Guarding the precious past is a family affair

For 78-year-old Wang Gaiying, Tiefo Temple is not only a hidden architectural gem in Gaoping, Shanxi province, but also her home for the past 58 years. Its 24 vividly detailed statues of deities inspired Black Myth: Wukong, a hit video game based on the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West.

With the main hall built in 1168, the temple was renovated and expanded during the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911). It gets its name from the iron Buddha it once housed.

Thanks to the game's popularity, the once-dilapidated temple was restored and opened to the public on Aug 24, according to a notice released by the local cultural heritage protection bureau.

"Many people come to admire it every day," says Wang, who lives in the temple's western meditation room.

"I'm proud of my work and happy to see the younger generation appreciating these artifacts."

As more people visit, Wang's dedication to preserving the temple has gone viral and hit national headlines, giving a lot of publicity to these caretakers of the country's cultural heritage.

Known as a treasure of ancient Chinese architecture, Shanxi is home to 28,027 ancient buildings, according to the data from the third national cultural relics census. Among them, 531 are registered as national-level key sites. Behind this number are numerous guardians, such as Wang, who have safeguarded the buildings, sculptures and murals.

What makes Wang stand out is that her family has been guarding the temple for four generations — cleaning it, keeping people from entering and preventing theft. Since getting married at 20, Wang began assisting her mother-in-law who became the guardian of the temple in the 1950s. When she passed away in 1988, Wang took over the responsibility.

"Our family has had a close connection to the temple for generations. It is my home and guarding it is my responsibility," Wang says.

With the passing years, it has been a challenge for her to preserve the temple. After discussions with her daughter Meng Xuezhen and her son-in-law, Wang Wendong, the couple moved from their nearby home to the temple to help Wang Gaiying.

"My mother always chatted with my grandmother about stories regarding temple guarding," Meng says. "These stories have been ingrained in my heart since childhood. The temple is our root, our home, a legacy of steadfastness and faith passed down through generations. I am determined to protect it."

Just as Meng vowed, her daughter took on the role of part-time tour guide at the temple after graduating from college, joining her grandmother and mother in safeguarding it.

In 1986, the local cultural preservation authorities undertook an emergency restoration program at the temple. In 2004, the provincial government designated it as one of the province's fourth batch of key cultural heritage preservation sites. In 2017, the Gaoping authorities initiated extensive restoration work at the temple. Two years later, the State Council officially recognized it as part of the eighth batch of national key protected cultural relic units.

Shen Fei, Party secretary from the Gaoping cultural and tourism bureau, knows that preserving the temple is far from enough.

As the notice at the opening of Tiefo Temple said, the structure is a heritage protection unit with unrepaired sculptures. While these sites offer a unique and enriching experience, visitors are urged to prioritize cultural preservation and cautioned not to cause any damage.

"Currently, we don't have the capacity to restore the temple and there are no future plans for renovation. What we can do is keep it as it is through the protection of Wang Gaiying's family, who are guarding it," Shen says.

In some temples that are not open to the public in the quiet mountains and countryside of Shanxi, more than 3,000 grassroots protectors like Wang Gaiying care for these ancient buildings. The locals call them temple keepers, who watch over the structures day and night.

Like unsung heroes, they have been preserving the past and ensuring that the cultural treasures of Shanxi are protected for future generations.