Mount Sanqing 三清山

Overview

Chinese Name: 三清山
English Name: Mount Sanqing; Sanqing Mountain; Sanqingshan
Location: Jiangxi
Type: Ancient culture and art
Rating Level: AAAAA (5A)
Website: http://sqs.sqs.gov.cn/

Brief Introduction

Mount Sanqing, also known as the Shaohua Mountain少华山 and the Ya Mountain丫山, is located in Jiangxi 江西Province, China. It is named after the three peaks of Yujing玉京, Yuxu玉虚 and Yuhua玉华 are like the Taoist gods of Yuqing玉清, Shangqing上清, and Taiqing太清.

Among them, the Yujing peak玉京峰 is the highest, with an elevation of 1819.9 meters. It is the fifth highest peak in Jiangxi and the highest peak in the Huaiyu mountain怀玉山脉 range, and also the source of the Xinjiang River信江. Mount Sanqing is a famous Taoist mountain, a world natural heritage site, a World Geopark, a national natural heritage, and a national geopark.

The main body of Mount Sanqing is 12.2 kilometers long from north to South and 6.3 kilometers wide from east to west. The plane is in the shape of a lotus leaf and slopes from southeast to northwest. The mountain is steep in the East, South, and West, and slightly gentle in the north. From the foot of the mountain to the top of the mountain, the horizontal distance is 5km, and the altitude is increased from 200m to 1816m.

The granite micro landforms of different origins are densely distributed in Mount Sanqing, showing the peak forests with the densest distribution and the most diverse shapes among the known Granite Landforms in the world; 2373 species of higher plants and 1728 species of wild animals constitute the most Biodiversity Environment in East Asia.

What are worth visiting and seeing？

Geography

According to the world heritage conference, Sanqing mountain displays unique granite stone columns and peaks in a relatively small area, and the rich granite modeling stones are combined with a variety of vegetation, landscapes changing from far to near, and shocking climate wonders, creating a unique landscape aesthetic effect in the world and presenting an attractive natural beauty.

The mountain of Sanqing mountain is steep in the East, South, and West, gentle in the north, and has a large elevation difference. As a whole, the east slope from Jinsha to Yujing peak and the west slope from Hengtan and Fenshui汾水 to Yujing peak are just two concave spherical surfaces, which together with the convex spherical surface in the South form a strange landform of towering clouds and overlapping peaks. The east slope is more gentle than the west slope, and the south slope is more gentle than the east slope.

Yujing peak is located in the center of Sanqing mountain. It stands with Yuxu and Yuhua peaks, with an elevation of 1816.9 meters. It is the first peak of Sanqing mountain. There are large rocks on the top of the peak, and the three regular script characters “Yujing peak” are carved on the rocks on the East side. The top is about 50 square meters flat, and there is a square stone engraved with a chessboard in the middle. It is said that the Supreme Lord太上老君 often plays chess with the immortals here. The rocky terrain on both sides is open, and there is a rising platform. The East, South, and west of Yujing peak are three crags.

Yuhua peak is located northwest of Yujing peak, facing Yuxu peak in the south, with an elevation of 1752.8 meters. The cliff is carved with the word “Yuhua peak”, which is steep and beautiful. There is a round well on the rock at the south end. The water is brown red, passive, and never dries up.

The word “Danxia well” is engraved beside the well. There is a huge stone on the west side, which is engraved with the words “Shangshu Wuxiantai”. Several large stones under the platform naturally pile up a courtyard. The rocks on the top of the peak are stacked, and the terrain is dangerous. The rocks on the top are engraved with two regular script characters of “Hongyun”.

History

The Taoism of the Sanqing mountain began in Gehong葛洪 of the Jin Dynasty. According to historical records, during the Shengping period升平年间 (357-361) of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Ge Hong and Li Shangshu李尚书 went to Sanqing mountain to make alchemy and wrote books. So far, there are still traces of Dan wells and alchemy furnaces dug by Ge Hong on the mountain. In particular, the well lasted more than one thousand years and still remained dry all year round. Its water was clear and sweet, and it was called the “immortal well” by later generations. Therefore, Gehong became the “founder” of Sanqing mountain.

Sanqing mountain is only 300 miles away from Longhu Mountain. The alchemists who preach and beg for alms come and go frequently and have close contact with each other. The educational activities of Sanqing mountain are almost directly under the control of Tianshi Zhang张天师. At this time, the worship on the mountain is very prosperous. The alchemists and believers scattered in Jiangxi, Zhejiang, Anhui, and Fujian travel in groups in August and September every year.