Mount Hua (Huashan)华山
- Type
- Daoist Sacred Mountains
- Location
- China · Shaanxi · Huayin, Weinan · South of Huayin, at the eastern end of the Qinling Mountains; the main peak, South Peak, rises to 2,154.9 meters
- Coordinates
- 34.475, 110.087 Map ↗
- School
- Quanzhen (Complete Perfection) Daoism, Huashan Lineage of Quanzhen
- First built
- A mountain for sacrifices to the marchmount since pre-Qin times · Fourth of the Daoist Thirty-six Lesser Grotto-Heavens, the "Grotto-Heaven of the Assembled Immortals of the Supreme Ultimate"; Daoist priests were already cultivating here in the Northern Wei
- Heritage status
- Xiyue Temple: Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level (1988)Ancient Architectural Complex of Mount Hua — Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level (2013)UNESCO Global Geopark (2023)
Overview
Mount Hua is the Western Peak, renowned for its precipitous terrain, with five peaks standing in a ring; it has been a site of sacrifice to the marchmount and of reclusive cultivation since ancient times. Daoism calls Mount Hua the "Grotto-Heaven of the Assembled Immortals of the Supreme Ultimate," the fourth of the Thirty-six Lesser Grotto-Heavens. Tradition holds that both Emperor Wu of Han and Emperor Xuanzong of Tang made sacrifices there; in the Five Dynasties and early Song, Chen Tuan withdrew to Yuntai Temple and Yuquan Temple on Mount Hua, initiating the Mount Hua Daoist lineage and closely tied to the transmission of internal alchemy and the Diagram of the Prior Heaven; the branch transmitted by Hao Datong, one of the Seven Perfected of Quanzhen in the Jin and Yuan, is called the Huashan Lineage. At the foot of the mountain stand Xiyue Temple (dedicated to the Great Emperor of the Western Peak, with a grand Ming–Qing layout), Yuquan Temple (commemorating Chen Tuan), and Xiangu Temple; on the mountain are over a hundred temples, hermitages, and grottoes, including Yunü Shrine, Zhenyue Palace, Cuiyun Palace, Jintian Palace, and Juxian Terrace, many carved into the cliffs. Mount Hua is also the source of the literary image of "dueling on Mount Hua" (Huashan lunjian), and is today a National Scenic Area and UNESCO Global Geopark.
Highlights
- Xiyue Temple
- Yuquan Temple
- Zhenyue Palace
- Jinsuo Pass
- Changkong Plank Walk
- Chen Tuan Historical Sites