Lungshan Temple

The Lungshan (Dragon Mountain) Temple, first built 200 years ago and covering a large area in the old Wanhua section of Taipei, is deservedly one of the most famous landmarks and tourist attractions on the island of Taiwan. An interesting legend exists as to why immigrants from Chuanchou on the China mainland chose the present site. About 200 years ago, a Chuanchou merchant stopped in Manka (as Wanhua was known at that time) on his way to Chinwei to buy rattan. While answering an urgent call in the middle of the night, he hung his amulet on a banyan tree and forgot to retrieve it when he left the next morning. Some days later, a local resident saw light emanating from the tree, and on closer inspection found the amulet which was inscribed with the words: "The Goddess Kuanyin of Lungshan Temple". On hearing the news, local residents assumed that the light was a manifestation of the goddess. They brought sacrifices and burned incense to honor the amulet, and miraculously their prayers were answered. As a result, it was decided to build a temple on the spot, which was named after the inscription on the amulet. Many people also went on a pilgrimage to the Lungshan temple at Anhai in Fukien Province on the mainland to ask the goddess there to extend her presence to the Taiwan temple, in an elaborate incense ceremony. The Anhai temple was regarded at that time as the most propitious in Fukien devoted to Kuanyin. At one time, a large lotus filled pond lay in front of the Taipei Lungshan Temple, installed after a geomancer said a "mirror" should complement the building. Later, more practical considerations prevailed, and the lake was filled in to accommodate the present Lungshan Temple market. Construction of the first temple on the site started on May 19, 1737, and when it was finished three years later, it immediately became the religious center of Manka, which at the time made up most of Taipei. Its reputation spread throughout the island, and people began to make pilgrimages to worship at the temple's many altars. The temple was therefore instrumental to the rise of Manka as a prosperous trading and cultural center where many rich merchants and scholars lived during the Ching Dynasty. When the temple was first built 200 years ago, it consisted of a main hall where the Goddess of mercy was enshrined. Later a hall at the rear was constructed by the Manka Chuanchou Merchant Guild in honor of the Goddess Matsu of the sea, who holds a particular place of affection among the people of Taiwan. The money needed was raised by means of a 5 percent tax imposed on all shipments handled by members of the guild. No one knows for sure when the rear hall was first constructed, but a plaque hanging in the temple tells that Matsu safely brought home a convoy of ships belonging to the Chuanchou Guild in 1819, which presumably means it was built before that time. The temple was rebuilt twice in the 19th century, once when it was completely destroyed by an earthquake in 1817, and a second time when a typhoon caused extensive damage in 1867. Fifty years later, the building was beginning to show its age again, with plaster falling off the walls, paint on the pillars and beams beginning to peel, and termites eating away at the woodwork. A temple board was therefore set up to reconstruct the temple again, which raised the necessary cash and collected materials. When the new building was completed in 1926, it was regarded as the most magnificent building in Taiwan. On the night of June 8, 1945, Allied bombers struck the Manka area and completely destroyed the Lungshan Temple, with the exception of the statue of Kuanyin, which was left blackened but unbowed. Reconstruction started immediately after hostilities ended and the resulting building, finished in 1959 is the one that stands today.

　Now one of the foremost tourist attractions in Taipei, the Lungshan Temple is visited by thousands of overseas and local visitors every day. So large are the crowds sometimes that they interfere with religious ceremonies, in particular the Fahui, which requires a solemn atmosphere for the nuns to pray for the dead and ask for good fortune and safety from disaster for the worshippers. Because of this many worshippers go to other temples, resulting in a loss of revenue at Lungshan. Even so, the temple has many devotees, including the wife of one rich merchant who can be seen every day there sweeping the floor. The many shops and stands in the Lungshan Temple market serve all kinds of cheap but delicious Taiwanese food, particularly seafood. Peak business hours are in the evening, as they are in the nearby Huahsi Street, or "Snake Alley" as it has come to be known. Here local people can be seen purchasing potions made of snake blood or mystical Chinese herbs. One herbal medicine shop run by Liao Wu-chang specializes in Lingchi, a kind of hard brown fungus which is supposed to have magical powers. Liao said that Lingchi can be used to cure rheumatism, high blood pressure, and headaches. Of the three varieties of the herb, black, Chinhsien and Chin, the Chin is the most expensive, sold at US$11 per tael (1.5 ounces). Of more interest to tourists are the snake shops, where the reptiles are killed in front of the onlookers and drained of blood and gall. The gall, the most prized part, is said to be good for the eyes and liver, but the blood and flesh are also a prized delicacy among many people in Taiwan.