During the just passed May Day holiday, Laiyuan County in Hebei Province, located deep in the Taihang Mountains, was particularly lively - after 17 years, the national key cultural relic protection unit Geyuan Temple has officially resumed normal opening. The academic community generally believes that the main building of Geyuan Temple, Wenshu Hall, was built in the 16th year of the Yingli reign of the Liao Dynasty (966 AD), and is the earliest among the existing "Eight Great Liao Structures" in China. Previously, this millennium old temple was not regularly opened due to renovation. On the premise of protecting cultural relics, we have formulated a scientific and standardized tourism management plan to make ancient buildings' come alive 'and' ignite '. ”Hao Xin, a member of the Party Group of the Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism Bureau of Laiyuan County, said that during the May Day holiday, Geyuan Temple received more than 5000 visitors, becoming a new business card for Laiyuan's cultural and tourism industry. During the May Day holiday, tourists visited Geyuan Temple. Entering the temple, one is greeted with a sense of vicissitudes and antiquity. From south to north, Geyuan Temple has the Tianwang Hall, Wenshu Hall, and Cangjing Building in sequence. Among them, the Tianwang Hall and Cangjing Building are Ming Dynasty buildings, and the Wenshu Hall in the center appears particularly quaint and solemn. The two thousand year old pine trees in front of the hall bear witness to the changes here. During the May Day holiday, the local cultural and tourism department arranged 6 free lectures every day, and Chang'an Zhimin, the former director of Laiyuan County Cultural Relics Preservation Institute, was one of the lecturers. In 1997, he retired from the military and switched to work here until retirement. An Zhimin received university teachers, students, experts, and scholars all year round, following and humbly seeking advice throughout the process... Over time, he grew from an outsider to a local expert. During the May Day holiday, Chang'an Zhimin, the former director of Laiyuan County Cultural Relics Preservation Institute, explained to tourists at Geyuan Temple. From the stone tablets preserved in the temple and the Guangchang County Annals (formerly known as Guangchang in Laiyuan) of the Qing Dynasty, it can be seen that Geyuan Temple was built in the early Han Dynasty and renovated in the Tang Dynasty. ”An Zhimin told tourists that preserving such a millennium old building is not easy, and we should protect, study, and promote it well. Manjusri Hall has the landmark roof of Chinese ancient architecture, with far-reaching eaves and magnificent arch of wooden architecture. From a distance, it looks like an eagle soaring, just as the Book of Songs says, "like a bird flying, like a fly.". Mo Zongjiang, a famous architectural historian, once commented that craftsmen in the Liao Dynasty had reached a state of calm and ease in using the arch of wooden architecture structure, and the Manjusri Palace was a perfect example. In addition to grandeur, it also contains intricate and ingenious ideas. A common scene in front of the hall is that many tourists do not enter the hall, but stand by the window to observe. Here are preserved window frames from multiple dynasties including Liao, Yuan, Ming, and Qing, making it a 'museum of ancient window frames', "sighed Beijing tourist Wang Jiyu." If you don't carefully study and distinguish them, you really don't know how profound the knowledge is. "An Zhimin said that the doors and windows of ancient wooden buildings are fragile and difficult to preserve, and the window frames of Wenshu Hall have undergone multiple damages and replacements, gradually forming a unique pattern of coexistence of window frames from multiple dynasties. The window lattice of Wenshu Hall in Geyuan Temple. Xinhua News Agency reporter Su Kaiyang pushed open the hall door, feeling a sense of spaciousness. The "Laiyuan County Annals" records that the Wenshu Hall is three bays wide and three bays deep, forming a regular shape with a side length of 16 meters. How can such a large building be supported by only four pillars inside? "Said tourist Liang Yi, raising many questions. An Zhimin patiently explained: "The Wenshu Hall adopts the typical 'reduced column construction' method of Liao Dynasty architecture. Originally, there were only two columns, which effectively transformed the interior space of the hall. The other two columns were added by later generations to protect the building. For more than a thousand years, the Wenshu Hall has never been dismantled or repaired, and the Liao architectural style has been well preserved. According to the research team of Tianjin University and Peking University, the two original columns were made of Tang Dynasty wood and have been used to this day." At noon, the enthusiasm of tourists did not diminish. The sunlight shone through the window frames, illuminating the murals covered in yellow mud on the walls, attracting everyone to stop. There are large murals on the east, west, and north walls of Wenshu Hall, most of which are covered with yellow mud. Only one area on the east side of the north wall has a relatively large exposed area, which shows the smooth and vivid lines of the murals. The technique of "powder coating and gold pasting" is used, fully demonstrating the Tang Dynasty legacy. The partially exposed murals inside the Wenshu Hall. (Picture provided by the interviewee) In his article Wenshu Hall of Laiyuan Attic Temple, Mo Zongjiang recorded that the original mural is a large composition that runs through the whole wall. This mural, together with the original group of main sculptures, is the theme of this hall, and the momentum formed by the powerful arch of wooden architecture on the four walls is also rare in Dunhuang. Stepping out of the palace gate, An Zhimin pointed to an iron bell on the southeast side of Wenshu Hall - the Flying Fox Bell, and told a story. During the Song and Liao dynasties, Laiyuan was located on the border of Song and Liao, and was once known as "Feihu County", hence the name Tiezhong. This bell has been accompanied by wind and rain in the Wenshu Hall for more than 900 years, showing rust color. However, the bell body is thick and the sound quality is excellent. Historical books describe it as "full of ancient charm". This is the Flying Fox Bell inside the Geyuan Temple. According to Liang Songtao, a professor at the Song History Research Center of Hebei University, the Flying Fox Bell was cast in the fourth year of the Tianqing reign of the Liao Dynasty (1114 AD), with a height of 1.6 meters, a diameter of 1.5 meters, and a weight of about two tons. The more than 1200 Chinese characters and 55 Sanskrit characters cast on the clock body are valuable materials for historical research. The inscriptions reflect the religious beliefs and official system of the late Liao Dynasty. ”Liang Songtao said that as a minority regime, the Liao Dynasty was influenced by the Han ethnic group at different levels, and this influence lasted throughout the entire Liao Dynasty. Most temples in the Liao Dynasty were located facing west to east, because the Khitan people worshipped the sun and believed that the east was the head of the four directions. The Wenshu Hall was rebuilt on the site of a Tang Dynasty temple, retaining the Tang Dynasty style of facing north and south, which reflects a certain cultural identity. ”An Zhimin said that the wooden architecture of the Liao Dynasty continued the aesthetic style of the Tang Dynasty, which emphasized the beauty of grandeur. This is a vivid witness to the formation and development of the Chinese national community. Wind and rain in a temple for thousands of years. The ancient temples, buildings, and bells are silent, yet they tell incredibly fascinating stories. Being immersed in it, it feels like not only a millennium old building, but also a life that has lived for a thousand years. (Looking into the New Era)