Nanguo Temple, with a history of a thousand years, has three major attractions that have earned it the reputation of being the top temple in Longyou

❤Reason for recommendation: Gansu is located in the Hexi Corridor and is an important node city on the Silk Road. Since ancient times, there have been many temples, stone carvings and large Buddhas. However, Nanguo Temple in Tianshui, with a history of over 1000 years, is known as the top temple in Longyou. What makes this ancient temple different? 🌟Highlight features: Nanguo Temple is located in the middle of Huiyin Mountain in the south of Qinzhou District, Tianshui, about twenty minutes drive from the city center. Huiyin Mountain is not high, with uphill and downhill mountain roads on both sides. The road conditions are good, surrounded by lush greenery, and the top of the mountain overlooks the entire city of Tianshui. Nanguo Temple is nestled in Huiyin Mountain and built against the mountain. It is one of the few temples in the country that face north from the south. Over the centuries, it has attracted many literati to come and enjoy the scenery, leaving many famous articles. 👍Most recommended: Nanguo Temple has a history of over 1000 years and was already quite large during the Tang Dynasty. There are many ancient relics in the temple, but there are three must-see places: 1. Ancient cypress of Spring and Autumn. Nanguo Temple has towering ancient trees, the most famous of which are two cypresses that are contemporaries with Confucius, Sakyamuni, and Socrates, and have a history of 2500 years. They are divided into north and south branches, as if they were split in the middle, but their roots are connected. The south-facing branch has dark frost skin, dry and purple, straight into the sky. Amazingly, the top is still vibrant, with lush branches and leaves; the northwest-facing branch is already dead, cleverly set on the branches of the locust tree, and a black egg tree (poplar tree) with a chest circumference of 108 cm is parasitic in the split dead trunk, with lush branches and leaves, full of vitality. Known as the ancient cypress of Spring and Autumn, it is a rare treasure and is hailed as one of the eight scenic spots in Tianshui. 2. Du Shaoling Shrine. In 759 AD, Tang Dynasty poet Du Fu came to Tianshui to seek refuge from his nephew to avoid the Anshi Rebellion. He brought his family to live in Nanguo Temple and wrote 117 popular Tang poems here, which attracted many people to Nanshan Temple and Qinzhou, Tianshui. Among them, 'The temple on the mountain top, the water is called the north-flowing spring. The old tree gets the empty courtyard, the clear canal is passed on by a town' is the most famous. In the 30th year of the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, the locals changed the East Zen Forest Court of Nanguo Temple to Du Shaoling Shrine to express their admiration for the poet Du Fu. In recent years, the sculptor of the Mother of the Yellow River, a female sculptor, has specially sculpted a statue for Du Fu. At present, Du Fu's bust is standing in Du Shaoling Shrine, surrounded by bamboo forests, with a quiet environment. There is also a large and magnificent stele gallery next to it, which collects the calligraphy essence of calligraphers Wang Xizhi and Wang Xianzhi, and is engraved with the excellent works of poet Du Fu. 3. North-flowing spring. There is an ancient spring in the Guanyin Hall of the East Court of Nanguo Temple, which flows from the south mountain to the north, so it is called 'North-flowing Spring'. The spring water is clear and never exhausted. Later, the monks dug wells to keep the spring, which is still in use today. Nanguo Temple also has many plaques of famous people from all dynasties. The three big characters of 'Nanguo Temple' at the mountain gate and the big characters of 'North-flowing Spring' plaque are all works of calligrapher Sha Menghai. The three big characters of 'The First Mountain' are the handwriting of Mi Fu, a calligrapher of the Qing Dynasty, and the original work is in Wudang Mountain, Hubei. There is a vertical plaque written by Zhang Ti, the governor of Qinzhou in the Qing Dynasty, hanging on the gate of Du Shaoling Shrine, and a pair of door plaques written by Zhou Wuxue, the loyal and martial general, in the courtyard, and so on. Coming to Nanguo Temple in early autumn, the temple is very quiet, especially suitable for slow tours. Standing in Nanguo Temple, I think of the poet Du Fu who lingered in the temple in the past, with a heart full of patriotism, but because of the war, he was displaced and had no way to serve the country. That kind of desolation and sadness makes people sigh. It has been half a month since I left Nanguo Temple. Today I remember that the Maitreya Buddha statue is enshrined in the Heavenly King Hall, and there is a couplet on both sides, which is still impressive. That is 'The big belly can tolerate, tolerate the sky and the earth, and tolerate everything with people; open your mouth and laugh, laugh at the past and laugh at the present, and put everything into a laugh.' I hope this couplet can encourage those who see this article.