent her two customary guardians: the red one
is Shunfeng'er (順風耳) and the green one is Qianliyan (千里眼). In normal time they just stand in the temple.
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Mazu (right) sitting beside a golden statue Buddha enclosed in a glass
case, behind an incense burner.
[November 2016]
Polychrome bas-relief depicting legendary scenes.
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[March 2026]
Left: Joss paper burner shaped as a pagoda outside the temple. Center and
right: Two of the bas-relief panels decorating the paper burner.
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[Left: November 2016] [Center and right: March 2026]
Cijin Tiensheng temple (旗津天聖宮):
The main deity worshiped in this temple is Mazu, under her honorific
title ″The Holy Mother of the Heaven″ (天上聖母,Tiensheng Shengmu).
Several other deities are also worshiped in the temple, including Zhongtan Marshal (中壇元帥), a general protecting the Holy Mother. The temple was constructed in
1989.
[November 2016]
Flat fishing
boat made of bended plastic pipes, on Cijin Island:
[November 2016]
Kaitai Fude temple
(哨船頭開臺福德宮):
This temple has a long history dating back to 1551, when Chinese
immigrants settled at this site and worshipped a stone that looked like the
Earth God Tudigong (土地公), also known as Fude Zhengshen (福德正神). A temple was built later, but reconstructed on several occasions, most
recently in 1933 and 1975, and renovated between 2018 and 2021. The main deity
worshipped here is Tudigong, a major figure in Taoism
and Chinese folk religion, associated with agricultural abundance.
- Left: Facade of the temple's main prayer hall. The golden, boat-shaped
object in front the temple represents a ″yuanbao″ (元寶), an ingot used as currency in imperial China. It is a symbol of wealth
and prosperity.
- Right: Ceiling decoration in the hall.
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[March 2026]
Sizihwan temple of
the Eighteen Lords (西子灣靈興殿十八王公廟):
The history of this temple (also called Linxing temple) dates back to
1684. According to the legend, a fishing boat sank in a nearby bay. Its
eighteen sailors escaped, but were mistaken for pirates by county officials and
massacred. Because of their unjust death, local residents give them a proper
burial and built an ancestral hall to enshrine their spirits. In 1983, due to
the expansion of the National Sun Yat-sen University, this hall was rebuilt
next to the old British consulate and given its current name. The eighteen
sailors, now called ″lords″, are still enshrined in this temple,
but the main deity is Xuantian Shangdi
(玄天上帝), also known as the ″Supreme Emperor of the Dark Heaven″.
Other deities, including Tudigong and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, known in Chinese as Dizang Pusa (地藏菩薩), have been added as secondary deities.
Facade of the temple.
Main altar. The tallest figure, standing in the center in the back row is
Xuantian Shangdi. The other figures are the secondary
deities and the eighteen sailors.
Part of a finely carved and gilded wooden panel in the temple.
[March 2026]
Hamasen Daitian temple (哈瑪星代天宮):
Built in 1951, this temple
combines Taoist and Buddhist worship halls. The entire temple was renovated
between 2019 and 2024.
Archway to the temple.
Altar dedicated to the
Five Lords of a Thousand Years (五府千歲, ″wufu qiansui″), more commonly revered as the Five Great Kings.
They are believed to have been high-ranking officials from the Tang dynasty
(618-907) who were deified after their deaths. They are protective Taoist
deities worshipped to cure mysterious illnesses, ward off evil spirits, and
ensure safe travel. (Due to the depth of the altar, only three of them are
visible in the picture, the other two being obscured by side decorations.)
Buddhist altar featuring three representations of Guanyin Bodhisattva. In
the central statue, she rides a lion, a symbol of her fearlessness, divine
power, and authority over the forces of nature.
Beautifully decorated ceiling.
