Huashan Mountain

Huashan Mountain, located in Huayin County, Shaanxi Province, is one of the famous five great mountains in China and is also called as Taihua Mountain. It is famous for its perilous landform. It is not only a famous tourist resort, but also a well-known Holy Land of Taoism with the reputation of the fourth fascinating place of Taoism. Huashan Mountain has been the place for people to pay homage to deities since the ancient times. Many Taoists came here to be cultivated and tempered, and a number of them are reported to have become immortals. It is even said that Laozi, the founder of Taoism, had also once been here. His alchemy oven is still preserved on the mountain now.

Huashan Mountain has attracted more people for cultivation because of the prosperity of Tianshi Tao (or the Heavenly Master Sect) since the 3^rd century. It is said that Kou Qianzhi, the founder of Tianshi Tao had lived here for a long time. Subsequently, a lot of famous Taoists came to Huashan Mountain and built a variety of Taoist temples. Taoist force on Huashan Mountain became most powerful especially during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).  As the landform of Huashan Mountain is very steepy and extremely difficult for constructions, these Taoist temples appear more spectacular and miraculous.

The Yuquan Taoist Temple

At present, the Taoist temples that have been well preserved are the Yuquan Taoist Temple established in the 11^th century, the Dongdao Monastery established in 1714 and the Zhenyue Palace established in the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). They are all key national temples of Taoism specified by the State Council.