The Wudang Mountains () are a mountain range in the northwestern part of

Hubei Hubei is a province of China, province in Central China. It has the List of Chinese provincial-level divisions by GDP, seventh-largest economy among Chinese provinces, the second-largest within Central China, and the third-largest among inland ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. They are home to a famous complex of

Taoist temples A Daoist temple (), also called a () or (), is a place where the Dao is observed and cultivated. It is a place of worship in Taoism. Taoism is a religion that originated in China, with the belief in immortality, which urges people to become im ...

and

monasteries A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which m ...

associated with the Lord of the North,

Xuantian Shangdi Xuanwu () or Xuandi (), also known as Zhenwu (, ) or Zhenwu Dadi (, ), is a revered deity in Chinese religion, one of the higher-ranking deities in Taoism. He is revered as a powerful god, able to control the elements and capable of great magi ...

. The Wudang Mountains are renowned for the practice of

tai chi is a Chinese martial art. Initially developed for combat and self-defense, for most practitioners it has evolved into a sport and form of exercise. As an exercise, tai chi is performed as gentle, low-impact movement in which practitioners ...

and

Taoism Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ' ...

as the Taoist counterpart to the

Shaolin Monastery Shaolin Monastery ( zh, labels=no, c=少林寺, p=shàolínsì), also known as Shaolin Temple, is a monastic institution recognized as the birthplace of Chan Buddhism and the cradle of Shaolin kung fu. It is located at the foot of Wuru Peak o ...

, which is affiliated with

Chan Buddhism Chan (; of ), from Sanskrit '' dhyāna'' (meaning " meditation" or "meditative state"), is a Chinese school of Mahāyāna Buddhism. It developed in China from the 6th century CE onwards, becoming especially popular during the Tang and Song ...

. The Wudang Mountains are one of the " Four Sacred Mountains of Taoism" in China, an important destination for Taoist pilgrimages. The monasteries such as the Wudang Garden were made a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

in 1994 because of their religious significance and architectural achievement.

Geography

On Chinese maps, the name "Wudangshan" () is applied both to the entire mountain range (which runs east-west along the southern edge of the Han River, crossing several county-level divisions of Shiyan), and to the group of peaks located within Wudangshan

subdistrict A subdistrict or sub-district is an administrative division that is generally smaller than a district. Equivalents * Administrative posts of East Timor, formerly Portuguese-language * Kelurahan, in Indonesia * Mukim, a township in Brunei, Ind ...

Danjiangkou Danjiangkou () is a county-level city in northwestern Hubei, China, bordering Henan province to the northeast. The city spans an area of 3,121 square kilometers, and has a population of approximately 478,000 as of 2017. Etymology Danjiangkou tr ...

, Shiyan. It is the latter specific area which is known as a Taoist center.Road Atlas of Hubei (湖北省公路里程地图册; ''Hubei Sheng Gonglu Licheng Dituce''), published by 中国地图出版社 ''

SinoMaps Press SinoMaps Press (), previously known as China Cartographic Publishing House, is a publisher in Beijing, China, specializing in professional map publishing. Established in December 1954, it is the only national-level map publisher in China today. ...

'', 2007, . Page 11 (Shiyan City), and the map of the Wudangshan world heritage area, within the back cover. Modern maps show the elevation of the highest of the peaks in the Wudang Shan "proper" as 1612 meters; however, the entire Wudangshan range has somewhat higher elevations elsewhere. Some consider the Wudang Mountains to be a "branch" of the

Daba Mountains The Daba Mountains, also known by their Chinese name as the Dabashan, are a mountain range in Central China between the watersheds of the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers. Part of the larger Qinling mountain range, it cuts through four provinces: S ...

range, which is a major mountain system in western Hubei,

Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...

Chongqing ChongqingPostal Romanization, Previously romanized as Chungking ();. is a direct-administered municipality in Southwestern China. Chongqing is one of the four direct-administered municipalities under the State Council of the People's Republi ...

and

Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...

History

For centuries, the mountains of Wudang have been known as an important center of

, especially famous for its Taoist versions of martial arts or

. The first sacred site—the Five Dragons Temple—was constructed at the behest of

Emperor Taizong of Tang Emperor Taizong of Tang (28January 59810July 649), previously Prince of Qin, personal name Li Shimin, was the second emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, ruling from 626 to 649. He is traditionally regarded as a co-founder of the dynasty fo ...

. Further structures were added during the

Song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...

and Yuan dynasties, while the largest complex on the mountain was built during the

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...

(14th–17th centuries) as the

Yongle Emperor The Yongle Emperor (2 May 1360 – 12 August 1424), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Chengzu of Ming, personal name Zhu Di, was the third List of emperors of the Ming dynasty, emperor of the Ming dynasty, reigning from 1402 to 142 ...

claimed to enjoy the protection of the god

Beidi The Di or Beidi (Northern Di) were various ethnic groups who lived north of the Chinese ('' Huaxia'') realms during the Zhou dynasty. Although initially described as nomadic, they seem to have practiced a mixed pastoral, agricultural, and huntin ...

