| The Sacred Mountains of China |
China has a well-known system of Nine Most-Sacred Mountains, and has dozens more that
are highly-sacred by any standard. The "Great Nine" are divided as five sacred to the ancient
Daoist religion and four sacred to Buddhism, but this formulation is really too simplistic.
The four "Buddhist mountains" are actually entirely devoted to Buddhism, with one of the four
principal Bodhisattvas of Mahayana Buddhism thought to be residing at each one:
Putuo-shan (actually a rocky island off the coast below Shanghai) is the "home" of Guanyin the
Bodhisattva of Compassion -- merged with the south-chinese-coast ocean-
goddess Matzu, and therefore depicted as female; in Korea this deity remains
in its original male form (most of the time) as the popular Gwanse-eum-bosal.
Jiuhua-shan (in Anhui Province south of the Yangtze River, upriver from Nanjing City) is the "home" of
xxxxxxxxxxxx the Bodhisattva of Salvation from Sufferings (manifested in human form
by a Korean Prince during the Tang Dynasty!) -- known in Korea as Jijang-bosal.
Emei-shan (in Sichuan Province south of Chengdu City) at 3100 meters high is really just a foothill
of the great chains of lofty mountains flowing westward into Tibet. It is the "home"
of xxxxxxxxxxx the Bodhisattva of Benevolent Actions -- known in Korea as
Bohyeon-bosal.
Wutai-shan (in Shanxxi Province west of Beijing City) at 3000 meters high is called the "holy roof
of northern China". It is the "home" of xxxxxxxxxxx the Bodhisattva of Wisdom -- known in
Korea as Munsu-bosal.
are highly-sacred by any standard. The "Great Nine" are divided as five sacred to the ancient
Daoist religion and four sacred to Buddhism, but this formulation is really too simplistic.
The four "Buddhist mountains" are actually entirely devoted to Buddhism, with one of the four
principal Bodhisattvas of Mahayana Buddhism thought to be residing at each one:
Putuo-shan (actually a rocky island off the coast below Shanghai) is the "home" of Guanyin the
Bodhisattva of Compassion -- merged with the south-chinese-coast ocean-
goddess Matzu, and therefore depicted as female; in Korea this deity remains
in its original male form (most of the time) as the popular Gwanse-eum-bosal.
Jiuhua-shan (in Anhui Province south of the Yangtze River, upriver from Nanjing City) is the "home" of
xxxxxxxxxxxx the Bodhisattva of Salvation from Sufferings (manifested in human form
by a Korean Prince during the Tang Dynasty!) -- known in Korea as Jijang-bosal.
Emei-shan (in Sichuan Province south of Chengdu City) at 3100 meters high is really just a foothill
of the great chains of lofty mountains flowing westward into Tibet. It is the "home"
of xxxxxxxxxxx the Bodhisattva of Benevolent Actions -- known in Korea as
Bohyeon-bosal.
Wutai-shan (in Shanxxi Province west of Beijing City) at 3000 meters high is called the "holy roof
of northern China". It is the "home" of xxxxxxxxxxx the Bodhisattva of Wisdom -- known in
Korea as Munsu-bosal.
