Mt. Hengshan is famous holy place for Taoism since ancient times and known as ‘Towering Mountain Supporting the Heaven’ and ‘Most Famous Mountain in North China’. It is one of the five holy mountains of China. The other four are Mt. Taishan in Shandong Province (East Holy Mountain), Mt. Huashan in Shannxi Province (West Holy Mountain), Mt. Hengshan in Hunan Province (South Holy Mountain) and Mt. Songshan in Henan Province (Central Holy Mountain). Tianfengling Peak, the summit of Mt. Hengshan at 2,017 meters above sea level, is located 3 kilometers to the south of Hunyuan County. The complex of ancient architecture in Mt. Hengshan was first constructed during the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534). Major restoration was undertaken in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and a further restoration project was done in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). The main ancient buildings preserved surround the summit of Mt. Hengshan are Hall of the King of North Holly Mountain, Chamber of the King of North Holy Mountain, Pavilion of Dressing, Temple of Immortals’ settlement, Temple of Ten Heavenly Kings, Temple of Pure Trinity, Temple of Jiutian Goddess, Temple of God of Military, Hall of Ascending to Heaven, Temple of Emperor Zhenwu, Temple of White Dragon King, Bitter and Sweet Well, Tower Forest, Pavilion of the God of Literature, Hall of Receiving Honorable Guest etc. Mt. Hengshan features peaks soaring to the sky with steep and precipitous cliffs, therefore most of the buildings are on the precipitous cliff designed skillfully and constructed boldly, namely Hall of God of North Holly Mountain, Chamber of the God of North Holy Mountain, Pavilion of the God of Literature, Hall of Pure Trinity and Hanging Temple. As the most famous scenic sport and historical sites of Mt. Hengshan, the Hanging Temple has established its unique position as one of China's unique and remarkable feats of architectural engineering with its characteristics of long history, gravity-defying location, unique construction, evenly distributed and well-balanced structure. Historical records trace the construction of the origin of the Hanging Temple back 1,400 years to the later period of the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534), although much was reconstructed in the later Dynasties.Facing to Tianfeng Peak, Hanging Temple is build halfway up the side of a precipitous cliff of Cuiping Peak of Hengshan Mountain. Hanging Temple is constructed almost entirely of wood. There are more than 40 halls from big to small housing more than 80 sculptures. Hengshan Mt. was put in the name list of first batch of National Park of China by the State Council due to its beautiful landscape and rich cultural and history. It was inscribed into National Natural and Cultural Heritage List in 2009.

Hanging Temple

Photographed by Liu Yujun

Facing to Tianfeng Peak, Hanging Temple is build halfway up the side of a precipitous cliff of Cuiping Peak of Hengshan Mountain. Historical records trace the construction of the origin of the Hanging Temple back 1,400 years to the later period of the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534), although much was reconstructed in the later Dynasties. Hanging Temple is constructed almost entirely of wood. There are more than 40 halls from big to small housing more than 80 sculptures. Hanging Temple has established its unique position as China’s unique and remarkable feats of architectural engineering with its characteristics of gravity-defying location, unique construction, evenly distributed and well-balanced structure.

Chinese Edited and English Translated by Datong Foreign and Overseas Chinese Affairs Office

English Revised By Adrian Frost (UK)