Wutai Shan (五台山) by Robert Vanwey Wutai Shan (五台山), or Mount Wutai, is one of the crucial destinations of Buddhist pilgrims in China. According to ancient Buddhist texts, this set of peaks is the first of the four great Buddhist Mountains in China and is home to Manjusri (文殊師利), the Bodhisattva of transcendent wisdom.1 Pilgrims travel to the mountain because of their belief that Manjusri’s presence generates miracles there.2 Consisting of five separate peaks and a surrounding village, Wutai Shan features numerous temples and other holy sites. Visitors can choose to traverse any or all of the five terraces (one on each peak) or, should they elect to remain at lower altitudes, they can visit any number of the low-lying temples. The village skirting the base of Wutai Shan is called Taihuai Town. It hosts several restaurants serving local cuisines and ample shops offering a great variety of wares including, among other things, Buddhist memorabilia, clothing, and snacks. Of perhaps greater interest to visitors of Taihuai Town, the village also contains several easily accessible holy sites. The sites consist of remarkable pagodas, sprawling temple complexes, and awe-inspiring idols. The most noticeable of these is the Tayuan Temple’s Sarira Pagoda (大白塔, literally, the “Great White Pagoda”). Nestled at the north end of the village, the Sarira Pagoda soars above the neighboring structures and thus is easily visible to passersby. It was constructed in 1301, during the Yuan Dynasty, by a Nepali architect named Arniko.3 It rises fifty-two meters into the sky and is visible from almost any point in the valley of Taihuai village. It serves as the symbolic center of the five peaks themselves.4 Surrounding the great pagoda, which lies at the center of the Tayuan Temple (塔院寺) complex, are the Grand Hall, the Sutra Collection Pavilion, and the residing monks’ retreat. Prior to the Ming period, the Sarira Pagoda was part of an adjacent temple known as the Xiantong Temple (显通寺). Originally named the Dafulinjiu Temple, the Xiantong Temple was built during the Eastern Han Dynasty in the third century CE. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, this temple held particular importance. The Yongle emperor (r. 1403-1424) initiated its renovation and ordered the restoration of its stupa.5 Later, the emperor Kangxi (r. 1661-1722) of the Qing Dynasy, inscribed approximately fifty tablets and seventeen stelae during his visit to the Wutai Shan area and distributed them among the monasteries there, including to the Xiantong temple.6 The current complex comprises 80,000 square meters. It reached this size from renovations conducted in the Qing Dynasty.7 The temple has seven wings making up over 300 separate rooms. The complex contains the fascinating Huayan Sutra pagoda. Written on its silk is the entire 80-volume long Huayan Sutra; it contains over 600,000 characters and was composed by Xu Dexing during the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty.8 Visitors can also choose to climb the 108 steps to the Pusading Temple (菩萨顶). Perched high atop Lingjiu Hill adjacent to the village, this temple overlooks the valley and provides a breathtaking view of the Sarira Pagoda. Considered the home of Manjusri, this complex actually consists of two temple groups connected by the famous 108 steps.9 It was here that the Kangxi emperor paid a personal visit to pray on behalf of his grandmother.10 From atop the hill, one can see far into the valley between peaks. Even from this height the Sarira Pagoda shines amidst the rooftops of the village structures and adjacent temples. Pusading (meaning, the “abode of Manjusri”), hosts several magnificent structures as well as a number of colorful figures of Buddhas, Taras, and wrathful deities. Travel to Wutai Shan has grown increasingly easier with numerous local buses running from the nearby city of Taiyuan (太原市). Upon the mountain itself are innumerable taxis, free local buses, and other means of transport. This brief article describes only a few points of interest among a great many in the Wutai Shan area. Visitors will find temples of varying size, age, and accessibility. There are temples of various lineages, each with their unique iconography and architecture. Footnotes & sources: Scholars identified it as such based on passages in the Huayan jing (华严经), otherwise known as the Avatamsaka Sutra, among other sources. The other three sacred Buddhist mountains are: Emei Shan (峨眉山), Jiuhua Shan (九华山), and Putuo Shan (普陀山). Gimello, Robert M. “’Environments’ Worldly and Other-Worldly: Wutaishan and the Question of What Makes a Buddhist Mountain ‘Sacred’. 10 December 2006; hds.harvard.edu/cswr/resources/print/dongguk/gimello.pdf; accessed 6 August 2010. Min Bahadur Shakya. “Nepalese Buddhist artist Arniko and his Contribution to Buddhist Heritage in China.” Nagarjuna Institute of Exact Methods. scribd/doc/25702931/Nepalese-Buddhist-Artist-Arniko-and-His-Contribution-to-Buddhist-Heritage-of-China; accessed 6 August 2010. Nan, Shunxun and Beverly Foit-Albert. China’s Sacred Sites. Honesdale, PA: Himalayan Institute Press, 2007; p. 88. Kohle, Natalie. “Why Did the Kangxi Emperor Go to Wutai Shan? Patronage, Pilgrimage, and the Place of Tibetan Buddhism at the Early Qing Court.” Late Imperial China, Volume 29, Number 1, June 2008, p. 79. Ibid., p. 85. Ministry of Culture, People’s Republic of China. “Xiantong Temple.” 2003. chinaculture.org/gb/en_aboutchina/2003-09/24/content_25369.htm; accessed 7 August 2010. Ibid. Nan, Shunxun; p. 88. Kohle, p. 91.
Posted on: Sun, 06 Jul 2014 05:23:42 +0000
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