[March 2026]
Yancheng
Sanshan Guowang temple (鹽埕三山國王廟):
This temple was first built in 1760 by Hakka immigrants during the reign
of Emperor Qianlong. Since then, it has been reconstructed and renovated
several times. The main deities worshipped here are the Three Mountain Kings (三山國王) associated with three mountains of the Chaozhou Prefecture in Eastern
Guangdong Province, China: Lian Jie (連傑) for Mt. Jin (巾山), Zhao Xuan (趙軒) for Mt. Ming (明山), and Qiao Jun (喬俊) for Mt. Dua (獨山). Other deities include Li Fu Qiansui (李府千歲), the leader of the Five Great Kings (五府千歲) [see previous temple], Shuixian Zunwang (水仙尊王), a group of five Water deities led by Yu the Great (大禹), the legendary tamer of the Great Flood of China; and the Bodhisattva
Guanyin. Following an ancient legend, this temple shares with two other temples
the custom of rotating the worship of the Sun God (太阳星君): the Yanchengpu Soushan
temple (鹽埕埔壽山宮) and the Qianjin Wanxing temple (前金萬興宮), both of which are
featured further down on this page.
Left: Joss paper burner of the temple. Right: Barrel-shaped ceremonial
drum, called a tanggu (堂鼓), with two drumheads, in the temple.
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Main altar featuring the various deities enshrined in the temple..
Ornate arches aimed at better distributing the load of a ceiling beam
onto two red pillars.
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[March 2026]
Yancheng Shaduo temple (鹽埕沙多宮)
This temple is mainly
dedicated the Five
Lords of a Thousand Years (五府千歲, ″wufu qiansui″),
commonly revered as the Five Great Kings [See the Hamasen Daitian temple (above)]. One possible explanation for this clustering of the same deities
in nearby temples is that migrants hailing from the same region in China tended
to settle together in a specific region, or a few specific regions, of Taiwan,
subsequently dedicating their temples to the same popular folk deities from
their ancestral homelands, and perhaps even competing to win for the favor of
these deities.
Altar dedicated to Five
Great Kings. Their collective name, 五府千歲, appears on both sides of the altar.
Another altar in the
temple:
- The large statue in
the center at the back seems to represent Chi Fu Qiansui (池府千歲), the Second Lord of the Five
Lords of a Thousand Years (五府千歲) [see Hamasen Daitian temple (above)]. According to legend, he was a general known as Chi Mengbiao during the
Tang dynasty, who sacrificed himself by knowingly swallowing a poisonous pill
in order to save lives, resulting in his iconic bulging eyes and blackened
face.
- Behind the two gilded statues of attendants, stands a row of three
statues, of which only the central one is clearly visible. The Chinese inscription
on its garments suggests that these three statues depict the Three Mountain Kings (三山國王) associated with Mts. Jinshan, Mingshan, and Duashan [see Yancheng Sanshan Guowang temple (above)].
Ceiling decoration in a
hall. Part of the inscription located on the left translates as ″Fairy
party″. The painting appears to depict enchantment, prosperity, and
longevity, three popular themes in Chinese folklore.
Amazingly detailed
model of a royal ship used for ceremonies and festivals, housed in a separate
room of the temple.
[March 2026]
Xiahai City God temple (高雄霞海城隍廟):
This temple was built at
its current location in 1936 and reconstructed in 1965 to its present
appearance. As in other City God temples in Taiwan, its principal deity is the
City God (城隍), a kind of divine
magistrate who protects the city, assists human officials in their
decision-making, records the merits and faults of the city's inhabitants,
and determines, at the moment of their death, the kind of afterlife they
deserve.
Main worship hall dedicated
to the City God, surrounded by judges and officials assisting him.
- Left: Altar dedicated
to Tudigong (土地公), also known as
Fude Zhengshen (福德正神), the God of Earth and
Merit.
- Right: Altar
dedicated to Zhusheng Niangniang (注生娘娘), an important deity
responsible for fertility, pregnancy, safe delivery, and the protection of
young children.
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Left: One of the six
generals of the City God. Center and right: Wood carvings on doors,
representing other generals protecting the temple against evil spirits.
