Bai Juyi’s Thatched Cottage

Bai Juyi’s Thatched Cottage

Bai Juyi’s Thatched Cottage, also known as the Thatched Cottage of the Happy Immortal, the Thatched Cottage of Cherished Love, the Lu Mountain Thatched Cottage, or the Fragrant Hill Thatched Cottage, is located on the eastern side of the ancient Huìyuǎn Trail in northern Mount Lu. To the east it connects to Scissors Gorge, to the west it borders Donglin Head and Huacheng Tea Farm, to the south it leans against North Incense Burner Peak and Huìyuǎn’s Preaching Platform, and to the north it neighbors Donglin Temple, Xilin Temple, Woyun Ridge, and the tomb of Li Zhuoweng. Covering an area of 3,000 mu, it is 13 kilometers from downtown Jiujiang.

The scenic area is centered around cultural heritage sites and unique landforms, integrating human culture with nature. In the tenth year of the Yuanhe era of the Tang Dynasty (815), Bai Juyi was demoted to the post of military governor in Jiangzhou for speaking his mind and offending the powerful. The following autumn, he built this thatched cottage here and lived in seclusion in the mountains for nearly three years. Bai Juyi wrote in his “Record of the Thatched Cottage on Mount Lu”: “Mount Lu is uniquely beautiful, the finest under heaven. To its north lies Incense Burner Peak, and to the north of the peak lies the Temple of Cherished Love. Nestled between the peak and the temple, the setting is supremely exquisite—surpassing even the rest of Mount Lu. In the autumn of the eleventh year of Yuanhe, Bai Letian from Taiyuan saw it and loved it, as if a traveler far from home had come upon his native place, unable to tear himself away. So he built a thatched cottage facing the peak and nestled by the temple.” The cottage was destroyed during the Tang and Five Dynasties periods. Although it was rebuilt twice in history, both times it was reconstructed at different locations. Once in the second year of the Dazhong Xiangfu era of the Song Dynasty (1009), outside the Lan Wall of Donglin Temple; and again in 1987, at Flower Path on Mount Lu. For over a thousand years, the original site of the cottage had been lost, leaving only its former location.

Reconstruction (Expansion) In February 1992, Cui Honglun and others established the Mount Lu North Incense Burner Peak Tourism Development Co., Ltd., and successively invested 1.2 million yuan. After researching the original site, they cleared and built secluded paths, introduced mountain spring water, planted flowers and trees, leveled a site of 15,000 square meters, laid 2,500 meters of stone steps, and built ancient-style structures that followed the contours of the mountain. They also engraved stone inscriptions, calligraphy, and couplets. After preliminary development, by the year 2000, the scenic area had taken initial shape, featuring attractions such as Bai Juyi’s Thatched Cottage, the Zither Terrace, the Sacrificial Terrace, the Dining Hall, the Contemplation Pavilion, the Scenic Gateway Garden, Bai Family Pond, Twin Jade Streams, Incense Burner Peak, Purple Cloud Peak, Fahua Nunnery, the Temple of Cherished Love, Peach Blossom Stream, Huìyuǎn’s Preaching Platform, Chongfu Mountain Villa, and Forest Retreat Nunnery.