Nanhua Temple was built in the first year of Tian Jian, Liang Wudi in the Southern and Northern Dynasties (AD 502). According to historical records, Sanzang Zhile, an Indian monk, went north from Guangzhou and passed through Caoxi in 1998. He suggested building a temple here, because he "scooped up water and drank it, which smells unusual", "looked around the mountains and fell in love with the wonderful scenery" and "looked like a mountain in the western world". After three years in prison, the temple was built, and Liang Wudi named it "Baolin Temple". Later, it was renamed Zhongxing Temple and Fashen Temple, and in the first year of Song Kaibao (AD 968), Song Taizong gave it the name of Nanhua Zen Temple, and the name of the temple has been used ever since. Because the six ancestors of Zen teach here, it is also called the six ancestors Dojo.
Nanhua Temple has a history of nearly 1500 years. Behind the temple, there is a table of tin springs (commonly known as Jiulong Spring) and ancient water cypress with a height of tens of meters. They are rare trees in the world now. There are a large number of precious cultural relics in the temple, which is one of the national key cultural relics protection units. The building area of Nanhua Temple is12,000 square meters, and it is composed of Caoximen, Fangshengchi, Baolinmen, Tianwang Hall, Daxiong Hall, Tibetan Classics Pavilion, Zhao Ling Pagoda and Liuzu Hall. The existing buildings, except Zhaoling Pagoda and Liuzu Hall, were rebuilt by the monk Xu Yunguo 1934.
1983, the first batch of Nanhua temples were designated as national key temples by the State Council.
On June 25th, 20001year, Nanhua Temple, as an ancient building in Ming and Qing Dynasties, was approved by the State Council to be included in the fifth batch of national key cultural relics protection units.
Nanhua Temple is the birthplace of Huineng, the sixth ancestor of Zen, who wrote the eternal quatrain "Bodhi has no trees, the mirror is not a stage, there is nothing, where there is dust". Huineng, the sixth ancestor of Zen, has been teaching here for 37 years, and his teachings are all over the world, so Nanhua Temple is known as the "ancestral court".