Cao’e Temple

Cao’e Temple was also called Lingxiao Temple or Dutiful Daughter Temple in its early years. It was constructed in memory of Cao’e, a dutiful daughter in East Han Dynasty in Shangyu. Cao’e was born in Caojiabao Village, Shangyu in 130 A.D. Her mother died early and she lived with her father Cao Xu, who was a sorcerer.

In East Han Dynasty, the local people often held the sacrifice ceremony for Wu Zixu, the Tide God, in the Dragon Boat Festival. On May 5th in Chinese lunar calendar, 143 A.D., Cao Xu held the sacrifice ceremony for the Tide God in Cao’e River, but unfortunately he got drowned. His body was washed away by the waves. Cao’e was only 14 years old. She cried bitterly for losing her beloved father and looked for the dead body along the river day and night in vain. On the seventeenth day, she took off her coat and threw it into the river and prayed to God that if her father’s corpse was still in the river, give her a holy omen by sinking the coat, and if the body was not in the river, just let the coat float. With these words, she saw the coat submerging gradually and finally it was out of sight. Resolutely, she jumped into the water to search for her father. Three days later, people saw two dead bodies, Cao’e and her father, floating in the river, Cao’e carrying her father. Cao’e finally found her father’s body at the expense of her own life. Her filial conduct was soon widely-spread in the nation. In 151 A.D., Cao’e was honored as one of the ten filial daughters of China. And the temple was established to worship her.

Cao’e Temple faces Cao’e River. It has an area of 6000 square meters. The main buildings include the Memorial Archway, Yinjiu Pavilion, Cao’e’s Tomb, the main hall, Dpngyue Hall, and Yanwang Hall, etc. In the main hall, there are four fantastic pillars which can adsorb coins. It is said that if you are filially dutiful, you press a coin against one pillar and the coin will stick stubbornly to the pillar without falling off. That means you don’t need to visit the temple again. But if your coin falls off, it means you are not filial enough and need to frequent the temple. It’s quite interesting. You can have a try when visiting the temple.