Gaotu Mountain

Gaotu Mountain

Gaotu Mountain is located in the easternmost part of Yongxin County, bordering Taihe and Jinggangshan. Originally named Minggu Mountain, meaning “the valley echoes the mountain’s call,” it was later renamed. Before the Song Dynasty, there was a Minggu Altar Hermitage (also called Gaoshi Altar Hermitage) on the mountain, which underwent renovations throughout various dynasties. In the 21st year of the Jiaqing reign during the Qing Dynasty, it was restored again, along with auxiliary structures such as the Anren Study Retreat and three Heavenly Gates. Each Heavenly Gate is flanked by a stone archway. The plaque on the first Heavenly Gate reads “Ruins of the Gaoshi of the Song Dynasty,” and its couplet, “The mountain is elegant for its height; the name lives on because of the scholar,” was inscribed by Huang Tingjian (also known as Huang Shangu), the great poet of the Northern Song Dynasty. When Huang Tingjian served as the magistrate of Taihe (now Taihe County), he visited Minggu Mountain, befriended the Confucian scholar Yin Anren, and wrote a couplet for the “Anren Study Retreat”: “Read books from the Qin and Han dynasties and earlier; live between the two rivers of Integrity and Yielding.” This led to the renaming of Minggu Mountain to Gaoshi Mountain.

Influenced by the inspiration of literati and artists through generations, Gaoshi Mountain has gained widespread fame and become a sacred site for Taoist meditation and Buddhist worship. At the summit sits the Gaoshi Altar Hermitage, whose main hall includes the Buddhist “Jizhen Treasure Hall” and “Guanyin Pavilion,” while the right side houses the Taoist “Wanshou Palace.” All are grand in scale. The incense at Gaotu Mountain has burned continuously for a thousand years, drawing worshippers from eight counties and cities across Hunan and Jiangxi provinces.

Gaoshi Mountain is not only a sacred site for Buddhism and Taoism but also a historic revolutionary battlefield. In the autumn of 1934, provincial authorities including the Hunan-Jiangxi Provincial Committee and the Hunan-Jiangxi Soviet Government, led by comrades Ren Bishi, Xiao Ke, [Name Redacted], and Tan Yubao, retreated strategically through Gaoshi Mountain with the Sixth Red Army Corps. At the mountain’s summit, there remains a Red Army grave nestled within a canopy of green foliage. It holds the remains of a soldier who heroically sacrificed his life to cover the villagers’ escape. He left no name, no belongings—only an indomitable spirit and noble righteousness.

Gaoshi Mountain boasts serene and elegant scenery, attracting many tourists en route to Jinggangshan each year. Here, the mountains are uniquely beautiful—some resembling delicate bonsai, others galloping steeds, fairy maidens with fluttering robes and graceful posture, or ancient scholars deep in thought. There are also clear, graceful streams and lush bamboo groves. Sturdy pines stand everywhere, sometimes whispering softly, sometimes roaring passionately. The ancient banyans and camphor trees around the Gaoshi Altar Hermitage embody the mountain’s majesty and pulse with the rhythm of strength, while the vast sea of swaying bamboo forms a rippling green ocean. Occasionally, egrets and larks flutter and sing among the bamboo, creating a fairyland-like atmosphere that captivates and enchants all who visit.