🏯 Xibe Folk Culture Park · Jingyuan Temple

A living testament to the "Westward Migration Spirit" · The only complete preservation of core religious and folk culture among the Xibe people after their westward migration in China

📍 Basic Information

• Address: Inside Xibe Ancient City, Jibuqiaer Xibe Autonomous County, Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (Xibe name “Jibuqiaer” means “granary”)
• Opening Hours: 09:30–18:00 daily (09:30–17:30 from October to April in winter)
• Admission: Combined ticket 80 RMB per person (includes Xibe Folk Culture Park, Jingyuan Temple, Xibe Clan Temple, Westward Migration Memorial Hall, and intangible cultural heritage performances)
• Transportation: Approximately 45 km from Yining City; take the intercity bus C-line from Yining to “Xibe Ancient City Station,” then walk directly to the site; for self-driving, navigate to “Xibe Ancient City Tourist Center”

📜 Historical Evolution: A Westward Migration Epic Etched in Brick and Wood

• 1764: During the 29th year of Emperor Qianlong’s reign, the Qing court conscripted 1,020 Xibe soldiers and their families—totaling 3,275 people—from Shengjing (modern-day Shenyang)—and ordered them to migrate westward to defend the frontier. After a grueling journey spanning 15 months and over ten thousand miles, they arrived on the southern bank of the Ili River to settle and farm—historically known as the “Xibe Westward Migration.” This event has been nominated by UNESCO as a candidate for World Memory Heritage.
• 1888: The Xibe Banner military and civilian community pooled resources to build Jingyuan Temple (known in Xibe as “Lama Sum,” meaning “monastic hall”), named for its purpose of “pacifying borders and advancing peace, securing the nation and defending territory”—a central symbol of spiritual renewal and cultural identity following the migration.
• 1944: Destroyed during wartime, leaving only the main gate and parts of side buildings;
• 1986: Listed as a key cultural heritage site under Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region protection;
• 2001: National Cultural Relics Bureau allocated special funds to initiate comprehensive reconstruction, strictly adhering to Qing dynasty official architectural standards and traditional Xibe craftsmanship;
• 2013: With Jingyuan Temple at its heart, surrounding historical remains were integrated into the Xibe Folk Culture Park, becoming the main venue for the national intangible cultural heritage event—the Xibe Westward Migration Festival (on the 18th day of the fourth lunar month).

🏛️ Architectural Artistry: A Frontier Buddhist Temple Embodiment of Han, Tibetan, and Xibe Fusion Styles

Jingyuan Temple exemplifies a typical mid-to-late Qing Dynasty Han-style temple layout, blending Manchu construction traditions, Tibetan Buddhist rituals, and indigenous Xibe aesthetic values—a testament to the wisdom of multi-ethnic co-construction and shared heritage:

• Overall Layout: Symmetrical axial design with three courtyards

  • First Courtyard: Main Gate (features a replica of the imperial plaque “Jingyuan Temple” inscribed by Emperor Qianlong; the original is housed in the Jibuqiaer County Museum)
  • Second Courtyard: Hall of the Four Heavenly Kings (enshrines the Four Heavenly Kings; colorful murals painted by Qing-era Xibe artists, featuring clothing elements of Manchu and Mongolian styles)
  • Third Courtyard: Great Buddha Hall (the main structure, five bays wide, single-eaved hip roof covered with glazed tiles, decorated with green-and-blue painted beams, and roof ornaments shaped like the Xibe totem—the white crane)

• Unique Features:
  ✅ Double-layered corridor-style side halls: Seven rooms each on east and west sides; lower level houses lecture halls and monk quarters; upper level contains a library of Xibe script scriptures (preserving 12 volumes of incomplete Qing-era woodblock-printed Xibe translations of the Ganden Canon)
  ✅ Xibe Stone Stele Grove: Houses five Qing Dynasty stone steles, including the 1835 Reconstruction Stele of Jingyuan Temple (during the Daoguang era), inscribed in both Manchu and Xibe languages—this is the only surviving group of historical steles written in Xibe script nationwide
  ✅ Prayer Circumambulation Corridor: 120 meters long, embedded with 360 bronze prayer wheels, each engraved with the Xibe six-syllable mantra and a map of the westward migration route—unique in China as the only Xibe-language prayer system

