Mengshan Tourist Scenic Area

Mengshan Tourist Scenic Area

Mengshan Tourist Scenic Area is a national AAA-level tourist attraction and a national water conservancy scenic area.

Mengshan is a large-scale tourist attraction in Nanchang City, located 30 kilometers from the urban area, covering an area of 15 square kilometers. It features lush green mountains, colorful scenery, and a cool climate in the height of summer. The scenic area has over 20 attractions and is a beautiful tourist destination and a mountain retreat for escaping the heat. In the late Three Kingdoms period, Lady Luo, the mother of Liu Hu (the great-grandson of Liu Bei), had a dream so spiritually accurate that it became famous among pilgrims, earning a reputation for “granting every wish.” The area includes the well-preserved "Mengshan Stone Chamber" and "Zhu Quan's Tomb," both dating back to the Jin Dynasty, which are known to be the burial site of Zhu Quan, the 16th son of Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty and Prince of Ning. These sites are among the first batch of provincial-level cultural relics protection units. The temples and pavilions feature numerous stone inscriptions, poems, and couplets for visitors to appreciate. The scenic area can generally accommodate tourists' needs for food, lodging, sightseeing, and entertainment. Over the past few years, it has received over one million visitors, generating several million yuan in revenue, achieving favorable economic and social effects.

economic and social effects.

Hero’s Slope

On the western side of Mengshan, there is a newly built stone stairway leading up the mountain. It is 1.2 meters wide with 420 steps and is flanked by vermilion railings. From the foot of the mountain, it looks like a ladder to the sky. At the top of the stairs stands the elegant and graceful Cui Feng Pavilion. Beyond the pavilion, the stone path continues through Wang Yue Ping (Moon-Viewing Terrace) and Meng Niang Temple, leading to Han Wang Temple atop Han Wang Peak. An older, winding stone path on Hero’s Slope is also still usable.　

Cui Feng Pavilion

This pavilion is built in a traditional hexagonal style, with seating available around it. Located on the western ridge of the Mengshan Mountain range, atop Hero’s Slope, it offers a fantastic vantage point for sightseeing and is also a resting place for hikers midway up the mountain. Standing here, you can gaze into the distance from a high vantage, feeling as if you're riding the wind, which brings a refreshing and uplifting sensation, almost like floating among the immortals. Voices spoken inside the pavilion echo softly, as if bouncing within a jar.

Wang Yue Ping (Moon-Viewing Terrace)

Situated on a flat plateau connected to the summit of Mengshan, it is said that in ancient times, this area was surrounded by dense forests, lush bamboo, and evergreen pines, providing a year-round verdant backdrop to this raised rocky plateau. When Han Wang Liu Hu secluded himself on Mengshan, he often came here with his mother (“Meng Niang,” or “Dream Lady”) to admire the moon. Later, to commemorate Han Wang, people named this place “Wang Yue Ping.” Today, a nine-meter-high “Wang Yue Tower” stands in the terrace. Climbing the tower at night and looking east, you can see the moon rising above Nanchang city, with thousands of city lights twinkling like stars above the sea, cradling a slowly ascending bright moon—like “the silent Milky Way turning the jade plate.” Looking west, you can see the starlight reflected on the waters of the Mengshan Reservoir, as if the starry sky has poured onto the lake bottom, creating a scene where heaven and earth blend — as if “one is in the ethereal realm of Penglai,” an indescribably serene experience.

Kuixing Pavilion

Located not far from Meng Niang Temple. Originally a Buddhist hall and monks' quarters, it later became a private school.

Legend has it that Hu Zhongzao, a grand scholar during the Qing Qianlong era (a native of the Mengshan area), once studied here but “studied for three years without understanding the ‘Three Character Classic.’” One day, he suddenly fainted, coughed up blood, then woke up and began to excel academically, eventually becoming a successful imperial examination candidate and a renowned grand scholar. Since then, this building has been called “Kuixing Pavilion.” The original pavilion has long been destroyed, and now a guesthouse has been built on its original foundation, named “Youxian Ju” (Immortal Traveler’s Abode). Guests staying here feel as if they are “traveling among immortals,” experiencing a uniquely tranquil and comfortable atmosphere.　

Meng Niang Temple

This is the largest temple on the mountain. Its main hall enshrines the idol of Lady Luo, mother of Liu Hu, also known as “Meng Niang.” Above the hall is an idol of Guanyin Bodhisattva, added due to Buddhist worship practices. Adjacent to the hall are over ten dream rooms, divided between male and female sides, each equipped with a dream bed for visitors to “sleep and dream.”

