Yongding Nanhua Mountain Tourist Scenic Area

Yongding Nanhua Mountain Tourist Scenic Area

Yongding Nanhua Mountain Tourist Scenic Area is a national AAA-level tourist attraction.

Nanhua Mountain is located in Guzhu Township in the southeastern part of Yongding District, Longyan City, Fujian Province, bordering Nanjing and Pinghe. It is a scenic and historic mountain as well as a renowned Buddhist site across Fujian.

Nanhua Mountain is located in Guzhu, southeastern Yongding District of western Fujian, bordering Nanjing and Pinghe. It is a scenic and historic mountain as well as a renowned Buddhist site across Fujian.

Nanhua Mountain boasts pleasant scenery and layered peaks. From the foot of the mountain, a winding cobblestone path leads up past a small stream, shaded by trees and fragrant with orchids. The path stretches two to three li with over a thousand steps. After several turns through valleys, you reach the mountainside where Nanhua Mountain Temple comes into view. The temple stands majestically on the steep cliffs, enveloped in floating clouds, vibrant in color and grand in style. Further up the temple path, the mountain scenery becomes even more like a fairyland. Its most famous nine scenic spots are: “Bats Hanging on the Cliff,” “Ancient Poems on the Precipice,” “The Majestic Temple Hall,” “Distant View from the Immortal Pagoda,” “Fragrant Spring Overflow,” “Fish Leaping in the Pond,” “Dancing Bamboo Shadows,” “Listening to Waves in the Forest Sea,” and “Elegant Pen Peak.”

Nanhua Mountain’s scenery is intoxicating, and its Buddhist heritage runs deep. Legend has it that during the Tang and Song dynasties, a monk traveling through the area was captivated by the stunning landscape, extraordinary aura, spiritual energy, secluded forests, and flickering divine lights. He carved holes and erected beams to build, against the mountain, the Mahavira Hall, Maitreya Buddha Hall, Mingxing Pagoda, and Jiuxian Pagoda. He also dug an ancient well named “Longevity Well,” planted with many immortal peaches beneath which immortals were said to gather. By the Ming and Qing dynasties, Nanhua Mountain Temple flourished with incense and fame, attracting endless streams of pilgrims from all directions. At one point, it became an important Buddhist hub for Yongding and even southwestern Fujian, earning the title “The Foremost Temple of the Southeast.” The temple was then grand in scale and exquisitely carved, leaving visitors in awe. Unfortunately, during the Cultural Revolution, many stone and wood carvings were either destroyed or scattered among the people. Today, only one wooden carving remains, inscribed with the words “Meritorious Deed for Buddhism,” gifted by Su, the then magistrate of Yongding, to Master Jinan, the great monk. Five stupas also still stand.

After the Cultural Revolution ended in the 1970s, Masters Su Mingying and Huang Shengzhao could not bear to see Nanhua Mountain Temple vanish, so they began its reconstruction. Later, under the arduous efforts of Abbot Su Ning and with the enthusiastic support of devotees and overseas Chinese, the temple was restored to its former glory. At the original site now stands a Mahavira Hall, flanked by incense halls, along with Jiuxian Pagoda and Mingxing Pagoda, a monks’ quarters, and a Temple of the Earth God. The pond below the wall and the liberation pond have been rebuilt, and the inscriptions on the rock face behind the pagodas have been restored. Several stone-paved forest paths have also been constructed, leading to the “Elegant Pen Peak” at the mountaintop—the highest peak of Nanhua Mountain, which features a wooden viewing platform. “I am the peak of elegance where the mountain ends,” offering boundless views. From the platform, to the east you can see the “Prince of Tulou,” Zhencheng Lou, and the “King of Tulou,” Chengqi Lou, along with other tulou clusters; to the west lies a distant view of Donghua Mountain; to the south and north are Dongfushan and Xiangshidong, respectively.

In recent years, a cement road has been built from the mountain temple down to the base, connecting it with the tulou. Visit Yongding tulou and tour Nanhua Mountain Temple.

Nanhua Mountain Temple

The Yongding County Annals, Volume 14 on “Ancestral Worship,” records: “Nanhua Mountain lies below Kuzhu Yao, with peculiar peaks and strange rocks. At its summit is a small hut where monks offer incense.”

Nanhua Mountain is located southeast of Yongding, with a unique terrain that is both majestic and steep. Scenic spots such as “Elegant Pen Peak,” “The Majestic Temple Hall,” “Dreaming of Immortal Pagodas,” “Ancient Poems on the Precipice,” “Fragrant Spring Overflow,” “Fish Leaping in the Pond,” “Listening to Waves in the Forest Sea,” “Dancing Bamboo Shadows,” “Bats Hanging on the Cliff,” and “Radiance of Sarira” intertwine with the landscapes of the thirteen dragon veins stretching from south to north, creating a vibrant, luxurious, and magnificent masterpiece, earning it the reputation of “The Foremost Temple of the Southeast.”

