Tall Mount Jiuhua
As one of China's four great Buddhist mountains, Mount Jiuhua in Anhui has long been a place I've dreamed of visiting. Before this trip, although I had only visited Mount Emei and Mount Putuo among the four great Buddhist mountains, I always felt that I would have more opportunities to visit Mount Wutai, while chances for Mount Jiuhua might be fewer, so I longed for Mount Jiuhua a bit more. In September 2012, taking the opportunity to attend the 'Annual Conference of the China Automotive Industry Audit Research Association' in Wuhu, Anhui, hosted by SAIC Group and co-organized by Chery Automobile Company, the conference organizers arranged an excursion to Mount Jiuhua after the meeting, and so my trip to Mount Jiuhua came to fruition smoothly. On September 14, I took a tourist bus from Wuhu and after about two hours of driving, arrived at the Mount Jiuhua Scenic Area, located in Qingyang County, Chizhou City, Anhui Province.
Mount Jiuhua was historically called Lingyang Mountain and Jiuzi Mountain. During the Tianbao era of the Tang Dynasty, the great poet Li Bai, invited by a friend, visited Mount Jiuhua. Gazing at the nine peaks resembling lotus blossoms, he was moved by the scene and inspired to write poems: 'Miao you fen er qi, ling shan kai jiu hua' and 'Tian he gua lv shui, xiu chu jiu fu rong.' From then on, 'Jiuzi Mountain' was renamed 'Mount Jiuhua,' a name still used today. As one of the three major mountain systems in southern Anhui—Huangshan, Mount Jiuhua, and Tianmu Mountain—Mount Jiuhua faces Mount Tianzhu across the Yangtze River to the northwest and shares glory with Huangshan across Taiping Lake to the southeast. It is the northern main entrance of Anhui's 'Two Mountains and One Lake' (Huangshan, Mount Jiuhua, Taiping Lake) golden tourist area.
As the abode of Kshitigarbha Bodhisattva, Mount Jiuhua is both a world-class tourist destination and an important international Buddhist site. Since the Han Dynasty, Mount Jiuhua has accumulated a splendid cultural heritage, forming today's scenic mountain, historic mountain, cultural mountain, and Buddhist mountain. Throughout its historical development from ancient times to the present, Mount Jiuhua has received many honors. Since the Ming Dynasty, it has been one of China's four great Buddhist mountains; after the reform and opening up, it has successively earned titles such as 'First Batch of National Key Scenic Spots,' 'National 5A Tourist Area,' 'National Scenic Area,' 'National Model of Civilized Scenic Tourist Areas,' and 'China's Dual Natural and Cultural Heritage,' earning the reputation of 'Buddhist Kingdom of Lotus.'
Mount Jiuhua has 99 peaks, with the nine most majestic being Tiantai, Shiwang, Lianhua, Tianzhu, etc. The mountains have numerous valleys, streams and waterfalls, strange rocks and ancient caves, green pines and bamboos—beautiful, clear, and serene—complementing each other. Historic sites and scenic spots are scattered among them. Since the Mount Jiuhua Scenic Area covers 120 square kilometers and is vast, it is impossible to visit everything in one day. So during my one-day tour, I successively visited Huacheng Temple, Zheng Tianmen, Upper Chan Hall, Yueshen Baodian, Baisui Palace in the front mountain, and the Ancient Baijing Terrace, Dizang Ancient Cave, Tiantai, Huatai, and other scenic spots in the back mountain.
In the golden autumn season, Mount Jiuhua was thronged with tourists. I followed the crowd into the scenic area, passing through Ganlu Temple, Taibai Well, and a series of sights, and arrived at Huacheng Temple. Huacheng Temple is the oldest and main temple of Mount Jiuhua, the abode of Kshitigarbha Bodhisattva, and the 'general monastery' of Jiuhua. In the fifth year of the Long'an era of the Eastern Jin Dynasty (401 AD), the monk Beidu built a hermitage here. The name 'Huacheng' originates from a Buddhist story in the Lotus Sutra. Legend has it that Shakyamuni was traveling with a young disciple to preach, and they were blocked by steep mountains. The disciple, hungry and thirsty, sat on the ground. Shakyamuni pointed ahead and said, 'There is a city ahead; go quickly to beg for alms.' The disciple was instantly invigorated. The 'city' was actually manifested by the Buddha. Because Huacheng Temple is located on a high mountain flatland surrounded by mountains like a city wall, it was named accordingly.
