Mt. Jiuhuashan

Located in Qingyang county, Anhui province, the mountain covers an area of about 60 square miles and is regarded as one of the four Buddhist sacred mountains. Known as "the most picturesque mountain of the South-East," Mt. Jiuhuashan has altogether 99 peaks covered with verdant vegetation.

The original name of the mountain was Mt. Jiuzishan. However it was renamed Mt. Jiuhuashan, meaning "the Mountain of the Nine Lotuses," originated from the poem written by Li Bai, the famous poet of the Tang dynasty: "From the azure skies above descends a jade-like flow, and nine fascinating lotuses rise out of the hills below."

It was not until the late eighth century, the mountain became a place where religious rites were held to worship the god of earth. The construction of temples started in the Tang dynasty and their enlargement continued in the following dynasties. By the middle of the Qing dynasty, over 300 temples had been set up on the mountain where 5,000 Buddhist monks and nuns were in residence. Up till now there are still over 50 well-preserved temples and more than 6,000 sculptured Buddhas. No wonder that Mt. Jiuhuashan became one of the four great Buddhist mountains in China (the other three are Mt. Emeishan in Sichuan, Mt. Wutaishan in Shanxi and the Mt. Putuoshan in Zhejiang). Huacheng Temple is the oldest among all temples on Mt. Jiuhuashan. Simple and solemn, it has engraved lintels, brackets and roofs. In the Historical Relics Museum of Mt. Jiuhuashan are on display many precious sutras and cultural relics contained in Huacheng and other temples. The Corporeal Body Hall of Wannian Temple houses the well-preserved mummy of Monk Wu Xia, wearing a lotus-flower shaped crown and a vermilion kasaya.