This is Qitianfu Temple in Fuzhou community. I knew it on the map. I have always been curious about what the Monkey King Temple looks like, so I went there specially. I didn't hold out much hope at first, but I really met it.
Qi Tianfu Temple is very small, sandwiched in the room of a residential building, and it is a two-story building. Lanterns are hung in front of the main hall, and the words "Qi Tianfu" and "Pingshan Ancestral Hall" are written. Judging from the unique lanterns and many details on the wall, this temple is very famous in the local area and may have a special status.
It's just that the temple is too small to find detailed information, only bits and pieces. First, Qi Tianfu was built in Song Renzong period, but the original site is not here. Later it was damaged and moved here. Second, it was born in the Ming Dynasty. Although there are different opinions, it can be determined that it has a history of at least several hundred years.
Looking closely at the altar, there sits a majestic statue of Monkey King, holding a golden hoop and wearing a gold shirt, with a solemn face and extraordinary eyes, not as naughty and active as in the novel.
Suddenly, I feel that it should not be called the Monkey King, but the Monkey King. Behind the Great Sage is a cave imitating Guo Huashan, surrounded by two monkeys, a red monkey and a black monkey. Forgive my ignorance, I really can't recognize who these two monkeys (or immortals) are.
There is an empty stool in front of the Great Sage, which seems to be deliberately placed. I wonder what the purpose is. This is the first time I have seen this great temple. After all, unlike Buddhism and Taoism, I don't understand many things.
Although the temple is small, it smells strong. After ten minutes, several waves of people came and left. They bowed down and offered incense, put them in the incense burner and left. The whole process is flowing like a regular customer. There is an aunt in front of me, kneeling in front of the big icon, saying something silently, as if praying for something.
There are some brightly colored statues on both sides of Dasheng Temple, which should be immortals in Taoism. Some people have knives, some swords and some pens. It seems that they have their own magical powers. The painting on the wooden door of the main hall is also the image of a monkey, wearing armor and holding a wishful stick, guarding both sides in a healthy way.
I checked some information and found that in Fujian, especially in Fuzhou, the monkey belief culture has a long history.
Fujian is a mountainous, sparsely populated and densely forested province. This geographical condition facilitates the survival of apes and has long caused "monkey disease". Monkeys who frequently enter live zone interfere with the normal life of human beings, and local people can't get rid of them for a long time. They finally had to worship the "monkey god", hoping that the monkey god would show his spirit and help reduce the number of monkeys.