In front of Huacheng Temple, there is a circular square with a crescent-shaped lotus pond in the middle, called Crescent Pond, said to be the former release pond of Kshitigarbha. The temple hall has four sections in succession: the gate hall, the Mahavira Hall, the rear hall, and the Sutra Depository. These four sections rise gradually with the terrain, with natural structure. The door frames, window lattices, brackets, beams, and steps are all carved with exquisite and beautiful patterns. Inside the hall are horizontal plaques inscribed by Emperor Kangxi ('Jiuhua Sage Realm') and Emperor Qianlong ('Fen Tuo Pu Jiao'), as well as one by Emperor Chongzhen of the Ming Dynasty ('Wei Shan Zui Le'). The original Huacheng Temple, first built in 757 AD, has long since disappeared. The existing temple's main gate and sutra depository were built in the 16th century, while the Mahavira Hall and rear hall were rebuilt in the 19th century. These buildings, except for the brick walls and tile roofs, have a wooden interior structure. The columns, beams, purlins, and rafters are all joined using traditional methods of mortise and tenon without a single nail. The lintels, brackets, and crossbeams are intricately carved with patterns of phoenixes playing with peonies, lions rolling embroidered balls, and floral motifs, painted in rich colors. Particularly the caisson ceiling in the center of the Mahavira Hall, layered and ascending, with nine wooden carved golden dragons spiraling around a large pearl in the center, interspersed with auspicious clouds and bats, is truly breathtaking.
Leaving Huacheng Temple, I passed through several lively commercial streets and came to a small path. Climbing up stone steps, I passed Longan Nunnery, Jingtu Nunnery, Wuliang Zen Temple, Zheng Tianmen, Upper Chan Hall, Lingguan Hall, and other sights, and arrived at the lofty Yueshen Baodian. Since September 15 was the climax day of the 30th traditional temple fair of Mount Jiuhua, many pilgrims gathered under the eaves of the hall, preparing to stay overnight until the next day. The incense was exceptionally strong, and the crowd was dense, with a thick fragrance of burnt incense in the air. To prevent fires, armed police firefighters were on high alert.
From the Tang Dynasty to the present, Mount Jiuhua has naturally formed 15 monk mummies (flesh-body bodhisattvas), of which 5 are available for viewing. Among them, one is the mummy of Master Renyi, the only bhikkhuni mummy on Mount Jiuhua and indeed in the world today. Under the perennial humid climate, the incorruptibility of the flesh has become a mystery of life science, adding a solemn and mysterious touch to Mount Jiuhua. The mummy enshrined in Yueshen Baodian is that of the monk Ciming, whose lay name was Chen Wanchao, style name Furu, dharma name Daocan, a native of Gaoyou, Jiangsu.
Yueshen Baodian, originally called the Golden Dizang Pagoda, commonly known as 'Laoye Ding,' is located on the top of Shenguang Ridge. It was first built during the Zhenyuan era of the Tang Dynasty. In his later years, the Golden Dizang (Kshitigarbha) used this place as a southern terrace for sutra recitation. Three years after his parinirvana, his face was still as if alive, a sign of the Bodhisattva's manifestation. Therefore, a three-story stone pagoda was built here to house his mummy, called the Flesh-body Pagoda, also known as the Dizang Tomb. Because a 'halo' once appeared at the site of the pagoda, later generations named the place Shenguang Ridge.
