Lotus Buddha Land – Mount Jiuhua
Mount Jiuhua is located in Chizhou City, Anhui Province. It is a natural wonder with 99 peaks, each in a different posture, full of charm, pure and refined. Among them, nine main peaks resemble nine blooming lotuses. More than a hundred ancient temples and monasteries of various architectural styles are built along the mountainside, clinging to cliffs, scattered among the green pines and bamboos on the ridges and peaks, earning it the reputation of "Lotus Buddha Land".
As early as 1995, China Post issued a special stamp series titled "Scenic Beauty of Jiuhua". The six stamps—"Dawn on Tiantai", "Baisui Palace", "Flesh Body Hall", "Sunset Over Qiyuan", "Eagle Listening to Sutra", and "Ancient Phoenix Pine"—vividly portray the solemnity and ethereal beauty of this sacred Buddhist land, making us yearn to visit Mount Jiuhua. During the Spring Festival in 2018, we drove early from Ningbo and arrived at the Huatai Scenic Area of Mount Jiuhua around noon, beginning our pilgrimage and stamp hunting.
Huatai is renowned for its natural landscapes. Within the scenic area, peaks compete in beauty, with precipitous cliffs, grotesque rocks, and fantastic forms. Although not featured on the "Scenic Beauty of Jiuhua" stamps, the mountain peaks and rocks create breathtaking Buddha-shaped wonders.
We took the cable car up the mountain. Ascending to the summit of Huatai—Luohan Peak at an altitude of 1,280 meters—the snow-covered peaks of Mount Jiuhua appeared pure white, enhancing the solemnity and sanctity of this sacred Buddhist land (Fig. 1).
Walking along the plank road, we encountered a continuous range of strange peaks. On the south side of Baota Peak, "Dizang's Dried Boots" resembles a boot placed upside down on the cliff edge. Legend says it is a monk's boot once worn by Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. The other boot is on the east side of Juwang Peak, forming a pair. On the west side of the stone slab path between Xiaohuatai and Xiaminyuan, a rock protruding from a cliff has eyes, a nose, a prominent chin, and forehead—a remarkably lifelike natural Buddha statue (Fig. 2). West of Snail Rock, the "Divine Pillar Calming the Sea" (Fig. 3) stands 7 meters tall, a single pillar reaching up to the sky, overlooking a deep abyss. From here, we could also see the small town of Jiuhua and Baisui Palace on the opposite cliff.
Later, at Baisui Palace, we saw the most famous natural sleeping Buddha of Mount Jiuhua, formed by the Huatai peaks. When standing right in Huatai among the peaks, it was hard to imagine the sleeping Buddha's shape—truly a case of being lost in the midst of the marvels.
Taking the cable car down from Huatai, we drove along the winding mountain road to the town of Jiuhuashan, nestled among green hills. At an altitude of about 600 meters, this is the center of the entire Mount Jiuhua Scenic Area. The streets are lined with numerous hotels, restaurants, shops, as well as supermarkets, banks, and a post office... Temples are scattered throughout the mountain town. Before the post office closed, we took out envelopes with Jiuhua stamps and got them postmarked for our collection. That night, we stayed at Jiulianhua Hotel in town.
Early on New Year's Eve, we took the cable car to the west side of Tiantai Peak. Ahead, a huge boulder lay flat on the cliff, about 30 meters high, clearly resembling a roc with beak and wings. Legend says that when Ksitigarbha was reciting sutras here, a giant roc flew over to listen and was transformed into stone (Fig. 4). Below the "Roc Listening to Sutra Stone" stands the Ancient Sutra Worshipping Terrace (Fig. 5), built on a precipice, originally constructed in the Tang Dynasty. We walked uphill and entered the Ancient Sutra Worshipping Terrace. Beside the main hall, a path between building walls led to a tile-roofed house enshrining a seated statue of Ksitigarbha. On the right wall is a stone inscription reading "Ancient Sutra Worshipping Terrace." Inside the temple is a rectangular stone slab with sunken footprints, said to be the stepping stone used by Ksitigarbha while prostrating, leaving impressions over time.
From the Ancient Sutra Worshipping Terrace to Tiantai, there are over 800 steep stone steps. Along the way, many devotees were kowtowing and chanting scriptures as they climbed, their piety and persistence deeply moving. Upon reaching the lower platform of Tiantai Temple and looking back at the steps we had just climbed, we could not see the end—they seemed to emerge from the clouds as if suspended in midair.
Tiantai Temple, located on the summit of Tiantai Peak (Fig. 6), is the highest-altitude temple on Mount Jiuhua. First built in the Song Dynasty, it underwent several reconstructions and renovations, cleverly utilizing a hollow on the mountain ridge. The structure consists of an upper level as the Great Buddha Hall, a middle level as the Ksitigarbha Hall, and a lower level as a basement, seamlessly integrated with the surrounding peaks, rocks, and caves.
Although Tiantai Peak at 1,306 meters is not the highest peak of Mount Jiuhua (the highest is Shiwang Peak at 1,344 meters), the presence of Tiantai Temple makes it the conventional apex of the mountain. The Song Dynasty monk Zonggao wrote in his poem "Ascending Tiantai High Place on a Tour of Jiuhua": "Walking on Tiantai without a sound, one bell chime echoes through ten thousand mountains."
