Mount Lao, or Laoshan (), is a mountain located near the

East China Sea The East China Sea is an arm of the Western Pacific Ocean, located directly offshore from East China. It covers an area of roughly . The sea’s northern extension between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula is the Yellow Sea, separated b ...

on the southeastern coastline of the

Shandong Peninsula The Shandong (Shantung) Peninsula or Jiaodong (Chiaotung) Peninsula is a peninsula in Shandong Province in eastern China, between the Bohai Sea to the north and the Yellow Sea to the south. The latter name refers to the east and Jiaozhou. G ...

in China. The mountain is culturally significant due to its long affiliation with

Taoism Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of Philosophy, philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of China, Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmo ...

and is often regarded as one of the "cradles of Taoism". It is the highest coastal mountain in China and the second highest mountain in Shandong, with the highest peak (Jufeng) reaching . The mountain lies about to the northeast of the downtown area of the City of

Qingdao Qingdao (, also spelled Tsingtao; , Mandarin: ) is a major city in eastern Shandong Province. The city's name in Chinese characters literally means " azure island". Located on China's Yellow Sea coast, it is a major nodal city of the One Belt ...

and is protected by the Qingdao Laoshan National Park that covers an area of 446 square kilometers.

Geology

Mount Lao consists of

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

. The mountain's landforms were formed due to the action of glaciers during the

Quaternary The Quaternary ( ) is the current and most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). It follows the Neogene Period and spans from 2.58 million years ...

and erosion by meltwater released from the icecap that covered a large portion of Shandong during the late

Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...

History

Laoshan is known as one of the birthplaces of

. It is the place where the Complete Perfection School of Taoism () developed. In 412 CE the Chinese

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

pilgrim

Faxian Faxian (法顯 ; 337 CE – c. 422 CE), also referred to as Fa-Hien, Fa-hsien and Sehi, was a Chinese Buddhist monk and translator who traveled by foot from China to India to acquire Buddhist texts. Starting his arduous journey about age 60, h ...

landed near Laoshan on his return from

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. In the course of history, the mountain has been known by various other names, which includes different spellings of "Laoshan" (劳山, 牢山) as well as entirely different names such as Mount Futang and Mount Ao (). The latter name was used by the Taoist Master Changchun who served as the top religious affairs official to Genghis Khan.

Sites

In the course of history, numerous palaces,

Taoist Taoism (, ) or Daoism () refers to either a school of philosophical thought (道家; ''daojia'') or to a religion (道教; ''daojiao''), both of which share ideas and concepts of Chinese origin and emphasize living in harmony with the ''Tao'' ...

temples, and nunneries have been constructed on Mount Lao. At the peak of Taoist worship, Mount Lao was home to about 1000 monks and nuns. However, many of these structures have not survived to the present. Major sites on Mount Lao are:

Temple of Supreme Purity

The largest temple complex on Mount Lao is that of the Temple of Supreme Purity (), a Taoist temple that was first built during the

Northern Song dynasty Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ra ...

with the present structures dating to the reign of the

Wanli Emperor The Wanli Emperor (; 4 September 1563 – 18 August 1620), personal name Zhu Yijun (), was the 14th Emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigned from 1572 to 1620. "Wanli", the era name of his reign, literally means "ten thousand calendars". He was the ...

in the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

. The temple is located near the coast, below Pantao Peak on the southeastern foot of Mount Lao and is hence also known as the Lower Temple (), The main structure of the temple is the Hall of the Three Pure Ones () with houses statues of the Taoist Trinity ( the Grand Pure One,

the Supreme Pure One Lingbao Tianzun, also known in English as the Heavenly Lord of Spiritual Treasures, is a Taoist god In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honder ...

, the Jade Pure One). It is flanked by the Three Emperors Hall (to the left, ) and the Three Officials Hall (to the left, ). The Three Emperors Hall enshrines statues of

Fuxi Fuxi or Fu Hsi (伏羲 ~ 伏犧 ~ 伏戲) is a culture hero in Chinese legend and mythology, credited along with his sister and wife Nüwa with creating humanity and the invention of music, hunting, fishing, domestication, and cooking as well ...

Shennong Shennong (), variously translated as "Divine Farmer" or "Divine Husbandman", born Jiang Shinian (), was a mythological Chinese ruler known as the first Yan Emperor who has become a deity in Chinese and Vietnamese folk religion. He is venerat ...

, and the

Yellow Emperor The Yellow Emperor, also known as the Yellow Thearch or by his Chinese name Huangdi (), is a deity ('' shen'') in Chinese religion, one of the legendary Chinese sovereigns and culture heroes included among the mytho-historical Three Soverei ...

. In the Three Officials Halls are the statues of the Three Gods (the God of Heaven, the God of Earth, and the God of Water) along with other statues, such as of the warrior god Xuan Wu and of

Lei Gong Leigong () or Leishen (), is the god of thunder in Chinese folk religion, Chinese mythology and Taoism. In Taoism, when so ordered by heaven, Leigong punishes both earthly mortals guilty of secret crimes and evil spirits who have used their know ...

, the God of Thunder. Two ancient

Cypress Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs of northern temperate regions that belong to the family Cupressaceae. The word ''cypress'' is derived from Old French ''cipres'', which was imported from Latin ''cypressus'', the ...

trees in front of the Three Emperors Hall are said to have been planted during the

Han Dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...

