The Heavenly Land of Buddha- Mount Emei
Gazing at Jingding Temple from Mount Emei.
Located within the territory of Emeishan City with a land area of 154km2 and the tallest peak of 3,099m, Mount Emei is world-famous thanks to its “magnificent, beautiful, wonderful, miraculous, and great" natural landscapes and profound Buddhist culture. It is also praised as "The Heavenly Land of Buddha", "The Kingdom of Plants", "The Wild Park of Animals", "A Geological Museum", and the "Best View under Heaven".
Mount Emei is one of the four famous Buddhist mountains in China and the Bodhimanda of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva (the place where the buddha-to-be got presented his enlightenment). For thousands of years, it has been a pilgrimage destination for knowledgeable monks and men of virtue which contributed to continuous Sankrit (the philosophical language of buddhism) singing and incense burning. Dated back to A.D. 4, Baozhang, an Indian monk, travelled to Mount Emei and gave his praise to the mountain after visiting many other famous mountains and temples related to Buddhism,
"this is definitely the best mountain in China, for its height is above all five great mountains and has the best landscape throughout the country."
Throughout many dynasties, scholars and literati dedicated their works to Mount Emei. For instance, Li Bai, a poet in the Tang Dynasty, praised it in a poem,
"there are many heavenly mountains in Shu State, but Mount Emei is insurmountably the best."
Guo Moruo, a contemporary Chinese master in literature, also created several poems to praise this mountain he commented "the best mountain in the world". Since ancient times, Mount Emei has always been one of the favourite destinations for people engaging in pilgrimage, sightseeing, scientific exploration, and rehabilitation.
Fuhu Temple
Fuhu Temple, 630m above sea level, is the largest Bhikkhuni temple (temples for fully ordained female monastic) on Mount Emei. It is also known as Shenlong Hall, Fuhu Zen Temple, and Tiger Creek Vihara. Around the temple grows fir, Phoebe Zhennan, and cedar. One of the tree represents a character in Lotus Sutra, and these trees collectively form the so-called "Mantra Forest". Those ancient trees towered to the sky and kept sunlight out all year long, leading to the rumour saying there are hidden tigers in this dense forest. Monks erected the Zunsheng Stone Pillars to scare away tigers, thus the temple name "Fuhu Temple" (surrenderred/ crouching tiger temple). Despite shadowed by dense forests, the temple had no dead leaves piled up on its roof; for this reason Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty granted it the title "Li Gou Yuan" (Garden faraway from crud), implying that it is a holy Buddhism place to keep dirt and dust away. The temple boasts a traditional architectural design of Chinese Buddhism with gate, Maitreya Hall, Bodhi Hall, Great Buddha’s Hall, Hall of Five Hundred Arhats, Tower of Imperial Inscriptions, Zen Hall and Monk House successively along the central axis.
Qingying Pavilion
Qingyin Pavilion, 710m above sea level, is also known as Woyun Temple. It was originally named Niuxin Temple in the Tang Dynasty, but renamed to "Qingyin Pavilion" by Monk Guangji in early Ming Dynasty, taken from the lines, "musical instruments are not needed here, as great music (Qingyin) is played by mountain and water". The exquisite pavilion looks down from above while being surrounded by beautiful sceneries. In the central part are Jieyu Pavilion and Niuxin Pavilion of red eaves and pillars, a stone bridge connects the two pavilions that spans over black and white streams. It is shaped like a pair of wings therefore named Shuangfei Bridge (double-winged bridge). Looking closer, black and white streams converge under Niuxin Pavilion to splash about like snow and rush out as loudly as thunder. The overall design of Qingyin Pavilion reflects the idea of "the union between nature and human being", making "Double-bridge Qingyin" one of the top ten views of Mount Emei.
Craving a visit to Leshan, Sichuan, China? Check out the Virtual PATA Travel Mart 2021 event page and rewatch the event recordings to learn more!
