Dapi Jie Zhitui Temple, Taoist temple in Yiran Village, Dapi Township, Yunlin County, Taiwan
Dapi Jie Zhitui Temple, also called Old Village Kaishan Emperor Temple, is a temple in Yiran Village, Dapi Township, Yunlin County, Taiwan. It is dedicated to Jie Zhitui, worshipped here as Kaishan Emperor. The temple was rebuilt in 1971 on a site in Yiran Village; its couplets, written by Huang Chuanxin, recount Jie Zhitui's loyalty and his death at age nineteen.
Cantonese immigrants brought the incense of Kaishan Emperor (Jie Zhitui) to their homes at the founding of the settlement. After a temple was built in 1852 by the Xu and Chen families, it was demolished during the Japanese Kominka movement and the statue was hidden. In 1971 Chen Bei and Li Changqing led its reconstruction, funded solely by Old Village believers.
The temple honours Jie Zhitui, a Jin nobleman who died in a fire on Mount Mian, which is why the festival falls on the 29th day of the third lunar month. In 1998, during the deity's birthday celebrations, Yunlin County magistrate Su Wenxiong presented a plaque reading "Ze Bi Cang Sheng" (Grace Protects the People). The temple later formed a sister-temple bond with Da'an Temple in Dongshan Township, Yilan.
It is best to visit during quieter times of day when main ceremonies are not taking place so you can explore the site at a relaxed pace. Early mornings or late afternoons offer a more comfortable experience for walking through the halls and examining the carved details.
The temple's committee chairman Huang Dingsan long believed it was the only temple in Taiwan dedicated to Jie Zhitui, until worshippers from Da'an Temple in Dongshan Township, Yilan County, visited; the two temples then became sister temples. Xinzhuang Kaishan Temple in Fangnan Village, Lunbei Township, also worships Jie Zhitui.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 93,638 contributors worldwide.