Bagua Mountain

Bagua Mountain

Bagua Mountain

Bagua Mountain is located in Jianshanwan Village, Qingshan Township, and consists of eight mountain mounds. A mound is a unique landform on the Loess Plateau, characterized by a rounded top and steep slopes. These mounds were eroded by water in ancient times, forming eight distinct ridges and creating different terraces. Each terrace, depending on its elevation and the degree of erosion, is marked with either “一” or “一一” (in the Bagua system, “一” represents Yang, while “一一” represents Yin), resembling a three-dimensional Bagua diagram—hence the name Bagua Mountain. The mound situated by the roadside is the main Bagua Mountain. Legend has it that Bagua Mountain was originally the Eight Trigrams Alchemy Furnace of Laozi, the Supreme Taoist Patriarch. As Laozi’s alchemy required non-stop work day and night, the mountaintop was always ablaze with fire. Once the elixirs were ready, they were carried to the distant Pool of Heaven by a golden-maned horse to be shared with the immortals. One day, a Taoist priest from the south told his disciple, “This mountain holds treasure.” As a result, some profit-driven individuals attempted to dig into the mountain. Late one night, a loud explosion came from within Bagua Mountain, and a golden colt leaped out, carrying two golden boxes filled with elixirs on its back. The Taoist master and disciple, who had been waiting nearby, tried to capture it but were both trampled to death on the mountainside by the golden horse, which then soared into the sky and ascended to the Heavenly Palace. Since then, the fiery glow atop Bagua Mountain has vanished. From a distance, the other seven mounds resemble lions and tigers lying in repose, giant eagles standing alone, or immortals meditating in lotus position.