Three Major Attractions of Longhu Mountain

On June 12， 2010 I visited Longhu Mountain in the south of Jiangxi Province. Longhu Mountain， which covers an area of 220 square kilometers， is a national forest park， AAAA tourism destination， and China’s natural and cultural heritage site.

June 2010 also marked a key period of time for Longhu Mountain， for Longhu Mountain and other four geologically and geographically related Danxia Landform areas (including Jianglang Mountain and Fangyan Mountain in Zhejiang) in south-eastern China are applying collectively for World Natural Heritage.

The Cradle of Taoism

Longhu Mountain is where Taoism originated. Zhang Daoling， the creator of Taoism， was born in Tianmu Mountain， a scenic mountain in the west of Hangzhou， the capital of present-day Zhejiang Province in eastern China. The year of his birth is presumably 34 AD， though scholars are not sure when he passed away. Some say he died in 156 AD. Although Taoism as a thought originated with Lao Zi and Zhuang Zi that go back to hundreds of years before AD， Taoism as a religion came into being in 90 AD. The name of Longhu Mountain came from the legend that after Zhang Daoling successfully made life elixir here， dragons and tigers appeared as auspicious signs of heavenly appreciation and approval， hence Long (dragon) and Hu (tiger).

It is said that Zhang Daoling was the ninth-generation descendent of Zhang Liang， a key advisor to Liu Bang， the founding emperor of the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD). After having helped Liu Bang to ascend the throne， Zhang Liang resigned his position and chose a life of traveling and seclusion.

The management committee of Longhu Mountain assigned Panzi， a local guide， to take me around to see the most important sights in the mountain. He first took me to the Heavenly Teacher’s Residence. The residence was built in the Han Dynasty by the fourth-generation descendent of Zhang Daoling. From then on， the residence was where all the Heavenly Teachers， the leader of Taoist religion and a position handed down from generation to generation in the Zhang family， lived.

The residence occupies an area of 55，000 square meters， including halls， a garden， an altar， and private quarters. This is now the only private garden-like residence for the leader of Taoism in China. In 1983， the State Council designated it as a key Taoism Temple open to the general public.

The whole architecture reflects Taoist tenets and art of traditional Chinese landscaping and gardening. Though it is a marvelous architecture， the most attractive sight for me was Shangqing Palace， about one kilometer away from the residence. I was eager to visit Shangqing Palace because it is where 108 heroes in the China’s ancient classic novel “Outlaws of the Marsh” break out of the dudgeon and get into the world to get ready for their timeless legends.

The large compound was where Zhang Daoling used to contemplate and seek the secrets of Taoism. It was first erected in the Eastern Han Dynasty and later expanded to be one of China’s largest Taoism sanctuaries. It used to have 2 palaces， 12 halls and 24 courtyards. Most of the architecture was destroyed in a fire in 1930. Part of the compound survived and some have been restored.

Danxia Landform

Longhu Mountain is a scenic marvel. Peaks tower in reds and Luxi River zigzags through. The river and 99 peaks combine to form a breathtaking beauty. There are many Danxia Landform areas in this world. In China alone， there are a total of 737 Danxia Landform areas. Many of them feature one phase of a Danxia Landform development it has so far experienced. Longhu Mountain， however， boasts 23 of 26 types of Danxia Landforms. The peaks here are well developed. If you want to study Danxia geomorphology， Longhu Mountain offers a relatively complete view. At an international meeting in Malaysia in 2007， Longhu Mountain was voted unanimously as a world geopark.

The 38，000-hectare Longhu Mountain world geopark is a spectacular view of otherworldly splendors. Geologists from the UNESCO agreed that it is a prototype of Danxia Landform in the world.

What makes the mountain stands out scenically， in my opinion， is the crystal-clear Luxi River meandering through the mountain area. China has many great mountains and many beautiful rivers， but few have both a mountain view and a river view together.

I took a raft tour on the river. While zigzagging among cliffs， I suddenly spotted a peak that looked as if it had snow on its top. Snow in summer? I wondered aloud. Panzi laughed and told me that the peak has a thick layer of cormorants’ droppings. The layer looks white and one can mistake it for snow at first glance.

It turns out that Longhu Mountain， thanks to its unique geographic advantages and well-preserved environment， is home to thousands of migrant birds wintering there. The latest survey indicates that there were about 200 Mergus squamatuses wintering in Jiangxi Province and 88 chose Longhu Mountain as their temporary habitat. Mergus squamatus， as precious as panda and South China tiger， is a class I wild species under national protection.

Cliff Burials

Burials in China have taken many forms. The ancient cliff burial at Longhu Mountain is probably the most exotic. Coffins that perch precariously on cliffs are no strange phenomenon seen in China. So far， more than 11 places in China are known for their folk custom of placing the dead on the precipitous surface of cliffs. Scientists investigated the cliff burials at Longhu Mountain from 1978 to 1979 and concluded that this special burial practice at Longhu Mountain goes back to more than 2，800 years， that is， the world’s oldest cliff burial practice and site.

Long after the mystery of the age of the cliff burial at Longhu Mountain was solved， scientists still wondered how coffins were lifted up precipitous cliffs. In 1989， a special panel of experts， headed by Professor Lu Jinyan specialized in anciently machinery of China at Shanghai-based Tongji University， conducted a special experiment. Working with the five brothers of the Li family at Longhu Mountain， the panel suggested hoisting a coffin up a cliff by means of a tackle and a basket. The brothers， who are all herb gatherers at Longhu Mountain， were able to lift a coffin up the cliff.

In 1995， 20 plus top-class experts from all over the world gathered at Longhu Mountain and conducted a 10-day field study， jointly sponsored by the China Academy of Social Sciences and the China Academy of Science. They concluded that the cliff burials at Longhu Mountain were the oldest and most concentrated in the world. They studied burial objects from 202 tombs on the cliffs and found that these objects say that the histories of many inventions were much older than previously considered. For example， paper-making in China is at least 700 years earlier than previously thought and the textile machine is 500 years older than previously recorded.

Now the five brothers and their adult children stage a show every afternoon to tourists how a coffin can be lifted up to a cliff burial ground. On the noon of June 12， with the accompaniment of Panzi， I visited Li Zhiming， a 19-year-old young man. He is the oldest among the male children of the five brothers. With big eyes and bushy eyebrows and dressed in an orange show attire， the muscular young man demonstrated a few stunts in the air. He said he would carry on the skills of the Li family.□