Mt. Hua, the Most Perilous Mountain in China

Mt. Hua is formed with rocky hills, therefore most Daoist temples there are built either on cliff faces or on the hilltops.

Since Daoists by principles do not rely on their followers’ donations to survive, the temples often locate on sites that are difficult for the general public to access, so as to ensure minimum disruption to their cultivation.

Even their leisure facilities are often built in a location as remote as possible.

This is one of the most challenging sections of the trial to the temples on the top of the mountain. The photo was taken in the early 20th century by George Ernest Morrison (1862-1920), an Australian journalist and traveller. 

The challenging set of steps today.

COMMENTS FROM MINDS.COM

Eric
Which way to the elevator (lift) lol

All Things Chinese
Have you noticed the upper section of the steps is minus 15 degrees… I once had a dream that was long before I saw this photo. I was facing a set of stairs with the upper section just like that. By then I thought to myself, is this possible? Am I in a dream? It turned out I was in a dream. Then I found out it is not a dream… LOL.

Eric
It is the realm of premonition. Lol

All Things Chinese
The realm of premonition is also the field of recollection.

Our mind has evolved to handle routine administrative tasks and can hardly invent anything new. It mainly works on customer service (responding to the current stimulus) and product promotion (showing up the ad links to the ready-made products related to your current attention).

Each of us lives in our unique world but all our consciousnesses are the same. Not the same ONE but the SAME one, like every mirror that can reflect the same landscape and all landscapes. So we can access the files beyond our past personal experience.

A long path to Daoist temples on the top of the mountain with a formidable vertical challenge on the rocky hill ridge.

A long path to Daoist temples on the top of the mountain with an intimidating horizontal challenge on the cliff face.

The footpath built on the cliff face by Daoists.

Chains and steps constructed by Daoists on the cliff face.

A Daoist temple on the summit of Mt Hua. The photo was taken in the early 20th century by George Ernest Morrison.

The hilltop Daoist temple today.

An aerial view of the Daoist temples on the summit of Mt Huashan in Shaanxi Province.

Daoists on Mt. Hua

Two ageing Daoists in Mt Hua. The photo was taken in the early 20th century by George Ernest Morrison.

COMMENTS FROM MINDS.COM

Eric
Shannxi province seems to come up a lot in the Taoist practice.

All Things Chinese
Another major Daoist base is Jiangxi province, where the best Feng Shui masters in history called home. The master surnamed Liao was the one who selected the site of Beijing Forbidden City as well as the royal graveyard on the outskirts of Beijing.

A Daoist in meditation on the peak of Mt Hua. The photo was taken in the early 20th century by George Ernest Morrison.

On the peak of Mt Hua, two Daoists were practising martial arts, one using a hard weapon of a sword and another utilizing the soft power from a duster.

Duster was a popular personal and household tool in Chinese Daoist and Buddhist communities. A trained duster kung fu master can also conveniently turn a duster into a powerful weapon.

The photo was taken in the early 20th century by George Ernest Morrison.

A young Daoist novice played with a duster made with (most likely) horsehair.

The photo was taken in the early 20th century by George Ernest Morrison.

An ageing Daoist travelling on the cliff face in the early 21st century.

A Daoist – an ancient Chinese ink painting

I was enjoying the mountain view on a bridge,
Then I sensed the world in turmoil and in rage.