Xuanmiao Temple
Xuanmiao Temple (Chinese: 玄妙观; Pinyin: Xuánmiào Guàn, "Mysterious Sublimity Temple" or "Mysterious Essence Temple") is a prominent Taoist temple with a long history, located at the center of old Suzhou City.
The street along east-west direction in front of the temple is called Guanqian Street (观前街), a famed business pedestrian street in Suzhou. A lane called Gong Xiang (宫巷) along north-south direction leads directly to the gate.
Xuanmiao Temple was founded in Xianning 2nd year (AD 276), Western Jin Dynasty, and was initially named "Zhen Qing Dao Yuan" (真庆道院). It was destroyed by wars in Southern Song Dynasty. It was rebuilt in the Chunxi era (1174–1189) of the reign of Emperor Xiaozong of Song, and was renamed Xuanmiao Guan in 1264. During the reign of the Kangxi Emperor in the Qing Dynasty, the temple was renamed Yuanmiao Guan (元妙观) to avoid naming taboo because the emperor's personal name, Xuanye (玄烨), contained the Chinese character xuan (玄).
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Coordinates: 31°18′52″N 120°37′19″E / 31.31444°N 120.62194°E