Two Tortoises Listening to the Dharma Stone

Two Tortoises Listening to the Dharma Stone

The Two Tortoises Listening to the Dharma Stone is located to the west of Panshi Rock, on the cliff beneath the Fifty-Three Steps Stone. There are two rocks that strikingly resemble sea turtles — one crouches atop the cliff, looking back as if waiting for something; the other climbs straight up the rock, stretching its neck and head with muscles and tendons taut, giving an impression of urgency. The vivid forms of the two tortoises are truly breathtaking.

Legend has it that the two tortoises were ordered by the Dragon King to come and listen to the Bodhisattva Guanyin expound the Dharma. So engrossed were they in the sermon that they forgot to return, and were thus turned into stone. Another tale says the two tortoises were originally a male and a female pair. Their worldly attachments remained unbroken, and while listening to the Dharma, they exchanged longing glances and flirted with their eyes, so they were punished and turned into stone tortoises as a warning to those who are insincere in cultivation. The former legend is wonderfully strange, the latter marvelously subtle — each with its own charm. The Qing Dynasty poet He Chensheng wrote in a poem: “They say Panshi is a spiritually gifted place where Guanyin once sat and preached the sutras. Why did the two tortoises end up as stones? Perhaps they failed to truly listen back then.” This offers yet another perspective on the two tortoises. Above the Two Tortoises Listening to the Dharma Stone lies the Fifty-Three Steps Stone, with larger ones standing hundreds of feet to the side and smaller ones piled like eggs, crisscrossing and standing askew in a chaotic array. Not only do they vary in shape and form, but they also appear different as you move around, giving viewers a sense of impending danger. With the shifting of morning and evening, sunshine and rain, as well as the changing of morning mist and evening haze, this bizarre cluster of rocks also displays varying hues. The Yuan Dynasty painter and calligrapher Zhao Mengfu wrote in his poem "Visiting Mount Putuo": “The stream grasses and cliff flowers exude auspicious aura, the stone forest and water palace are worlds apart from the mortal realm.”

Mount Putuo has many unique rocks, but the Fifty-Three Steps Stone is the most concentrated area of these extraordinary formations.

Address: To the west of Panshi Rock, within the West Heaven Scenic Area of Mount Putuo, Putuo District, Zhoushan City

Type: Geological Landform

Recommended Visiting Time: About 15–20 minutes

Phone: 0580-3191919

Ticket Information:

No separate ticket required. Included in the entrance fee for Mount Putuo Scenic Area. Mount Putuo Scenic Area Ticket: Off-season (December – January) 140 RMB, Peak season (February – November) 160 RMB, 200 RMB during Spring Festival, May Day, and National Day holidays.