. Two old

camellia ''Camellia'' (pronounced or ) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae. They are found in eastern and southern Asia, from the Himalayas east to Japan and Indonesia. There are more than 220 described species, with some controversy ...

trees are standing in front of the Three Officials Hall. On the walls outside of the Three Emperors Hall an imperial decree by

Genghis Khan ''Chinggis Khaan'' ͡ʃʰiŋɡɪs xaːŋbr />Mongol script: ''Chinggis Qa(gh)an/ Chinggis Khagan'' , birth_name = Temüjin , successor = Tolui (as regent)Ögedei Khan , spouse = , issue = , house = Borjigin , ...

granting Taoism protection. A natural feature on the grounds of the temple is the Shenshui (Immortal Water) Spring that is fed by Mount Lao's considerable underground waters. The

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

writer

Pu Songling Pu Songling (, 5 June 1640 – 25 February 1715) was a Chinese writer during the Qing dynasty, best known as the author of ''Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio'' (''Liaozhai zhiyi''). Biography Pu was born into a poor merchant family from ...

is said to have resided in the Temple of Supreme Purity in his later years. His stories "The Taoist Priest of Laoshan" () and "The Flower Nymphs" () from the collection

Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio ''Liaozhai zhiyi'', sometimes shortened to ''Liaozhai'', known in English as ''Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio'' or ''Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio'', is a collection of Classical Chinese stories by Qing dynasty writer Pu Songling, c ...

are set on Mount Lao with the latter story specifically referring to peonies and camellias in the Temple of Supreme Purity.

Temple of Great Purity

The Temple of Great Purity () also known as the Upper Temple () is located on the southeastern slope of Mount Lao above the Temple of Supreme Purity. It was established during the Song Dynasty and rebuilt during the Yuan Dynasty, in the years 1297 to 1307. It is one of the oldest extant structures on Mount Lao. Like the Temple of Supreme Purity, the Temple of Great Purity features a spring. The spring in the Temple of Great Purity is called the "Shengshuiyang (Ocean of Holy Water) Spring".

Longtan Waterfall

The Longtan Waterfall () has a height of about 20 meters and is located to the south of the Temple of Great Purity.

Temple of Supreme Peace

The Temple of Supreme Peace () is located on the northern slope of Mount Lao. It was established during the Song Dynasty, but has been rebuilt several times.

Hualou Temple

The Hualou Temple () was established by the Taoist Liu Zhijian during the Yuan Dynasty (in 1325) and subsequently rebuilt during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, as well as during the Republican era.

Huayan Temple

The Huayan Temple () is the only

Buddhist temple A Buddhist temple or Buddhist monastery is the place of worship for Buddhists, the followers of Buddhism. They include the structures called vihara, chaitya, stupa, wat and pagoda in different regions and languages. Temples in Buddhism represen ...

on Mount Lao and is located on the eastern slope of the mountain.

12 Sceneries

Traditionally, 12 sceneries () on Mount Lao have been regarded as particularly beautiful: # Mingxia Sanyi (明霞散绮, rays of sunshine) # Weizhu Mingquan (尉竹鸣泉, spring with sound) # Yundong Pansong (云洞蟠松, pine tree on the rock) # Yanpu Chaoyin (岩瀑潮音, waterfall with sound of tide) # Qipan Xian Yi (棋盘仙弈, megalith at Qipan) # Hualou Dieshi (华楼叠石, various stones) # Shiling Hengyun (狮岭横云, clouds hung on the top of the peak) # Naluoyanku (那罗延窟, rock cave) # Haiqiao Xiandun (海峤仙墩, seaside cliffs) # Taiqing Suiyue (太清水月, bright moon in spring water of Taiqing Palace) # Longtan Penyu (龙潭喷雨, water flowing out of the dragon pool) # Jufeng Xuzhao (巨峰旭照, rising sun in the morning on the highest peak)

Culture

Mount Lao is featured in many legends and local traditions. For example, the mountain is said to have been visited by the emperor

Qin Shi Huang Qin Shi Huang (, ; 259–210 BC) was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of a unified China. Rather than maintain the title of "king" ( ''wáng'') borne by the previous Shang and Zhou rulers, he ruled as the First Emperor ( ...

and

Emperor Wu of Han Emperor Wu of Han (156 – 29 March 87BC), formally enshrined as Emperor Wu the Filial (), born Liu Che (劉徹) and courtesy name Tong (通), was the seventh emperor of the Han dynasty of ancient China, ruling from 141 to 87 BC. His reign la ...

, both hoping to meet immortals and gain immortality there. The martial arts style of the

Northern Praying Mantis Northern Praying Mantis () is a style of Chinese martial arts, sometimes called Shandong Praying Mantis after its province of origin. It was created by Wang Lang (王朗) and was named after the praying mantis, an insect, the aggressiveness o ...

is attributed to Wang Lang, who is said to have developed while living on Mount Lao. Wang Lang is commemorated by a contemporary stone statue on the mountain. Many gamblers visit Mount Lao for the famous tree located in the mountain, as it is said that three pats of the tree's trunk will bring instant luck for those seeking money. The beer of the

Tsingtao Brewery Tsingtao Brewery Co. Ltd. () is China's second largest brewery, with about 15% of domestic market share and also accounts for half of China’s national beer exports. It was founded in 1903 by German settlers in Tsingtau (Qingdao), Kiautschou Ba ...

is brewed with Laoshan spring water. Mount Lao is also famous for its green tea.

Tourism

Laoshan is a popular tourist site with a 5A government rating. During the 2012 Golden Week, it received about 176,000 visitors. There are six designated scenic areas on Mount Lao: Taiqing (), Chessboard Stone (), Yangkou (), Jufeng (), Beijiushui (), and Hualou ().

References

External links

Laoshan Scenic Spot Tourist Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lao

Mount Lao Mount Lao, or Laoshan (), is a mountain located near the East China Sea on the southeastern coastline of the Shandong Peninsula in China. The mountain is culturally significant due to its long affiliation with Taoism and is often regarded as on ...

Mountains of Shandong Sacred mountains Taoism in China

AAAAA-rated tourist attractions Lao