Changsha county in Central China’s Hunan province held the Taogong Temple Fair in its Langli sub-district on March 3.

It has been a traditional custom for Langli people to worship Taogong, two saints who lived in the Jin dynasty (AD 265-420), for generations and go to the temple fair on the 13th day of the first lunar month, which falls on March 3 this year.

Visitors in front of the Taogong Temple in Langli, Changsha county, on March 3. [Photo by Liu Xiaodong/csxrmt.com]

The Taogong temple in the county, together with Lushan Temple and Kaifu Temple, are three well-known ancient temples in Changsha city, the provincial capital of Hunan province.

The annual temple fair attracts a number of non-local visitors every year, peaking visitor numbers close to 100,000 during the fair.

A street vendor displays wooden musical instruments he sells in the Taogong Temple Fair in Langli, Changsha county, March 3. [Photo by Liu Xiaodong/csxrmt.com]

One of nearly 200 street vendors in the fair, namely Mr. Luo from Loudi city, said that he had been attending the temple fair for the past 10 years and that although he only dealt with small stuff such as nail-clippers and insoles, he made pretty good earnings during the fair each year.

A child and his father look at the sugar figurines stand in the Taogong Temple Fair in Langli, Changsha county, March 3. [Photo by Liu Xiaodong/csxrmt.com]

The Taogong Temple Fair has a history of more than 1,500 years, said a staff member of the Langli sub-district office, adding that it gets more diverse and enjoyable every year.

In recent years, the office organized cultural activities such as dragon and lion dance performances and calligraphy and artworks displays during the fair, making it a more eye-catching cultural event.

Edited by Mevlut Katik