Standing on Tiantai, we saw drifting clouds cascading down the slopes, forming spectacular cloud waterfalls (Fig. 7). In the valley, clouds surged, and peaks appeared and disappeared in the sea of clouds. We were immersed in this poetic and picturesque fairyland, our hearts soaring with the clouds and falling with the pine waves. In this mundane world, we are all passing travelers. On life's journey, we cherish every scene along the way as we watch flowers bloom and fall, clouds gather and disperse.
Descending along the footpath, we entered Guanyin Peak Temple. Facing the temple, we could see several solitary rocks on the cliff edge. The one closest to the precipice was draped in a yellow kasaya, strikingly resembling the Bodhisattva Guanyin observing worldly suffering—vivid and wonderful beyond words. After Guanyin Peak, the next attractions were the Heavenly Bridge and Heavenly Ladder. After descending the Heavenly Ladder, we passed several small temples. The last large temple before descending the mountain was Huiju Temple. Its halls were magnificent and resplendent. Past Huiju Temple, through Minyuan Village at the foot of the mountain, the view suddenly opened up. A large pine tree with an elegant and unique shape resembled a phoenix spreading its wings to fly. Its main trunk was flat and rising like a phoenix crown, with two branches one high and one low like a phoenix tail. According to records, this Ancient Phoenix Pine dates back to the Northern and Southern Dynasties (about 1,400 years ago), earning it the title "the best pine under heaven," and it also appeared on a stamp (Fig. 8) and a postal card.
On New Year's Eve, we first walked to Huacheng Temple, the first temple of Mount Jiuhua. Then we followed the uphill path through Jingjie Retreat to Shangchan Hall for a visit, and continued uphill to the Flesh Body Hall, which enshrines the true body of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, for pilgrimage.
The Flesh Body Hall (Fig. 9), also known as Yue Body Hall, first built in the Zhenyuan era of the Tang Dynasty, is the most essential and sacred place on Mount Jiuhua. According to legend, Ksitigarbha spent his later years here reading sutras. After his nirvana, his face remained as fresh as life three years later, a sign of the Bodhisattva's incarnation. A three-story stone pagoda was built here to enshrine his flesh body, hence the saying "hall within a pagoda, pagoda within a steel chamber, and flesh within the pagoda"—the Flesh Body Pagoda, also known as the Ksitigarbha Tomb. This spot is uniquely beautiful and radiant, hidden among luxuriant trees. Flanked by temples on the north and south, it appears like a myriad of sepals guarding the bud or many dragons grasping a pearl, appearing even more ancient, solemn, and radiant. Inside and outside the hall, pilgrims were as thick as clouds, with incense smoke swirling. We followed the local custom, burning incense and making wishes, the fragrance of the vigil spilling beyond the steps. On Shengguang Ridge, a light mist hung like gauze (Fig. 10), with bells and drums sounding in unison and Buddhist chants echoing. The rhythmic tapping of the wooden fish seemed to pound our minds into drifting clouds, winding around peaks and valleys.
Qiyuan Temple and Baisui Palace
Qiyuan Temple (Fig. 11), first built in the Ming Dynasty and rebuilt and expanded during the late Qing and Republican periods, is the only palace-style temple on Mount Jiuhua and ranks first among its great monasteries in scale. The entire structure follows the mountain's contour, rising step by step from the mountain gate to the Heavenly King Hall and then to the Great Buddha Hall. The buildings are tightly arranged in a compact, layered fashion. The temple also incorporates pine forests and streams to create a natural and beautiful environment that captivates visitors.
Following the enclosure wall of Qiyuan Temple to the end, we climbed up Motian Ridge. The mountains merged with mist, and mist merged with clouds. When the mist cleared, we looked down to see the full view of Jiuhua Street (Fig. 12). Soon the mist returned, and the town disappeared into the clouds and fog.
Baisui Palace (Fig. 13) is built on top of a steep rocky outcrop, with part of the bare rock protruding into the building. Huge boulders and rocks are embedded within, seamlessly integrating stone, architecture, and mountain peaks. Originally called Zhaixing Nunnery, in the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty, the monk Wuxia came here to practice meditation and wrote several sutras using his own blood. He passed away at the age of 110. In his memory, the nunnery was renamed Baisui Palace. It is one of the "Four Great Monasteries" of Mount Jiuhua, along with Qiyuan Temple, Dongya Temple, and Ganlu Temple.
After visiting Baisui Palace, we walked along the ridge road to the cable car upper station, where we could see the Huatai peaks forming the forehead, eyebrows, eyes, nose, lips, and chin of a Buddha—a natural reclining Buddha, vivid in both form and spirit. As the stone inscription beside the "Flying Guanyin Temple" near Baisui Palace says: "It is stone, not Buddha; yet Buddha is formed by stone. It is Buddha, not stone; yet stone is formed by Buddha. Stone or Buddha, which is real, which is false?" The peaks and rocks of Mount Jiuhua have all become natural wonders transformed by Buddhism.
Our journey to Jiuhua cleansed our minds and refreshed our spirits. The mysterious flesh body, the majestic Ksitigarbha Palace, and the ethereal otherworldly atmosphere left a deep impression on me. The fresh and natural scenes of mountains and waters are unforgettable. As we descended the mountain, the quiet, lingering chanting of sutras and the resonant sound of bells seemed to echo in our ears, as if in a dream.
