Rambling Different Trails: Some Questions Answered.

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In the past few weeks I’ve finally been able to find the answers to some questions that had been waiting to be discovered, such as:

1) What about that mystery pagoda across the river from Xiaoyaozhen, at Beichangshediancun?

2) Where exactly is Nuwa’s temple?

3) What’s with those river bank “musicians”?

Questions like “how many adult goats can lie down in, and how many teenagers can fit in the back of a three-wheeler?”(5, 13) I have answered without knowing I needed to find out.

The pagoda at Beichangshediancun probably dates from the Ming dynasty, 1368-1644.

Back to the pagoda, it seems to be from the Ming dynasty, and was a beehive of activity when I visited. Someone was working on the electrical service, others were building walkways and cleaning up and they had the shrine at the bottom open for business; praying and burning incense.

It is a very nice pagoda, apparently little known and in a small village. It’s in it’s own walled compound. There are trees growing out of it’s cap and birds nesting in the stonework.

Nuwa’s temple complex. The red ribbons tied to the tree are prayers.

Next, Nuwa’s temple. It’s about the same distance from Zhoukou as Fuxi’s temple in Huaiyang, but less well known. Nuwa and Fuxi are credited with being the originators of the modern Chinese people, Like Isis and Osiris in Egypt. It was tricky to find, as it is not on google maps, and I can’t read my baidu map. I accidentally went in the service entrance but no one chased me out.

Nuwa patching the hole in the heavens.

Nuwa is considered a goddess and has several temples and a tomb at this site. She is credited among other things with patching a hole in the heavens caused by two other gods fighting, which had brought on a time of catastrophes to humans.

There are also temples to an emperor and lord Bao.

Nuwa’s tomb is the mound on the left.

It had clouded up while I was visiting the temple complex and the storm hit when I was buying water in Xin hua, sending thick clouds of dirt swirling. I was glad for the mask and eye protection and rode the edge of the storm home, only getting a little wet, with a great tail wind.

This doesn’t begin to capture the volume of dirt that was swirling.

As to those river bank musicians? I’m none the wiser, though I rode by them and waved on the way to the pagoda.

2 thoughts on “Rambling Different Trails: Some Questions Answered.”

  1. Sydney

    Thanks for the update and great pictures, Janine!

  2. Janine Copple Post author

    Thanks, Sydney! I finally have decent photo capabilities again thanks to Derek, though I had to do this post entirely from my phone this week.

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