Research on the founding year of Nanhua Mountain Temple: ① Religious belief is closely tied to the migration of Hakka surnames. According to Minxi Hakka Chronicles, under “Fujian Ancestors and Minxi Hakka,” it states: “Among those who migrated to various parts of Fujian at the end of the Tang Dynasty were the ‘Su’ clan, but the ‘Su’ clan that truly settled in Yongding did so in the late Yuan or early Ming Dynasty. The 117th-generation Su clan member (first generation in Yongding), Su Yi, also known as Jiusanlang, born around 1300 during the Yuan Dynasty, settled in Kuzhu, Shanghang County, Tingzhou Prefecture, Fujian Province (now Guzhu Township, Yongding County), around 1313 (the second year of the Yuan Dynasty’s Huangqing era, year of Gui Chou). Hence, it is determined that the Hakka Su clan had settled in Kuzhu by the early Yuan Dynasty. It is said that 18 other surnames had settled in Kuzhu before this, confirming that Nanhua Mountain Temple, as part of Hakka cultural and religious heritage, was established in the early Yuan Dynasty. ② Among the extant tombstones at Nanhua Mountain Temple, one reads: ‘Ji Zhengzong Six Generations, Master Yingjue’s Resting Place, Summer of the Dingyou Year, Disciple Renlang Kui.’ This also indicates that the history of Nanhua Mountain Temple dates back no later than the early Qing Dynasty.

Inside Nanhua Mountain Temple is a wooden plaque inscribed with “Merit for Buddha,” over two hundred years old, gifted by Magistrate Su of Yongding County to “Great Monk Jinan.” Judging by the title “Magistrate Su of Yongding County,” only the official system of the Song Dynasty referred to county heads as “magistrates,” yet Yongding County was established in 1478 during the Ming Dynasty—this presents a discrepancy. Regardless, it shows that Master Jinan, at the time, performed great deeds and accumulated much merit for the people of Kuzhu and Yongding, bringing great honor to Buddhism, prompting Magistrate Su to bestow the plaque in recognition.

Nanhua Mountain Temple also houses a handwritten copy of the scripture “Building Rituals for the Departed” by Master Jinan, containing numerous seals documenting the secret transmission of the scripture by different monks and residents through the ages. Though their order is unknown, their names are clearly visible: Monk Yongcheng, Monk Yongrui, Monk Changqing, Monk Shouji, Longquan Resident, DaoShou Resident, Monk Yongkui, and modern-day Master Shi Quanzhou, now secretly passed down to the current resident, Su Ning.

In the 12th year of the Guangxu reign during the Qing Dynasty (1886), the Yongquan Temple edition includes sealed mountain scriptures such as “Daily Recitations of Zen Scriptures” and “Dafeng Mountain Treasure Scroll,” with the 28th year of Guangxu (1902) marked by the celestial talisman of Tian Zun Zhengzhong.

Wooden printing blocks, a collection of over 300 years of Buddhist couplets, and an 800-year-old small jade Buddha (stolen on June 19, 2006), leaving only its base, are among the classic Buddhist relics continuously preserved at Nanhua Mountain Temple, proving its renown is well-deserved.

The second construction (or renovation) of Nanhua Mountain Temple is evidenced by three extant stone tablets, all inscribed with donor names from fundraising efforts led by Monk Zuyan. These tablets from the “Guangxu Year of Wu Xu” include the name of benefactor “Li Linrui,” with mentions of the “Guangxu 17th Year…” Li being a patron from the village at the foot of Nanhua Mountain. His name can be found in the Yaohexia Li clan genealogy, and his descendants remain as prosperous and generous as their ancestors. The tablets from different eras show that Nanhua Mountain Temple underwent years of construction to reach its flourishing state.

The site of the monk’s meditation retreat (Ming Dynasty stone carving), the Jiuxian Pagoda inscription “Mountain Dweller’s Reading Spot,” and the “Sarira Pagoda” are among the ancient relics that have left a solid foundation for Nanhua Mountain Temple.

The third renovation of Nanhua Mountain Temple took place in 1978, carried out by modern-day Masters Shi Quanming (Su Mingying) and Shi Quanzhou (Huang Shengzhou). Huang Shengzhou, a layperson from Aoyao, became a monk at age 10 under Master Yongkui at Aoyao Jinlianshan Nunnery. It is said that during the 1978 reconstruction of Nanhua Mountain Temple, he dreamed in the Dreaming of Immortal Pagoda of the couplet “Southern Mountain Seeks Buddhist Fruit, Floral Moon Reflects Zen Heart,” which is now engraved on the temple gate.

Master Shi Quanzhou passed away at age 74. His disciples, Masters Shi Zhangning and Shi Zhangcong, have presided over Nanhua Mountain Temple for over a decade. Under their dedicated care, the temple has been completely revitalized, thriving with prosperity and continuous growth, marking the third golden era of Nanhua Mountain.