Luozishan Mountain

Luozishan Mountain

Situated about 100 kilometers southeast of Chenxi County, Luozishan Mountain spans roughly 25 li in length and has 90 peaks. As part of the Xuefeng Mountain Range, its main peak stands at an elevation of 1,378.7 meters, making it the highest point in Chenxi County. Legend has it that during the Sui and Tang dynasties, the son of the high Taoist Luo Gongyuan from Luowengshan cultivated himself on this peak, hence the name Luozishan. From the mountaintop, one can gaze into the valley—nearby lies a sea of green, and in the distance, clouds and mist stretch endlessly. On clear days, standing atop the main peak offers unobstructed views of the surging Yuan River, villages, and farmlands.

Starting from Huangxikou, as you enter the Luozishan area, it feels as if you’ve arrived in a fairyland. Towering trees, lush pines forming natural screens, and emerald canopies blot out the sky, while clusters of peaks hide amid the clouds and mist. The mountain breeze rustles through slender bamboo, and the hillsides are covered with old bamboo shoots that have grown into full-grown bamboo, with wildflowers and tea plants lining the paths. In the early years of the Kangxi reign during the Qing Dynasty, Mi Yuanti, a native scholar and one of the famed “Four Great Talents of Early Qing Chenxi,” visited Luozishan and composed a seven-character quatrain titled “Ascending Luogong Mountain.” It reads:

How many layers up to the white clouds,

Amid scattered morning dew, a lone pine stands.

Knowing I’m no immortal, I sit idle on Luogong’s ninety peaks.

Luozishan’s peaks compete in beauty, with highlights including the “Artificial Lake,” “Fairy Valley,” and “Qiaoyun Nunnery.” The mountain boasts abundant tourism resources and rich cultural heritage, making it a great destination for history exploration, sightseeing, leisure, and vacation.

Constructed in 1976, the Luozishan Reservoir—an artificial lake suspended in mid-air. The lake is surrounded by stretches of green forest, its surface shimmering, with crystal-clear water where fish play. Small boats glide across. Halfway up the mountain lies Fairy Valley, home to caves, waterfalls, forests, and flowers. The deep valley and open wilderness feature cascading waterfalls, reminiscent of the Flower-Fruit Mountain and Water Curtain Cave described in *Journey to the West*. Fairy Valley gives visitors the sensation of entering a fairy realm: “Waterfalls on sunny days sprinkle green rain, while pine blossoms and fragrant pollen drift onto jade-green platforms. This journey makes me not envy the gatherings of immortals—I’d rather cut clouds to compose poetry.”

The main peak of Luozishan is often shrouded in clouds and mist. On clear days, it stands majestically above the rest, offering a unique charm. At dawn, one can watch the sunrise and see the clouds gradually envelop the peaks, with the surrounding sky hazy and vast. Local Yao people pass down a legend that in the early Three Kingdoms period, Guan Yu, under Zhuge Liang’s command, was stationed in the Yao region to pacify the local tribes and once climbed Luozishan to admire the view. The Yao people hold Guan Yu in high reverence, so they built the Guan Sheng Temple on the main peak. Later, the son of Luo Gongyuan also cultivated himself there. In the mid-Ming Dynasty, Buddhist devotees from Chenxi, Xupu, and Qianyang counties constructed a Buddhist nunnery on the main peak, named Qiaoyun Nunnery, though the Guan Sheng Temple was retained outside the gate. In ancient times, both Qiaoyun Nunnery at the mountaintop and Juenunnery halfway up were often inhabited by monks and nuns, drawing throngs of worshippers during temple festivals, with incense smoke lingering in the air.

According to the *Chenxi County Annals* from the Daoguang era of the Qing Dynasty: “Qiaoyun Nunnery is located atop Luozishan, 120 li east of the county. The temple has two levels, both covered with iron tiles. In summer, one can wear thick cotton clothing, and thunder often strikes the temple, which the monks have come to take as ordinary. During the Yongzheng reign of the Qing Dynasty, the local scholar Mi Yunfang visited Qiaoyun Nunnery and, inspired by the scenery, composed a poem: ‘A solitary pine stands resolute, wild birds fly leisurely; a sound echoes through the empty valley, just in time to see an old monk returning.’”