Anhui Province travel guide

Mount Jiuhua, together with Mount Emei, Mount Wutai and Mount Putuo, is known as one of China's Four Great Buddhist Mountains, and is the place of practice of Bodhisattva Dizang (Kshitigarbha) in Buddhism. As soon as you enter Mount Jiuhua, you can feel its rich Buddhist atmosphere, most immediately from the temples found at nearly every step and the lively incense-offering. Apart from the incense and the devout pilgrims, however, the scenery here is no less impressive, and compared with Huangshan, each has its own distinct charm.

As the foremost mountain of the Jianghuai region, it was already granted the title “Southern Sacred Peak” more than a thousand years ago, so its natural beauty needs no further description.

Visitors who come to Huangshan for its famous reputation are bound to be struck by the mountain porters. The first time you see them, you can't help recalling “The Mountain Porters,” the essay about Mount Tai in your school textbook. The porters of Huangshan are an indispensable part of its magnificent scenery. Every stone step and bridge in the scenic area, and every brick, tile, and square metre of the shops and hotels on the mountain, was carried up on their shoulders. Generation after generation, they wear down their own bodies to haul the goods that visitors need, earning meagre wages to support their families. These people who carry the mountain on their shoulders can truly be called the soul of Huangshan. As descendants of the Huishang merchants, they also show us the true spirit of those who made their living from the mountains.