The surroundings of Yueshen Baodian are uniquely beautiful and extraordinarily radiant. Nestled amidst lush greenery, the Flesh-body Hall, flanked by temples on the north and south, appears as if thousands of lotus petals protecting the pistil or a group of dragons grasping a pearl. It looks even more ancient, solemn, and splendid. It has always been the most exquisite and sacred place on the Buddhist holy mountain of Mount Jiuhua. Every year on the 30th day of the seventh lunar month, the birthday of Kshitigarbha Bodhisattva, the area is packed with people, incense is at its peak, and pilgrims guarding the pagoda overflow the steps. Yueshen Baodian, on top of Shenguang Ridge, was designated by the State Council in 1983 as a National Key Buddhist Temple in Han Chinese Areas.
After lunch at the Mount Jiuhua Bell Tower Hotel, I went to the Baisui Palace cable car station at the Qiyuan Temple monastery complex. Taking a cable car imported from the Austrian company Girak Glavinda, in less than ten minutes I arrived at the thousand-year-old Baisui Palace, which enshrines the mummy of the Ming Dynasty monk Wuxia.
Baisui Palace, located on Mount Chaxiao, was originally named Zhaixing Nunnery, also known as Wannian Zen Temple. Together with Qiyuan Temple, Dongya Temple, and Ganlu Temple, it is one of the 'Four Great Monasteries' of Mount Jiuhua. Behind the flesh-body hall of Baisui Palace are the Buddha hall and monks' quarters. In the four-story building, there are large boulders and embedded rocks. The rocks and architecture, the architecture and the mountain peaks are organically integrated, appearing ingeniously crafted and breathtaking.
The current Wannian Temple is a five-story classical walkway building, perched on a steep cliff, hidden among pines and cypresses, presenting a magnificent sight. Baisui Palace was first built in the Ming Dynasty. During the Wanli era, the monk Haiyu, style name Wuxia, from Mount Wutai, wandered to Mount Jiuhua. 'First he lived at the Zhaixing Pavilion on East Cliff. Seeing that Lion Mountain had the appearance of a tortoise and snake guarding on the left and right, he settled there.' Wuxia lived on wild fruits, and using his tongue blood mixed with gold powder, spent over 20 years copying the 'Avatamsaka Sutra' in 81 volumes, which are still well preserved and are a national first-class cultural relic.
Wuxia, also known as Haiyu, a native of Shuntian Yuanping (today's Lugou Bridge, Beijing), passed away in the third year of the Tianqi era (1623) at the age of 110, known as the Hundred-Year-Old Master. In the fourth year of Tianqi (1624), an imperial envoy named Wang came to Mount Jiuhua to offer incense at Zhaixing Pavilion. At night, he saw lights repeatedly emanating from the place where the jar containing the mummy was placed, accompanied by a lingering strange fragrance. Considering it miraculous, three years later they opened the jar and found the face as if alive. They enshrined it in a gold-lacquered shrine and reported to the court. In the sixth year of Tianqi (1626), Emperor Sizong of Ming, Zhu Youjian, honored Wuxia as 'Yingshen Bodhisattva' and inscribed the plaque 'Wei Shan Wei Bao,' naming the mummy pagoda 'Lotus Treasure.' This led to the construction of a Buddha hall, precept hall, abbot's quarters, settled monks, and changed the nunnery into a temple.
After coming down from Baisui Palace, I took a scenic area bus to the cable car station at the back mountain of Mount Jiuhua. The queue of tourists waiting to ascend stretched for hundreds of meters. The Mount Jiuhua cable car station sold VIP tickets for those unwilling to wait in line for a long time, at nearly double the original price. To save time, I had to spend money to buy time. After a 12-minute ride, the cable car arrived at the Ancient Baijing Terrace in the Tiantai scenic area.
The Ancient Baijing Terrace on Mount Jiuhua is located below Tiantai Peak, about 2 li from Guanyin Peak. The path to Tiantai goes around the temple. This temple was first built in the Tang Dynasty and has been renovated through the ages, now covering an area of 898 square meters. According to legend, the Golden Dizang once recited the 'Avatamsaka Sutra' here, and monks built this temple in memory of him, naming it 'Dayuan Nunnery' (Buddhism calls the Golden Dizang 'Dayuan Bodhisattva'). Because 'Baijing' (sutra recitation) is more common and easier to remember, it is commonly called 'Ancient Baijing Terrace.'
