Lunian Temple - The largest Islamic cultural center in Western China

Located in Xixiang County, Shaanxi Province, which is under the jurisdiction of Hanzhong City, it lies in the eastern part of Hanzhong. The county town is not large, and one can walk around it without feeling tired. Within the town, there is the largest Islamic cultural center in Western China, one of the three great Islamic archway gate sects - Lunian Temple: Constructed in the 58th year of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (1719), Lunian Temple consists of three major parts: Xiangen Temple, Jingshi Temple, and Lunian Temple itself. Its ancient architectural patterns are diverse, with exquisite carving skills, decorated with relief sculptures, and the craftsmanship is superb, which is quite rare. The temple complex is spacious with magnificent buildings, and hanging high on the temple gate archway is a large plaque with the calligraphy 'Lunian Temple', dazzling in its brilliance. Inside the temple, there are structures such as the Longevity Pavilion, Prayer Hall, Archway Gate, Front and Rear Screen Walls, Yuanmu Courtyard, Zhonghe Courtyard, Yangzhi Courtyard, Prayer Hall, Jingshi, Qingxin Vegetarian Hall, Sutra Hall, etc. Inside the courtyard, there is a pair of stone deer, accurately shaped with finely detailed carvings, symbolizing the name of the temple. Interestingly, because the small stone deer have been constructed for a long time, and their antlers are huge, to protect these stone antlers, sticks are now used to support and protect them underneath the antlers behind the deer heads. Traveling to Xixiang is very convenient; it's a two-hour train ride from Ankang to Xixiang, with a ticket price of 20 yuan. Coming here is truly a nice journey.