Herb-Washing Pool

Herb-Washing Pool

The Herb-Washing Pool is a cultural relic protection unit of Boluo County.

The Herb-Washing Pool is located next to Chongxu Temple within the Luofu Mountain scenic area. Built from blue bricks, it covers an area of about 15 square meters and was where Ge Hong and his wife Bao Gu usually washed and prepared the herbs they collected. Beside the pool stands a sturdy oval-shaped boulder, 4 meters wide and 3 meters high, known as the Ancient Fishing Platform. On the boulder near the pool, there is an inscription by Qiu Fengjia, a patriotic poet from Taiwan during the late Qing Dynasty: “The immortal’s herb-washing pool, where the fragrance of herbs often drifts. The immortal who washed herbs has gone forever, leaving the ancient pool steeped in the moonlight over plum blossoms.” It is signed “Composed for the theme of Chongxu Temple in the autumn of Gengxu.” In the upper corner of this poem, Mao Hexiang carved the four characters “Qi Zi Yin Ju.” In 1988, the Herb-Washing Pool was listed as part of the third batch of county-level cultural relic protection units.

Ge Hong had extensively read ancient medical texts since childhood and authored two volumes of “Ready Reference for Emergencies” and “On Immortal Medicines,” which provide detailed knowledge about various Chinese medicinal herbs. Luofu Mountain is a natural treasure trove of medicinal plants. According to statistics, there are over 3,000 plant species on the mountain, more than 1,240 of which are medicinal, including some precious ones such as golden earrings, heart-rescuing herb, resurrection grass, golden key, seven-leaf one-flower, horse thistle, and lingzhi. A local legend says: “Luofu has eighteen faces, each with treasures. Even if not sweet flag, it produces coptis and licorice.” It is said that Ge Hong and his wife Bao Gu lived on Luofu Mountain for 36 years, frequently collecting herbs, and over 1,000 types of medicinal plants were washed in this pool.

Luofu Mountain Management Committee: Since the Qin and Han dynasties, Luofu Mountain has been known as the “Mountain of Immortals.” It has long held the reputations of being “One of China’s Top Ten Taoist Mountains,” “The First Mountain of Lingnan,” and “The Ancestor of the Hundred Yue Mountains,” and is revered by Taoism as the “Seventh Grotto-Heaven and Thirty-Fourth Blessed Land.” The great Han dynasty literary figure Sima Qian regarded Luofu Mountain as a famous mountain second only to the Five Great Mountains, referring to it as “Yue Mountain.”

Luofu Mountain is a national scenic area and a National 5A-level tourist attraction, covering a total area of 214.82 square kilometers. It has 432 peaks, including over 80 peaks above 1,000 meters, with the main peak Feiyun Summit... More details about Luofu Mountain Management Committee ++