Tianjun Erlang Cave

Tianjun Erlang Cave

Erlang Cave is situated in the southwestern part of Tianjun County, approximately 23 kilometers from the county government seat. Its Tibetan name is "Guanjiao Zhihongkong." According to legend, during the war between King Gesar and the Hor people, Gesar’s general (his nephew) — Wuyedehe — was slain. In his sorrow, Gesar drew his sword and sliced off the top of a mountain to the north (i.e., the summit of Bald Mountain), then used his sword to pierce a cave into the mountain. Inside this large cave, he recited the 108 volumes of the Kangyur scripture for his nephew over a period of nine years and nine days, eventually helping him achieve enlightenment and immortality. Another legend says that when the Monkey King caused havoc in Heaven, he battled the deity Erlang Shen (Yang Jian) here, and the cave served as Erlang Shen’s hiding place — hence its name. Erlang Cave is located within an independent small hill shaped like a cone. The base circumference of the hill is 400 meters, and its height is about 25 meters. The cave entrance faces west. On both sides of the entrance, there were originally 108 rectangular bluestone slabs, each measuring 1.5 meters long, 0.8 meters wide, and 0.8 meters high. These slabs were arranged to form a rectangular wall that was 10 meters long, 6 meters wide, 4 meters high, and had a perimeter of 32 meters. The center of the wall had the main entrance leading into the cave, with a pair of symmetrical smaller doors on either side. These 108 rectangular stone blocks symbolized the 108 volumes of the Kangyur scripture. Unfortunately, they were removed and used as railway markers during the construction of a railway. In the 1970s, railway troops rebuilt the cave entrance with red bricks, forming a doorway 1.8 meters high and 0.9 meters wide. On the left slope near the cave entrance, they painted the three large red characters “Erlang Cave.” Erlang Cave consists of a main cave and two rear side chambers integrated into one. The main cave is further divided into a front section and a rear section. The walls are inlaid with naturally smooth white limestone formations in various irregular shapes such as rectangles, squares, and triangles, creating a diverse array of rock patterns. Erlang Cave is a naturally formed cavern and serves as a site where Tibetan Buddhist monks chant scriptures and worship. Many traveling monks have stayed here to recite sutras and left behind inscriptions as a tribute to King Gesar and in reverence to the Kangyur.