Arguably the most beautiful and well preserved temple in Chengdu is the very active Wenshu Monastery.Worshippers light candles and incense，constantly wrapping the temple in a thick perfumed smoke.The young manage to hold incense sticks in one hand and their mobile phone in the other while older visitors burn”ghost”paper money hoping it’ll reach deceased ancestors，and touch iron figures of animals for good luck.During holidays，worshippers struggle through throngs of people to offer their incense.So much is being burned that monks frequently pull out fire hoses to extinguish the flames.
The monastery，situated north of the central square on Renmin Zhong Lu，was founded all the way back in the Tang dynasty but the buildings here today were built in 1691.It’s the main temple for the province’s Chan（Zen）Buddhist sect.The most stunning features of the temple are the White Jade Buddha（baiyu fo）and the Thousand Buddha Pagoda（qianfota）.Aside from beautiful carvings，there are peaceful green areas around the temple grounds and many locals take a nap under a tree or perform their daily exercises in thequiet shade.You might see seniors hugging trees and rubbing their backs against them to improve blood circulation.
There’s a teahouse on the premises，probably the best one in town and also one of the biggest.There are also vegetarian restaurants around the teahouse specializing mainly in tofu dishes.
In Guan County，about 37 miles（60 km）from Chengdu，is Qingcheng Shan（qingcheng shan），a mountain that can be visited as a day trip.During the Han dynasty it became a center of Taoism when a Taoist master made the mountain his home.The Shangqing Hall （shangqing gong ）sits over 5，250（1，600 m）above sea level and is the highest temple on the mountain.Halfway up the mountain is the Tianshi Cave（tianshi dong ）where the old master used to give his lectures and is now home to the Taoist Association.Most of the buildings have histories going back to the Han dynasty or earlier，but the actual structures are mainly Qing dynasty or later.Many of the buildings，in accordance to Taoist beliefs，blend into the natural surroundings without disturbing nature’s grace.
On the edges of Guan County is Dujiangyan（dujiangyin），one of China’s earliest irrigation systems.Begun over 2，200 years ago by Li Bing and his son，the system irrigates the area around the Minjiang River and has been continually expanded.It’s still in use today，though with modern equipment instead of stones and bamboo.
The best place to see the system is at Fulong Temple（fulong si），built in AD 168 during the Han dynasty in honor of Li Bing and his son.The Guanlan Bridge is the highest point in the temple complex and overlooks the river.In the buildings are artifacts related to Li Bing and in the main hall is a nearly 10-foot-tall（3 m）5-ton（4.5-metric ton）statue of him that was thrown into the river as a sacrifice.