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[March 2026]
Yanchengpu Soushan temple (鹽埕埔壽山宮):
This temple is
dedicated to Chi Fu Qiansui (池府千岁), the Second Lord of the Five
Lords of a Thousand Years (五府千歲), who sacrificed himself by knowingly swallowing a
poisonous pill in order to save lives [see Hamasen Daitian
temple and Yancheng Shaduo temple (above)]. The temple was built in 1955 and rebuilt in 1980. As already
mentioned above, it rotates the worship
of the Sun God with two other local temples: the Yancheng Sanshan
Guowang temple (see above) and the Qianjing Wanxing temple (see
below).
Facade of the temple at
night.
[March 2026]
Wenwu temple (文武聖殿):
This temple is
dedicated to Wenchang Dijun (文昌帝君), the God of Culture
and Literature, and Guandi (关帝, ″Emperor Guan″), the
deified title of Guan Yu (关羽), a Chinese general
(c. 160-220) renowned for his moral virtues (particularly loyalty and
righteousness) and his martial prowess. Considered the God of War and Martial
Arts, Guandi is sometimes associated with Wenchang
Dijun, due to his moral qualities. The name of the temple, which combines ″Wen″
(文) and ″Wu″ (武) symbolizes the
harmonious balance between education and strength.
Archway of Literature
and Martial Arts leading to the temple.
Upper part of the
temple seen at night.
Interior of the main
hall of the temple.
Altar featuring the
statue of Wenchang Dijun in the center.
[March 2026]
Painted buildings
of Lane 7, Beiduan Street (close to Wenwu temple):
As I was strolling near the Wenwu temple, I passed by these buildings,
which had been painted relatively recently (less than 2 years ago). Although
another district of Kaohsiung, the WeiWu Mi Mi Village (衛武迷迷村), is better known for its painted buildings, I personally found this
site to be more authentic and interesting.
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[March 2026]
Yuanheng temple (打鼓岩元亨寺):
This temple was founded
in 1743 by the Fujianese monk Jingyuan. It was destroyed by fire in 1891 and
reconstructed at its present site at the foot of the Soushan
Mountain (壽山). It underwent another
reconstruction in 1926. A more recent, major campaign of reconstruction and
expansion began in 1973 and continued well into the 1980s.
View of four of the
temple's main buildings. The Hall of Ten Thousand Buddhas stands at the center
of the photo, flanked by dwellings on its two sides. The rightmost building is
the Columbarium Pagoda, a structure designed to house funerary urns holding cremated
remains of deceased practitioners.
Statues in the Hall of
Ten Thousand Buddhas. They represent three manifestations of the Buddha. Each
statue is cast in copper, stands nearly 8 meters tall, and weighs 14 tons.
[March 2026]
Kaohsiung Jade Emperor temple (高雄玉皇宮):
This temple was
constructed in the mid-1970s. However, its history started in 1920, when a
Kaohsiung resident acquired a Jade Emperor tablet and enshrined it in his
residence. While Kaohsiung suffered heavy casualties during World War II due to
Allied bombing, his residence remained intact. Thinking that this was due to
the protection of the Jade Emperor, believers flocked to the residence to
venerate the tablet. Subsequently, a committee was formed to acquire land and
build a proper temple. The result is truly impressive.
Left: Facade of the
temple seen at night. Right: Portion of the highly decorated interior and
ceiling of the temple.
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Main worship hall. The
characters on the tablet above the altar (一合人天) roughly mean ″Harmony
of Man and Heaven″.
Statues of two other
deities worshiped in the temple:
- The Moon Goddess (太阴星君).
- The Sun God (太陽星君).
[March 2026]
Sanfeng temple (高雄三鳳宮).
This temple is
dedicated to Li Nezha (李哪吒), a highly revered guardian deity of the Tao (the source of all existence in
Taoism). He also bears the title of ″Marshal of the Central Altar″
(中壇元帥) and commands the celestial and mortal armies of the Five Camps. Upon its founding in
1673, this temple consisted merely of a pavilion erected at a different
location. In 1971, it was relocated, and a new, much larger structure was built
at its current location. Today, it stands as the largest temple dedicated to
Nezha in Taiwan. A large number of other deities, including Buddhist figures,
are also venerated there.
