Stone Old Turtle (Divine Turtle Supporting Longevity)

Stone Old Turtle (Divine Turtle Supporting Longevity)

Stone Old Turtle (Divine Turtle Supporting Longevity)

On the Happy Harbor Slope beneath Jiaozi Mountain stands a vivid, lifelike turtle-shaped rock with its head raised and back arched. Locals call it the "Stone Old Turtle." Legend has it that in ancient times, the war between Gonggong and Zhuanxu shattered the Pillar of Heaven, tearing a hole in the nine-layered sky. Nüwa, in a desperate effort to repair the sky, smelted five-colored stones and managed to mend the heavens. However, with four of the Pillars of Heaven broken, the world remained at constant risk of collapse. Fuxi told Nüwa that the only way to prevent the sky from falling again was to replace the pillars with the four legs of a sea turtle. Moved by Nüwa’s selfless dedication to saving the world, the divine turtle willingly let her place its four legs at the four corners of the earth to replace the ruined eastern, southern, western, and northern pillars of heaven. Since then, the sky has never been in danger of collapsing again, the sun, moon, and stars have resumed their normal courses, and life has flourished across the land. Nüwa placed this heroic turtle by the river, honored it as the Ancestor of Longevity on Earth, and bestowed upon its descendants the blessing of a long life.