Temple of Madam Xian

The Temple of Madam Xian (Chinese: 冼太庙) is a temple commemorating Lady Xian, located at Wenming Street, near the Eastern Gate of Gaozhou, Guangdong province, China. Madam Xian is revered as a symbol of unity and safety.^[1]

Lady Xian

Lady Xian was a prominent 6th-century military leader of the Baiyue people in the Lingnan region, who successively served three Chinese dynasties, namely Liang, Chen, and Sui. She was granted the title Lady Kangjun by the Liang, Lady Shilong by the Chen, and Lady Qiaoguo by the Sui dynasty. Premier Zhou Enlai called her "The First Heroine of China" (中国巾帼第一人).^[2] Local residents call her the "Saintly Mother of Lingnan" (岭南圣母).^[1] There are about 300 temples of Madam Xian in Maoming, the one at Wenming Street being one of the largest.

History and development

1. At the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, the Temple of Madam Xian moved here when the old Gaozhou County moved to the south where the current Gaozhou County is located. During the Ming Dynasty, in 1535 the Temple of Madam Xian was rebuilt at Wenming Street at the Eastern Gate of Gaozhou County.
2. In Qing Dynasty, the Temple of Madam Xian was restored several times.
3. After the Chinese Civil War ended, Temple of Madam Xian was converted for use as a kindergarten, causing damage to the original temple.
4. During 1980s, donors in various fields zealously gave money to renovate the Temple of Madam Xian.
5. In December 1990, the Cultural Relic’s Management Committee of Guangdong Province sanctioned the renovation of Temple of Madam Xian. The renovation started in the August of 1992, and was completed in December 1994.
6. In 2002, after President Jiang Zemin visited the Temple of Madam Xian in Gaozhou, he declared that the scale was not large enough, and it needed to be developed as the base of patriotism education. In the same year, Gaozhou government invested a large sum of money to expand its scale, as well as turning it into a real base of patriotism education.
7. In 2007, People’s Government of Guangdong Province awarded Temple of Madam Xian as the provincial unit of cultural relic protection.
8. In 2014, the Temple of Madam Xian was rated as the base of inheriting China’s culture.

Layout

The total length of the Temple of Madam Xian is about 62.2 meters, its width is 13.2 meters, and its total size 826.3 square meters. In all, there are four pavilions along the longitudinal axis: a front hall, nave, main hall and back hall.

1. In the front hall hung on the right and left walls are some paintings are attributed to renowned painters like Yang Qiuxi. A few peddlers usually set stalls there to sell incense, candles, and souvenirs to pilgrims.
2. Between the front hall and the nave is a large patio and a stone boat, around which moss grows.
3. In the nave is a horizontal inscribed board with words “Temple of Madam Xian” written by Zhao Puchu. Hanging above in the middle of the nave is a large screen entitled "Birds paying homage to the phoenix." On the left and right walls are twelve pieces of vivid fresco. One of the frescos depicts a picture of a shepherd boy playing with the cattle. Below the frescos are about 10 pieces of stone inscription recording the feats of Madam Xian.
4. In the main hall are three Madam Xian’s statues of different sizes lining up from north to south. The biggest statue that wears phoenix coronet, flowery shoes and colorful clothes, is located in the north of the main hall. There are two statues of her bodyguards named Mulan and Cao’e. It is said that Mulan was in command of Madam Xian’s sword, and Cao’e preserved her seal. This huge statue can be moved by pressing some buttons, so that it can stand up, sit down, and stretch out its arms so that the staff could change its clothes. Another statue depicts Madam Xian sitting in a spectacular chair between the biggest statue and the smallest statue. The last and smallest statue is designed for parade because it is much easier to carry. Viewed together, the three statues look majestic and magnificent.
5. The back hall is the Temple of Feng Bao who was the husband of Madam Xian. The statues of Madam Xian and Feng Bao are both placed there, and both of them are regarded as Gods of Hehe, the symbols of affectionate couples. Young couples pray in front of the two statues when they encounter difficulties in their relationship.

Aesthetic value

In addition to its red walls and green roof, craftsmen also employed other arts to decorate the temples. As for Temple of Madam Xian, the craftsmen employed colored drawing, paste-on- paste decoration and carving to adorn it.

1. Colored drawing: almost all the colored drawings, most of which are about folktales, are fresco. Each colored drawing has its own theme. More importantly, the frescos in the eaves and walls of the nave were created in Ming or Qing Dynasty, thus, it have historical value as well as aesthetic value.
2. Paste-on- paste decoration: paste-on- paste decoration is mostly used as the cresting of the proof. The cresting like “double dragons plays with a ball”, “two carps jump across Longmen”, and “tales of Madam Xian” reflect the traditional custom and distinctive culture.
3. Carving: there are two types of carvings: stone carvings and wood carvings. Stone carvings are mainly used to dot the stone pillars, while wood carvings are employed to make statues or wooden screens. Both of the two types of carving embody the traditional arts of China.

As mentioned above, in addition to colored drawing, paste-on- paste decoration and carving, there are multiple examples of calligraphy and paintings with high aesthetic value.

Significance

Ding Yangzhong, professor of Central Drama Academy in Beijing, wrote a couplet for Temple of Madam Xian: 是人非神，千秋景仰；亦人亦神，万代馨香.^[3] In other words, Madam Xian was a human being, but what she did was beyond an ordinary human’s ability. Because Madam Xian was a woman with extraordinary merit, people worship her as a god. However,they do not deify her.^[4]

References