Tiger Head Rock

　　Introduction     Tiger Head Rock, also known as “Mountain Lord Rock,” is located beside the road from the hot springs to Tangling Pass. This rock “stands against the mountain, with its head raised as if roaring.” It earned its name due to its resemblance to a tiger’s head. Though only roughly shaped like a tiger’s head, its open-mouthed, glaring expression exudes an intimidating aura. There are stone benches beneath the rock, as if the tiger were opening its mouth to swallow people. This natural wonder is endlessly fascinating. The three characters “Tiger Head Rock” are inscribed on the rock, written by Luo Yuan of She County during the Southern Song Dynasty.     A local legend tells of a cruel landlord in Huangshan. His young tenant, Dashan, saved an injured tiger that the landlord was hunting. To repay the life-saving kindness, the tiger brought Dashan a girl, a sack of rice, and a pork leg during a year-end snow blockade when Dashan’s family had run out of firewood and food. The girl, who had escaped from being forced into marriage by the landlord and had nowhere else to go, married Dashan. When the landlord found out, he quickly gathered his henchmen to confront Dashan. The tiger then led the couple up the mountain to hide, while it crouched nearby, its mouth wide open, biting and swallowing the landlord and his men who came after them. Because the tiger had to protect Dashan and his wife for so long, it eventually turned to stone, becoming the Tiger Head Rock we see today.

　　 Huangshan City, Anhui Province