Cliffside Rock Inscriptions at Guifeng

Cliffside Rock Inscriptions at Guifeng

The Cliffside Rock Inscriptions at Guifeng are a cultural relic protection unit of Jiangxi Province.

Guifeng, located about 10 kilometers southwest of Yiyang County, boasts picturesque forests and valleys, steep mountains, and elegant peaks. It integrates the essence of nature with cultural charm, making it a renowned travel destination since ancient times. The great Ming Dynasty traveler Xu Xiake praised it, saying, “The majestic beauty of Guifeng’s peaks is unmatched even in Yandang Mountain.”

From the mid-Tang Dynasty to the present, numerous famous historical figures have left poetic inscriptions and calligraphic rock carvings at Guifeng, most of which are concentrated around the “One-Line Sky” area of the “Shake-Off-Dust Platform,” forming a veritable gallery of stone inscriptions.

Shake-Off-Dust Platform is situated on the northwest side of Guifeng, at the foot of Jinping Peak. It is an irregular rectangular stone platform, 10 meters long and 3 meters wide. The platform is equipped with stone tables and benches, offering an open view where visitors can gaze into the distance and take in the surrounding scenery. The inner side of the platform is close to towering cliffs covered with numerous inscriptions. The calligraphy styles on the cliff face include seal, clerical, regular, running, and cursive scripts, each with distinct characteristics and exquisitely carved.

In addition to Shake-Off-Dust Platform, the Call-to-Seclusion Hermitage also features many inscriptions. Also known as the Nun’s Cave, the hermitage is located halfway up the northern side of Lingzhi Peak and is built into a cave, accessible via a narrow stone stairway. The three characters “Call-to-Seclusion Hermitage” inscribed on the cave wall were written by Peng Qing during the Qing Dynasty’s Qianlong era. Outside the cave, there are also inscribed calligraphic works along the Lianyun Stairway. Other scenic spots on Guifeng, such as Guifeng Peak, the Valley of Four Echoes, One-Line Sky, Silent Thunder Valley, Muni Cave Heaven, Another World Cave, Natural Three-Tier Falls, and Ruan Xiao’s Cavern, also feature large-character stone inscriptions.

Historical figures such as the Tang Dynasty poet Wen Tingyun, Song Dynasty statesman Chen Kangbo, renowned Neo-Confucian scholars Zhu Xi, Lu Jiuyuan, and Li Gou, Southern Song Dynasty official Xie Bangde, poet Zhao Shixiu, Ming Dynasty traveler Xu Xiake, literati Li Mengyang, Fei Hong, Li Kui, as well as Wang Jun and Xu Shan, all visited Guifeng to admire the scenery and compose poetry and prose.

In more recent times, notable political figures such as Bang, Kang Keqing, Deng Zihui, Ye Fei, Yang Chengwu, Pi Dingjun, Li Zhimin, and Shao Shiping, as well as cultural personalities like Wang Chaowen, have also visited Guifeng out of admiration and left behind their inscriptions and calligraphy.

The Cliffside Rock Inscriptions at Guifeng are a key cultural relic protection unit of Jiangxi Province.

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Jiangxi Provincial Cultural Relic Protection Units