. During the Ming Dynasty, 9 palaces, 9 monasteries, 36 nunneries and 72 temples were located at the site. Temples regularly had to be rebuilt, and not all survived; the oldest existing structures are the

Golden Hall The Golden Hall (''Jindian'' or ''Jinding''), situated at the top of Tianzhu Peak (1612m), is one of the most distinctive landmarks in Wudangshan. It was built in 1416 during the Ming dynasty. According to local histories, the hall was forged ...

and the Ancient Bronze Shrine, made in 1307. Other noted structures include Nanyang Palace (built in 1285–1310 and extended in 1312), the stone-walled Forbidden City of the Taihe Palace at the peak (built in 1419), and the

Purple Cloud Temple The Zixiao Palace () or Purple Cloud Temple, standing on Zhanqi Peak, is a Taoist temple of the Wudang Mountains Taoist complex in the northwestern part of Hubei, China. History After being built in 1119–26, it was rebuilt in 1413 and exten ...

(built in 1119–1126, rebuilt in 1413 and extended in 1803–1820). Today, 53 ancient buildings still survive. On January 19, 2003, the 600-year-old Yuzhengong Palace at the Wudang Mountains burned down after accidentally being set on fire by an employee of a martial arts school. A fire broke out in the hall, reducing the three rooms that covered 200 square meters to ashes. A gold-plated statue of

Zhang Sanfeng Zhang Sanfeng (also spelled Zhang San Feng, Chang San-Feng) refers to a legendary Chinese Taoist who many believe invented the Chinese martial art tai chi. However, other sources point to earlier versions of tai chi predating Sanfeng. He is ...

, which was usually housed in Yuzhengong, was moved to another building just before the fire, and so escaped destruction in the inferno. File:Wudangshan pic 12.jpg, The Purple Cloud monastery at Wudang Mountains File:武当山玄武门.JPG, The Gate of Yuan Wu at Wudang Mountains File:Wudangshan pic 11.jpg File:武当山紫霄宫.JPG, Purple Heaven Palace File:琼台中观.JPG File:Wudangshan pic 8.jpg

Association with martial arts

At the first national martial arts tournament organized by the

Central Guoshu Institute The Central Guoshu Institute ( zh, t=中央國術館 , s= 中央国术馆, p=Zhōngyāng Guóshù Guǎn, l=Central Martial Arts Academy) was established in Nanjing by the Kuomintang government of the Republic of China in March 1928 for the propaga ...

in 1928, participants were separated into practitioners of Shaolin and Wudang styles. Styles considered to belong to the latter group—called ''

Wudangquan Wudangquan ( zh, p=Wǔdāngquán, s=武當拳) is a class of Chinese martial arts. In contemporary China, Chinese martial arts styles are generally classified into two major groups: Wudang (Wutang), named after the Wudang Mountains; and Shaolin, ...

''—are those with a strong element of Taoist ''

neidan Neidan, or internal alchemy (), is an array of esoteric doctrines and physical, mental, and spiritual practices that Taoist initiates use to prolong life and create an immortal spiritual body that would survive after death. Also known as Jindan ...

'' exercises. Typical examples of Wudangquan are

, ''

xingyiquan 形意拳, Xingyiquan , or Xingyi, is a style of internal Chinese martial arts. The word approximately translates to "Form-Intention Fist", or "Shape-Will Fist". The style is characterized by aggressive, seemingly linear movements, and expl ...

Bajiquan ''Bajiquan'' () is a traditional Chinese martial art that features explosive, short-range power in close combat and is well-known for its rapid elbow and shoulder strikes. Its full name is ''kaimen bajiquan'' (). The ''eight extremities'' in ...

and'' ''

baguazhang ''Baguazhang'' () is one of the three main Chinese martial arts of the '' Wudang'' school, the other two being tai chi and '' xingyiquan''. It is more broadly grouped as an internal practice (or ''neijia''). ''Baguazhang'' literally means "eigh ...

''. According to legend, tai chi was created by the Taoist hermit sage

, who lived in the Wudang mountains. ''Wudangquan'' has been partly reformed to fit the PRC sport and health promotion program. The third biannual Traditional

Wushu Wushu may refer to: Martial arts * Chinese martial arts, the various martial arts of China * Wushu (sport) Wushu () (), or kung fu, is a competitive Chinese martial art. It integrates concepts and forms from various traditional and modern ...

Festival was held in the Wudang Mountains from October 28 to November 2, 2008.

References

Bibliography

* Pierre-Henry de Bruyn, ''Le Wudang Shan: Histoire des récits fondateurs'', Paris, Les Indes savantes, 2010, 444 pp.

External links