Chihsin Temple Introduction
Play Guide - Designated Historic Site in Hualien County - Currently the most well-preserved Japanese-style temple in Taiwan - Admire the eighty-eight stone Buddha statues from Shikoku, Japan - A must-see, the temple hall built using traditional Japanese architectural style "Hōgyō-zukuri". Public transportation click here >>> Taiwan Tourist Shuttle - Zonghe Hualien Line Information (Timetable/Fare Table) Accessible bus reservation >>> Taiwan Tourist Shuttle Accessible Reservation Information. The peaceful water pavilion for cleansing the mouth and body, the antiquated and simple temple hall, the solemn eighty-eight stone Buddha statues, and the Zen-like dry landscape garden create an atmosphere akin to stepping into a Japanese Buddhist temple, immersing visitors in a tranquil and serene environment. This is the Ji'an Qingxiuyuan, a preaching site built by Kawabata Manji during the Japanese colonial period to comfort immigrants. It is a designated Level 3 historic site in Hualien County and the most well-preserved Japanese-style temple in Taiwan today. Spiritual solace and the eighty-eight stone Buddha statues. Ji'an was known as Yoshino during the Japanese colonial period and is a well-known immigrant village in Hualien. In the sixth year of Taisho (1917), Kawabata Manji funded the establishment of the "Shingon Sect Kōyasan Yoshino Preaching Site," hoping to use the power of religion to comfort the nostalgia of Japanese immigrants in Yoshino (Ji'an). The temple houses a sequence of stone Buddha statues, which were said to be brought back by Kawabata Manji in accordance with the will of the founding master of the Shingon Sect, Kūkai, after traveling to the eighty-eight pilgrimage sites on Shikoku Island, allowing residents to seek spiritual solace. Stepping into a time tunnel, after the restoration of Taiwan, the Yoshino Preaching Site was renamed Qingxiuyuan, with a serene environment that still preserves artifacts and architecture such as the Fudō Myōō stone carvings, Baidu stone, and the Hōgyō-zukuri style temple hall. Over the years, Qingxiuyuan carries a sense of history and timelessness, with buildings reflecting traditional Japanese structural forms, gardens filled with flora, and dry landscape gardens, making it feel as if one has traveled back in time to Japan's Edo period, experiencing the ancient charm of the preaching site.