Entrance to the temple.
The three characters appearing on the plaque above the door (宮鳳三) constitute the Chinese name of the
temple in right-to-left order.
Canopy of lanterns in
the courtyard viewed from above. Inscribed on each lantern are the name of the
temple on one side and the name of a believer (probably with a request to the
deities) who made a donation on the other.
Altar dedicated to
Nezha.
Hall and altar
dedicated to the Jade Emperor.
Buddhist altar.
Altars featuring other
deities:
- On the left: Zhusheng Niangniang (注生娘娘), the deity of
fertility, pregnancy, and safe childbirth.
- In the middle: the Earth God Tudigong
(土地公), also known as Fude Zhengshen (福德正神).
- On the right: Multi-faced,
multi-armed Doumu Yuanjun (斗姆元君), the Mother of the
Big Dipper and the tutelary authority over a group of sixty generals known as
the Tai Sui (see following photo).
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Eighteen of the sixty
deified generals who form the Tai Sui (太岁). Under the supervision of Doumu Yuanjun (斗姆元君), they take turns to govern human fortune and misfortune on 60-year cycles.
The general currently in charge is removed from its customary location and
placed in front of the statue of Doumu Yuanjun (see above
photo on the right).
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Statues of the Eighteen
Arhats (十八羅漢). The Arhats are
original disciples of Siddhartha Gautama, the historical Buddha. It is believed
that, although they attained the ultimate stage of enlightenment, rather than
liberating themselves from of earthly desires, they chose to remain on Earth to
protect the Buddhist teachings (the Dharma), awaiting the coming of Maitreya,
the prophesied future Buddha.
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[March 2026]
Qianjin Wanxing temple (前金萬興宮):
The temple was originally
built in 1747. In 1973 it was completely rebuilt in 1973 and renovated again in
2024. It is primarily dedicated to Master Qingshui (清水祖師).
Born in the Anxi county
of the Fujian province of China, Master Qingshui
(1047-1101) was a Buddhist monk who became a local hero for saving the
population from starvation during a drought. After his death, he was deified in
the local folk religion. His cult was later brought to Taiwan by immigrants
from the Anxi county. Several temples in Taiwan are primarily dedicated to
him. As previously mentioned, this temple rotates the worship of the Sun God (太阳星君) with two other local temples: the Yancheng Sanshan
Guowang temple (鹽埕三山國王廟) and the Yanchengpu Soushan temple (鹽埕埔壽山宮), both featured above.
Staircase adorned with
a painted dragon and facade of the temple, seen at night.
Statue of Master Qingshui, seated in a
Buddha-like posture on the roof of a smaller building next to the main
building.
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Main altar, at the center of which stands Master Qingshui.
He is flanked by two other deities on either side, but only one on each side is
visible in the photo:
- The deity situated on his right is 池府千歲, Lord Chi, the Second Lord of the Five Lords of a Thousand Years (五府千歲) [see Hamasen Daitian temple, Yancheng
Shaduo temple, and Yanchengpu Soushan
temple (above)].
- The deity
situated on his left is the sea goddess Mazu,
honorifically referred to as the Holy Mother in Heaven (天上聖母).
Altar of the Five Gods of Wealth (五路財神), with a magnificent golden dragon in the background. Together, these five
gods govern wealth from all directions (East, South, West, North, and Center).
The god in the middle is Zhao Gongming (趙公明). He represents the Center and commands the other four.
- Left: Guandi (关帝, ″Emperor Guan″), the deified title of Guan Yu (关羽), a Chinese general (c. 160-220) renowned for his moral virtues
(particularly loyalty and righteousness) and his martial prowess [See Wenwu temple, above]. Here, he is flanked by his faithful commander Zhou Cang (周倉), on his right, and his son Guan Ping (关平), on his left.
