Chongyuan Temple

Chongyuan Temple, originally named Chongxuan Temple, was founded in the second year of the Tianjian era of Emperor Wu of the Liang Dynasty (503 AD). At the beginning of the Northern Song Dynasty, it was renamed Chengtian Temple. By the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, it was renamed Nengren Temple. At the end of the Southern Song Dynasty, Zheng Sixiao hid his 'Xin Shi' in the temple's well. During the Mongol Yuan period, it was renamed Chengtian Nengren Temple. In the third year of Tianyou (1356), Zhang Shicheng conquered Suzhou and converted the temple into a palace, which was restored to a temple in the Ming Dynasty. In the Qing Dynasty, to avoid the taboo of the name of Aisin Gioro Xuanye, 'Xuan' was changed to 'Yuan', and it became Chongyuan Temple, a name that has been used ever since. Chongyuan Temple was completely destroyed during the Cultural Revolution. In November 2003, with the approval of the People's Government of Jiangsu Province, the reconstruction of Chongyuan Temple was initiated, with the abbot of Hanshan Temple, Master Qiu Shuang, also serving as its abbot. In October 2019, Chongyuan Temple in Suzhou voluntarily withdrew from the 4A-level tourist attraction status. After re-examination and inspection by the Jiangsu Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, the decision to agree to its withdrawal was made.