Located at the Southwest corner of First and D Streets in Marysville, California, the sacred Bok Kai Temple sits on the bank of the Yuba River. Dedicated in 1880, this building replaced the first temple that had been built in the 1850s and was destroyed by floodwaters. Serving as a meeting hall, court, and a place of worship, this new "Palace of Many Saints" was built with its main altar facing toward the river. It has been the responsibility of Bok Eye to ward off any evil and protect the community of Marysville and its inhabitants.

Bok Eye is considered the god of the North and is said to be the Chinese god of water whose powers have successfully prevented Marysville from being flooded when all surrounding communities have sustained near-ruinous flooding as recently as 1997. Bok Eye's powers include overseeing waterways, water systems, irrigation and rain.

One of the unique characteristics of the Bok Kai Temple is the surviving mural, murals depicting vivid scenes of Chinese culture. The painting extends across the upper wall of the outside front entrance. Leslie H. Rainier, a painting conservator from the Getty Conservation Institute in Los Angeles, when examining the magnificently painted frescos, found "the quality and execution of the scenes equal to the few Taoist paintings in American museum collections."

Despite water damage, the frescos are the only ones in this condition to exist in the world, as most similar work in China was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s. That these murals have survived into this century is most likely another miracle attesting to the watchful guidance and powers of Bok Eye.

The entire community joined together for a restoration effort of this treasured landmark, in cooperation with the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The Bok Kai Temple has served as a tribute to the thousands of Chinese who helped develop the American West.

The Bok Kai festival is closely associated with dragons, who like Bok Kai (Bok Eye) have power over rivers, waters and floods. For more about dragons and their appearance in the Bok Kai Parade over the years, click here.