- Right: Tudigong (土地公), also known as Fude Zhengshen (福德正神), the God of Earth and Merit.
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Painting on a wall of the temple. It may have been inspired by a scene
from the 16th-century Chinese novel ″Journey to the West″, in which
the Buddhist monk Xuanzang encounters demons who have captured a woman.
[March 2026]
Shoyoen (逍遙園):
This house was built in
1940 to serve as a winter residence of Otani Kozui,
the 22nd abbot of the Nishi Hongwanji Buddhist temple in Kyoto. Restored
between 2017 and 2020, it offers an elegant blend of Japanese and Western
architectural styles. Its visit sheds light on the little-known, but unusual,
life of its part-time resident. Before becoming a prominent abbot, Otani Kozui (1876-1948) was an explorer. In the early 1900s he
led the first expeditions to Buddhist sites in the Taklamakan Desert to study
the transmission of Buddhism into China. He became a member of the Royal
Geographical Society and authored several books. In all likelihood, he also
served as a spy for the Japanese Empire.
The two facades of the Shoyoen, with their distinctive light olive-green walls.
Mon (emblem of a
Japanese clan) of the Otani family. It is visible on the entrance porch in the
photo above.
[March 2026]
Kaohsiung Guandi
temple (高雄關帝廟):
The main deity of this
temple is Guandi (关帝, ″Emperor Guan″),
also known as Guangong (关公, ″Lord Guan″),
a deified Chinese general named Guanyu (关羽) who lived in the late
2nd and early 3rd centuries. He was deified after his death for his
integrity and loyalty. He is revered not only as a god of war and martial arts,
but also as a god of wealth and loyalty, a sage of war, and a protective deity
in Taoism, Confucianism, and Chinese Buddhism.
The founding date of
this temple is unknown, but the current structure is the result of a full
reconstruction in the late 20th and early 21th centuries.
Facade of the temple.
Statues in front of the
temple.
- Left: The Red Hare (赤兔马, ″Chi Tu Ma″),
the legendary horse of General Guanyu with his caretaker Ma She Ye (馬使爺). Right: One of the
two ″Roman warrior″ guardians of the temple, an unusual sight in
Taiwan.
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Altar in the main hall.
The tallest statue, in the center of the photo on the left, is that of Guandi. As is often the case, he is flanked by his commander Zhou Cang (周倉), on his right, and his son Guan Ping (关平), on his left.
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Hall of the God of
Wealth, featuring the Golden Ox in the forefront, the Four-Faced Buddha in the
background (venerated for career, marriage, wealth, and health), and the altar
of the Five Gods of Wealth (barely visible at the very back of the hall). The boat-shaped object on the back of the Golden
Ox represents a ″yuanbao″ (元寶), an ingot used as currency in imperial China.
View of the altar of
the Five Gods of Wealth [see
Qianjin Wanxing temple
(above)] at the back of the hall
Altar in the Yuantong hall, a hall dedicated to Guanyin (the Bodhisattva
of Compassion). She is flanked by her two usual attendants.
In the Yuan Chen Hall (元辰殿). It is dedicated to
the worship of Doumu Yuanjun (斗姆元君), the Mother of
the Big Dipper, and the sixty Tai Sui (太岁), general deities who take turns to govern human fortune and misfortune on
60-year cycles [see the Sanfeng temple
(above)]. In Taoism, Yuan Chen (元辰殿), which translates to ″Original
Destiny″, refers to the specific stellar deity that governs a person's
life based on the exact date of the person's birth.
Some of the Tai Sui generals in the hall.
Left: More Tai Sui generals. Right: Priest praying before the statue of Doumu Yuanjun, which stands in the middle of the Tai Sui
generals.
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Statue of the Sage
Master Lu Ban (魯班先師), who is revered as
the patron deity of carpenters and builders.
Small central section
of a magnificent long frieze located in an inner courtyard of the temple. It
features a great diversity of figures. The second photo below shows a longer
section of the frieze, yet the complete frieze is still much longer.