🏺 Collections and Intangible Cultural Heritage

| Category | Representative Items/Exhibits | Cultural Significance |
|--------|----------------|-------------|
| Ancient Manuscripts | Handwritten copy of Ode to the Westward Migration (Xibe script), Xibe Banner Military Deployment Map | The most complete original records of the Xibe westward migration worldwide, reflecting Qing frontier governance and ethnic military systems |
| Religious Artifacts | Gilded copper statue of Tsongkhapa from the Qianlong era, butter lamps crafted by Xibe artisans featuring arrow motifs | Illustrates the localization of Tibetan Buddhism within Xibe society; the “arrow” symbolizes the Xibe people’s martial tradition |
| Folk Artifacts | “Ancestral Chest” carried during migration (containing genealogy scrolls, spirit figures, and miniature bows), birchwood bow used in traditional Xibe wedding “archery engagement” ceremonies | Living embodiment of the cultural memory of “one nation, two homelands” (the ancestral homeland in Northeast China and the new home in Ili) |
| Intangible Heritage Performances | Xibe oral storytelling Yasna, Beren Dance, Zhulun Hulanbi (a lengthy Xibe-language recitation of Romance of the Three Kingdoms) | All listed on the national intangible cultural heritage register; every eighth day of the lunar month, the temple hosts a “Recitation Day” where Xibe monks chant the Prayer of Refuge in Xibe language |

🌟 Cultural Significance: Empirical Evidence of the Chinese Nation Community Consciousness in Border Regions

• Historical Dimension: Jingyuan Temple stands as material evidence of the Qing dynasty’s border policy of “governing according to local customs, safeguarding the frontier”—demonstrating the Xibe people’s voluntary integration into China’s diverse, unified national framework;
• Linguistic Dimension: All inscriptions, scriptures, and plaques within the temple are written in Xibe script (a living continuation of Manchu), the only surviving writing system still used in daily life among the Manchu-Tungus language family—widely regarded as a “living fossil of the Manchu language”;
• Spiritual Dimension: As the physical anchor of the “Westward Migration Spirit” (patriotism, loyalty, resilience, unity, and pioneering spirit), Jingyuan Temple and the Xibe Folk Culture Park together form a nationally recognized base for patriotic education (officially designated in 2021);
• Ecological Dimension: The park rigorously protects a grove of ancient elm trees dating back over 180 years, harmonizing with the Xibe people’s shamanistic tradition of venerating trees as sacred beings—creating a living heritage site where human culture and nature coexist dynamically.

🎒 Travel Tips

• Must-Experience Activities:

  • 🌟 Morning Bell Ceremony (08:00): Listen to the Xibe bell tolling for blessings, feeling the enduring vigilance of a frontier people across millennia;
  • 📜 Xibe Script Rubbing Workshop: Hand-craft your own rubbing of the characters “Jingyuan Temple” from the Qing-era stele grove—take home a unique cultural souvenir;
  • 🎭 Live-Stage Drama “Ten Thousand Miles of Cloud and Moon” (daily at 11:00 and 16:00, open-air stage at Jingyuan Temple square; cast composed entirely of local Xibe residents from Jibuqiaer County);
  • 🍜 Traditional Family Banquet: Reserve the “Westward Migration Home” specialty meal (hand-pulled lamb, fermented flatbread, wild leek flower paste), while elders share stories in Xibe language.

• Important Reminders:

  ⚠️ Flash photography is prohibited inside the temple when photographing Buddha statues;
  📚 Free Xibe language guidebooks available (with pinyin annotations); we recommend downloading the “Learn Xibe Language” app in advance to enhance understanding;
  🌸 Best time to visit: Xibe Westward Migration Festival (18th day of the fourth lunar month, around mid-May), when thousands gather in traditional attire for processions, archery rituals, and city-wide Xibe-language song festivals.

This article is compiled based on data from the “Jibuqiaer Xibe Autonomous County Annals,” “Collected Inscriptions and Interpretations of Jingyuan Temple” (Xinjiang People’s Publishing House, 2020), the National Cultural Relics Bureau’s “Jingyuan Temple Conservation Plan (2015–2030),” and authoritative releases from the Jibuqiaer County Culture and Tourism Bureau (2023).