The Shaolin Temple in Henan province, China's best known Buddhist temple, has offered free school education to a child whose father died under an overpass.

Liu Chunjie, 10, accepted the invitation from the Shaolin Orphanage on Thursday after his father, Liu Hongwei, was found dead on Nov 30 under an overpass in Zhengzhou, the capital city of Henan.

His father slept under the overpass for nearly a month and developed symptoms of hypothermia before his death. The Henan Business News reported that an official from his village in Qixian county said the boy’s father left home seven years ago without leaving any contact details.

The boy's mother disappeared soon after his father left, and he had to live with his grandfather, with little income, the report said.

On Wednesday, he heard of his father's death from a village official, and wept on being told the news.

Shi Yongxin, abbot of the Shaolin Temple, invited the boy to the Shaolin Orphanage for free food, dormitory accommodation and education.

The Shaolin Orphanage is a non-governmental and non-profit organization founded in Dec 2004. It has adopted 50 orphans from Henan, according to the Shaolin Temple website.