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Posted On Saturday, September 14, 2013 at
at
9:01 PM
by Alvin
Visiting the UNESCO lauded Wu Tai Shan - Five Terrace Mountains (五台山) gave us a whole new meaning and definition of being "templed out" ! Located at an elevation of over 3,000 meters, Wu Tai Town and its surrounding spectacular mountains as well as over 40 temples and monasteries, warranted a busy 4-days stay. Wu Tai had been a Buddhist sacred ground for over 1,500 years and in particular the most important aspect had been the co-existence of Chinese (漢傳佛教) and Tibetan
(藏傳佛教) Buddhism being practised side-by-side amongst these temples. The
dizzying journey from Da Tong took 6 hours as we climbed and snaked
around the beautiful Shanxi (山西) back country roads. When we left Da Tong (大同), it was
a pleasant 26 degrees Celsius but when we reached Wu Tai Town, the
temperature dropped to a just-bearable 10 degrees Celsius. Luckily
during the day the sun shone brightly and warmth soon returned for our
visits to these stunning temples.
The temples were beautifully constructed and decorated with characteristic Chinese, Tibetan and Mongolian scripts and the number of worshippers was thankfully low as we picked mid-week to visit the site. Of note, we visited and paid our respects at the temples of 塔院寺, 菩薩頂, 吉祥寺, 獅子窩, 鎮海寺, 白雲寺, 金閣寺, 瑞應寺, 楓林寺 ... Phew ! And we marveled at the different religious presentations and statues at each and every turn. We then spent the next two days carrying out our mega-hikes around the five terrace peaks. We passed numerous Chinese and Tibetan builders and painters hard-at-work in temple renovation and restoration, sleepy villages set amongst the Autumn colorful patchwork of gold, red, and olive green and responsible monks guarding rarely-visited temples. We felt a good vibe spending these few days in these pleasant surroundings and at the same time felt enlightened in absorbing the spiritual atmosphere of these sacred mountains - really felt serene and hassle-free. A BIG Thank-You to Wu Tai Shan !
Visiting the UNESCO lauded Wu Tai Shan - Five Terrace Mountains (五台山) gave us a whole new meaning and definition of being "templed out" ! Located at an elevation of over 3,000 meters, Wu Tai Town and its surrounding spectacular mountains as well as over 40 temples and monasteries, warranted a busy 4-days stay. Wu Tai had been a Buddhist sacred ground for over 1,500 years and in particular the most important aspect had been the co-existence of Chinese (漢傳佛教) and Tibetan
(藏傳佛教) Buddhism being practised side-by-side amongst these temples. The
dizzying journey from Da Tong took 6 hours as we climbed and snaked
around the beautiful Shanxi (山西) back country roads. When we left Da Tong (大同), it was
a pleasant 26 degrees Celsius but when we reached Wu Tai Town, the
temperature dropped to a just-bearable 10 degrees Celsius. Luckily
during the day the sun shone brightly and warmth soon returned for our
visits to these stunning temples.
The temples were beautifully constructed and decorated with characteristic Chinese, Tibetan and Mongolian scripts and the number of worshippers was thankfully low as we picked mid-week to visit the site. Of note, we visited and paid our respects at the temples of 塔院寺, 菩薩頂, 吉祥寺, 獅子窩, 鎮海寺, 白雲寺, 金閣寺, 瑞應寺, 楓林寺 ... Phew ! And we marveled at the different religious presentations and statues at each and every turn. We then spent the next two days carrying out our mega-hikes around the five terrace peaks. We passed numerous Chinese and Tibetan builders and painters hard-at-work in temple renovation and restoration, sleepy villages set amongst the Autumn colorful patchwork of gold, red, and olive green and responsible monks guarding rarely-visited temples. We felt a good vibe spending these few days in these pleasant surroundings and at the same time felt enlightened in absorbing the spiritual atmosphere of these sacred mountains - really felt serene and hassle-free. A BIG Thank-You to Wu Tai Shan !