[March 2026]
Painted
building on Jianjun Road:
Located next to the Weiwuying MRT station, this
mural represents shelves of books with a wardrobe in the middle. It covers the
entire facade of a building.
[March 2026]
Fongyi Academy (鳳儀書院):
This is the largest
preserved academy of Confucian studies in Taiwan. Built in 1814 and was
restored in the early 2000s. It features a combination of Confucian and Taoist
elements. Its overall style is rather simple, with few paintings and
decorations, creating an atmosphere conducive to learning.
Main gate of the
academy. The statues illustrate the visit of a local magistrate to the academy.
Worship hall of the
academy, with a statue of Wenchang Wang (文昌王), also known as
Wenchang Dijun (文昌帝君), the Taoist god of
culture and literature in the background. Most likely, he was worshipped by
students for success in examinations.
[March 2026]
Fengshan Tiangong temple (鳳山天公廟):
This temple was founded
in 1798, but the current structure was built between 2004 and 2012. Numerous
deities are worshipped there, with the Jade Emperor (玉皇上帝) being the principal
among them. In Taoism, he is regarded as the supreme ruler of Heaven, presiding
over his celestial bureaucracy composed of other deities.
Facade of the temple.
Altar featuring the
Jade Emperor.
Altar dedicated to Sanguan Dadi (三官大帝), the three Emperor-Officials, who subordinate only
to the Jade Emperor: the Heavenly Official (天官, ″Tianguan″), the Earthly Official (地官, ″Diguan″) and the Water Official (水官, ″Shuiguan).
The Three Teachings
altar. The three statues represent, from left to right: Siddhartha Gautama (the
historical Buddha), Confucius, and Laozi (老子, a philosopher of
ancient China, widely recognized as the founder of the Taoist school of
thought). The altar symbolizes the harmonious fusion of Buddhism, Confucianism,
and Taoism.
The Five Stars of the
Dipper altar, with Doumu Yuanjun (斗姆元君), the Mother of the
Big Dipper at the center.
Impressive wall relief
sculptures depicting numerous Taoist figures.
Three gorgeous ceilings
in the temple.
[March 2026]
Fengshan Buddhist Lotus Society temple (財團法人鳳山佛教蓮社):
This temple was founded
in 1953, and subsequently expanded and renovated. I had not planned to visit
it, but as I was walking toward the Fengshan Longshan temple (see
below), I passed right by it and I stepped inside for a moment. It was
extremely quiet, and the atmosphere felt a bit strange.
Main worship hall with
an unusual statue of a muscular Maitreya Buddha (Future Buddha) in Lotus
position.
[March 2026]
Fengshan Longshan temple (鳳山龍山寺):
Founded around 1765, this temple is one of the five surviving Longshan
temples in Taiwan dating back to the Qing dynasty. It is the southernmost of
them. All were founded by early Hokkien immigrants
from the Quanzhou region in the Fujian province, and named after their
ancestral temple located on the Dragon Mountain (龍山). They are Buddhist temples dedicated to Guanyin (觀音菩薩), the bodhisattva of infinite compassion in Chinese Buddhism. But, over
time, the worship of other Buddhist and Taoist deities was gradually introduced
within these temples.
Facade of the Fengshan Longshan temple.
Panels decorating the two side walls in the entrance of the temple. (They
are barely visible in the first photo above.)
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Main altar of the temple, with a golden statue of Guanyin flanked by her
two attendants, in in the back row. In addition, in the front row:
- The leftmost statue depicts the Martial God of Wealth (武財神), usually referring to Zhao Gongming (趙公明) [see Qianjin Wanxing
temple, above].
- The second leftmost statue represents Dashizhi
Pusa (大勢至菩薩), the Bodhisattva Mahasthamaprapta who personifies the
power of wisdom.
- The rightmost statue
depicts Mazu (媽祖), known as the ″Heavenly
Mother″ (天上聖母).
Another altar with Buddhist deities in the hall of the Three Treasures (三宝佛殿).
[March 2026]