Legend says that Lady Luo once fed soldiers and helped people sleep peacefully in their dreams with mountain fruits. Also, during the Southern Song Dynasty, Yao Mian, a scholar from Xinchang who went to Lin’an for imperial exams, stayed here and dreamed that Lady Luo pointed to “a piece of dog meat placed on a block,” which actually symbolized the word “Zhuangyuan” (top imperial scholar). He indeed later became the Zhuangyuan, “fulfilling the dream,” so he specifically came to thank Meng Niang, donating funds to build the temple, naming it “Meng Niang Temple.” After further expansions during the Ming and Qing dynasties, it became a grand two-courtyard temple.

Han Wang Temple

Located at the summit of Mengshan’s highest peak. The temple enshrines three king idols: in the center is Han Wang Liu Hu, to his left is his uncle Yingyi Gan Luokeng, and to his right is his younger brother Guangshun King. Fifty meters below the front of the temple are stone statues of the gate-guarding generals He Tang and Li Fa. Both were lieutenants under Han Wang. Han Wang’s deeds have been mentioned earlier. The original temple was small, but it was expanded and rebuilt during the Ming Jiajing era, with walls added. Further repairs were made during the Qing Tongzhi era, including adding front and rear sections on the right side of the temple, followed by more renovations over time. For over a thousand years, it has attracted numerous worshippers, with incense burning year-round.

Mengshan Stone Chamber

Right behind Han Wang Temple is a stone house built with stone beams and pillars mimicking wooden structures. It was constructed in the Ming Dynasty. The main room has a four-sloped, nine-ridged roof covered with blue stone slabs, while beams, pillars, brackets, and foundation are all made of granite. The chamber is 5.7 meters wide, 5.69 meters deep, and 3.9 meters high, containing 16 stone pillars inside. There are no windows, only a west-south facing door with a few steps leading up to it. In 1959, to protect the historical site, the roof was covered with clay tiles and blue bricks, and brick walls were added around it. It was designated as a Jiangxi provincial-level cultural relic protection unit. Legend says that Tang Dynasty scholar Shi Jianwu once discovered a natural stone chamber here, just big enough for one person to squat in. He often came here to sit and read, hence it was called Shi Jianwu Stone Chamber. Another legend says that Zhu Quan, the 16th son of Ming Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, often came to Mengshan to compose poetry with monks, and modified the Shi Jianwu Stone Chamber. Later, a statue of Zhu Quan was carved and placed inside to commemorate him, which is why some also call it “Zhu Quan Stone Chamber.”

Secluded Bamboo and Music Charm

Beside Han Wang Temple at the mountaintop is a dense bamboo forest with a stone path leading to “Han Wang Temple,” “Lion Saliva Spring,” and “Dressing Table.” Walking into it, one sees bamboo covering the view, with wind rustling like music. The serene and elegant woods offer a fairy-tale-like intoxication. Sitting on the stone bench by the path, one feels as if in a divine dream, full of charm.

Lion Saliva Spring

Located on the eastern half of the mountain below Han Wang Peak. The spring water is crystal clear and cool, refreshing and heat-relieving, believed to promote longevity. As the mountain was once called Lion Peak, locals named the spring “Lion’s Saliva.” Monks from the temple collected the water for drinking, and it never dries up. This spring water is slightly heavier than ordinary water—one bucket weighs more, and when poured into a bowl, it can rise a few millimeters above the rim, hence it is also called “Mengshan Immortal Spring” or “Longevity Spring.”

Decisive Battle Field

A wide-open ground between Tianbao Cave Ridge and Mengshan. Legend says that there used to be bandits from Fan Yuan Stockade nearby who frequently harassed surrounding villages. Liu Hu was determined to eliminate the threat and fought them here for several days. Now, the area has been turned into an artificial lake, serving as both an irrigation reservoir for tens of thousands of acres of farmland and a great spot for boating, swimming, and fishing. The water is crystal-clear and refreshing, offering endless pleasure for those boating on it.

Zetou Temple

Located on the flat slope at the western foot of Mengshan, near the battlefield of the decisive battle against the stockade. Before becoming Han Wang (on the first day of the ninth lunar month in 313 AD), Liu Hu led hundreds of soldiers in a fierce battle down the mountain to wipe out the bandits of Fan Yuan Stockade. His horse was shot by arrows, and he was knocked off his horse. The enemy leader was also killed. At noon, both sides continued fighting fiercely, with corpses strewn everywhere. After the bandits were defeated, locals built “Zetou Temple” on the flat land where Liu Hu had been stationed to honor their leader who was beheaded while eliminating the threat. The name reflects both gratitude to their leader and commemoration of his beheading. The temple is a two-courtyard brick-and-wood structure, with a connected living quarters for the temple keeper at the back. The rear hall houses a statue of Liu Hu with an iron head, tended by three or four monks. Locals designated the second day of the first lunar month as the temple fair day, when people gather to burn incense, trade, and celebrate, making it very lively. After Liu Hu became Han Wang, he also built “Han Wang Temple” on the mountain. Zetou Temple was demolished after liberation, and a reservoir management office was later built there.