This is Shaanxi: Zhou Gong's Temple in Qishan

visitors in front of the Bagua Pavilion

Zhou Gong's Temple was widely known early back to the Western Zhou Dynasty, and it may be the first tourist attraction in China.

This is the largest ancient building complex in the Guanzhong area, with pavilions, terraces, and other buildings covering a total area of 610,000 square meters. Zhou Gong's Temple in Qishan is the leading one among temples of the same kind with its long history, profound culture, and vast land. The temple is the birthplace of Chinese civilization of rites and music, and Zhou Gong is part of the Chinese people's spiritual sustenance.

Who is Zhou Gong

Zhou Gong, or Duke of Zhou, is a Chinese culture hero credited with establishing the rites of Zhou, and creating the yayu  of Chinese classical music. It's said that Confucius often dreamed of Zhou Gong, and thus Zhou was connected with Confucianism and he is known as the "God of Dreams". In Chinese legends, if an important thing is going to happen to someone, Zhou Gong will let the person know through dreams: hence the Chinese expression "Dreaming of Zhou Gong".

statue of Zhou Gong

Zhou Gong's Temple in Qishan is covered with lush vegetation, including locust trees planted in the Han dynasty and cypresses in the Tang dynasty. Home to over forty steles of past ages, Zhou Gong's Temple is hailed as the Treasure House of Chinese Calligraphy Art. Over 1,700 meters of clay wall surrounding the temple was honored as "the most important archaeological discovery in New China" by Zhou Heng, a famous Shang and Zhou archaeological expert and professor of Peking University.

Runde Spring

students visit the Zhougong Temple