Shimen Pool

Shimen Pool

Shimen Pool

Shimen Pool is located in Nantang Village, Wangzhen, Bagongshan District. There, “huge rugged rocks resemble the gate of a fierce dragon,” making it one of the natural attractions of Bagong Mountain. According to *Ancient Records of Fengtai*: “Yun tiao Mountain and Yin xi Mountain stand opposite each other forming the Shimen (Stone Gate); where the two mountains meet, there is an opening like a gate. The gate is 20 zhang high, facing west between north and south, with the two cliffs 10 zhang apart. There is a pool in the middle, 10 zhang in diameter and three chi deep. The pool water never dries up year-round, overflowing over the large rocky mountain.” Approaching Shimen, steep cliffs tower into the sky. On the cliff face, the three huge characters “Shimen Pool” are carved, bold and upright. Local legend says they are the handwriting left by Zhao Kuangyin, the founding emperor of the Song Dynasty, when his army was besieged in Nantang. Historians, however, attribute them to Li Daoyuan of the Northern Wei Dynasty, reasoning that the *Commentary on the Water Classic* contains a record of Xiyun Spring: “The water of Xiyun Spring is pure, refreshing to the bone, and sweet to the taste, surpassing that of Pearl Spring and Qinyue Spring.” Xiyun Spring is the source of Shimen Pool, and Li Daoyuan must have passed through Shimen Pool when surveying Xiyun Spring.

Entering Shimen, you find yourself in a “one-line sky.” The view suddenly opens up to a basin embraced by mountains, where the stone inscriptions of Shimen Pool and the Xiyun Spring Pavilion lie exposed among clusters of peach blossoms. Legend has it that this was the campsite of Zhao Kuangyin when he was besieged in Shouchun, and the ancient battlefield where the troops of the Later Zhou Dynasty camped and fought, only to sink into the sands of defeat. “Having scarcely known the use of arms, I shed tears before my palace maidens,” the war between the Later Zhou and Southern Tang Dynasties left behind a sorrowful song for Emperor Li of the Southern Tang.

Shimen Pool is an ancient cultural corridor of Bagong Mountain. Nearby are ancient tombs and historical sites, places once frequented by ancient literati. Today, Bagongshan District and Shanwang Town focus on developing tourism resources centered around Shimen Pool. They have built corridors, bamboo pavilions, and Nantang Road by Nantang Lake, developed a range of tertiary industries, and formulated a series of preferential policies for the development of Shimen Pool. Recently, a number of far-sighted investors have already started projects in Shimen Pool.