Taipei Travel

Ground was broken for the Taipei Bao An Temple in 1804. The temple was intended to protect the clans from Tonglan in the mainland Chinese province of Fujian, in the neighbourhood of Xiamen. The temple is described as being Taiwanese folk religion; it has been classified as being culturally significant by UNESCO. The temple flourished in the Japanese colonial era (1895-1945) and then went into a decline, before recovering. It is opposite the Confucian Temple. The Bao An Temple has much to offer visitors, it is a reminder of the origins in China of many inhabitants of Taiwan.

We visited this temple after visiting the Confucious temple nearby. The temple looks old with intricate carvings and ornaments on the roof. Many people prayed here and it was fairly smoky due to the many burning joss sticks.

Near by the Taipei Confucius temple. But Bao An temple is much older. It was established by immigrants from Chuan-Chou (泉州), Mainland China in 1742, to worship the Baosheng Emperor (保生大帝) - a Chinese God of medicine. With its meticulously built construction and stunning decoration, the temple itself is a masterpiece of art. Another highlight is the wall paintings of the Main Hall. There are 7 murals on the walls of the Main Hall, showing Chinese historical events and tales.　They are works of Master Pan Li-Shui (潘麗水), a legendary artist in Taiwan. This temple is a must for art lovers and history buffs.

Dating back to 1742, this historical temple was established by immigrants from Chuan-Chou (泉州), Mainland China. It is dedicated to the Baosheng Emperor (保生大帝). Baosheng Emperor, a Chinese God of medicine, is worshiped popularly in Fujian and Taiwan. He was a physician, Dr. Wu-Tao (吳夲, 979- 1036 AD), in the years of Song Dynasty. Like many western medical missionaries, Dr. Wu-Tao was a doctor and Taoist practitioner. He practiced medicine successfully in southern Fujian and saved numerous lives. After death, he was worshiped as a deity. Some 400 years later, his deified status was officially recognized as a “Emperor of God” by the Yongle Emperor of the Ming Dynasty (明成祖永樂帝). Quite interestingly, In Chinese Culture, the Emperor of God can only be conferred by a Emperor of Mankind. For example, Mazu (媽祖)　was conferred as "Queen/Empress of Heaven" by Kongxi Emperor (康熙皇帝)　of Qing Dynasty in 1683. With its meticulously built construction and stunning decoration, the temple itself is a masterpiece of art. Beautiful decoration include painting, drawing, stone carving, wood carving, koji pottery (交趾陶) and fragmented ceramic artworks. Another highlight is the wall paintings of the Main Hall. There are 7 murals on the walls of the Main Hall. The murals shows Chinese historical events and tales.　Completed in 1973, they are works of Master Pan Li-Shui (潘麗水) and his son Master Pan Yue-Xiong (潘岳雄). Both of them are legendary artists in Taiwan. The temple underwent a large-scale restoration in 1995. The excellent project won the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Award for Cultural Heritage Conservation in 2003.

Great Architecture and interesting place to visit. Wanted to go to the confuscious Temple but Grab driver let us alight at the cross junction of the street instead. Great recommendation by him.