Tuku Shun Tian Temple Introduction
**Tuku Mazu Yinhua Village:** Tuku Shuntian Temple is dedicated to Mazu, commonly known as Tuku Ma (Tuku Mazu). The current structure and appearance of the temple were established during the Showa era through reconstruction. It features works by artisans from the Zhang faction, such as Hu Xian and Wang Jinmu from the Xide faction of Quanzhou, contesting grand wooden carvings as well as renowned craftsmen like Jiang Jiu, Jiang Quanhe, and Chen Tianqi. **Introduction:** Tuku Shuntian Temple originally began as a "Tudi" temple. It underwent renovation and reconstruction, with the front hall commencing construction in the 14th year of the Daoguang era (1834). Six years later (1840), the rear hall was built. In the second year of the Xianfeng era (1852), local gentry renovated the front hall, erected the Jing Sheng Pavilion, and constructed the left wing. In the second year of the Guangxu era (1876), funding was gathered for the right wing. Over more than a century, the temple gradually showed signs of deterioration. Local gentlemen such as Yan Dingquan, Lin Yongzhen, Chen Rongshi, Lin Zhaoding, Chen Taixuan, Lin Jin, and Chen Qingquan, along with Japanese officials like Shinozaki Kiyotaka (the town mayor), raised funds during the Japanese occupation era (1934) to restore the temple to its current magnificent appearance. In 1940, under the Japanese government's implementation of the assimilation policy in Taiwan, Shuntian Temple's board member Shinozaki Kiyotaka found ways to cooperate with Japan's "Kōgi Shingon Sect Taiwan Establishment Project," applying to become the 34th affiliated temple of the project, officially establishing the "Tuku Branch of Tuku Village in Huwei District, Tainan Prefecture" as a branch of the Koyasan Daishi Church. They invited a statue of Guanyin to be enshrined in the main hall, while the deities of the Heavenly Mother were temporarily relocated to the rear hall. This spared Shuntian Temple from destruction by the Japanese government, and it wasn't until 1945 that the Heavenly Mother returned to be enshrined in the main hall, while Guanyin moved to the rear hall. **Architectural Features:** Tuku Shuntian Temple is located in the Tuku urban area and is a typical example of southern Chinese temple architecture, featuring a swallow-tail roof. The decorations include a spectacular "Dragon and Phoenix Presenting the Three Stars" motif. The main hall has three sections and features a triple entrance along with dragon and tiger doors on both sides, offering a total of five entrances when viewed from the front, an honor enjoyed by imperial gods. The temple's construction materials, including ridge, purlin, arch, column, beam, eaves, and roof, are primarily made from tamarisk wood, built with exceptional architectural skill and carving techniques, characteristic of the Qing Dynasty. Inside the hall, there are three sections, a courtyard, the main hall, the rear hall (Guanyin Hall), the San Guan Da Di Hall, and the Wen Chang Dijun Hall, all connected by corridors and bagua gates. **Image Source:** Xue Yingqi/photo. (Authorized photos are not to be reproduced)
Tuku Shun Tian Temple
