Zǐtóng

Zitong lies on the old road through northern Sichuan, beneath the wooded slopes of Qiqu Mountain. On the mountain stands the great temple of Wenchang, a deity revered by scholars and candidates for office. The local god of Zitong was incorporated into the Daoist pantheon and came to be associated with literary achievement and the fortunes of the learned, especially those seeking success in the imperial examinations.

Rebuilt in the early Ming, the temple complex grew through the Ming and Qing as worship of Wenchang spread across China. Travellers and students stopped at its halls to pray, while successive additions joined the main shrine to other temples and pavilions. The mountain became one of the best-known centres of Wenchang devotion.