Climb Yangbaoshan

On August 14, 2020, we decided to climb Yangbaoshan.

Guiding Yangbaoshan is located in the north of Guiding, 3 kilometers away from the county seat. It is a famous pilgrimage mountain in Guizhou. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, it was known as the three major pilgrimage holy places in southwest China along with Sichuan Emei Mountain and Yunnan Jizu Mountain. , has long enjoyed a high reputation and is known as the "Victory of Eastern Guizhou".

We set off before 7:30 in the morning and arrived at the main gate of Yangbaoshan at 7:50.

Before departure, the third sister-in-law told us that it would take three and a half hours to climb the stone stairs from the bottom of the mountain.

There were relatively few tourists during this time, and since we arrived early, there was no third person in front of the door except our couple.

The stone staircase behind the gate is about as wide as a four-lane highway.

There were a few squirrels wandering on the stone stairs not far from us. Seeing our arrival, they fled to both sides of the stone stairs in panic. Before I could take a photo of them, they fled to both sides of the stone stairs. He disappeared among the weeds and trees.

With piety and respect, we walked along this path full of Buddha nature on the stone stairs.

After walking up the stone staircase for about ten minutes, we reached a platform. Looking up, we saw that the stone staircase was gone. We were wondering, not knowing what to do next, and searched for the platform with our eyes. On both sides, I found a path in the grass on the left.

When I walked over and took a look, there was indeed a stone staircase about one meter wide.

There are weeds and trees on both sides of the road. The trees are not big. The biggest ones are the pine trees with many pine cones.

We walked and played, admiring the green scenery on the mountains and the ever-changing white clouds in the blue sky.

After walking for about two hours, we saw that the stone staircase in front of us turned to the right and there was a low room on the left, so we walked out from the stone staircase. Next to the low house was a rough road. There was a shed on the opposite side of the road. We crossed the road and walked towards the shed.

In the shed, a young man was lying on a hammock, swaying gently, and there were some pots and pans inside.

I guess we were the first people the young man saw today. He smiled and said to us:

"Old man, please come in and sit down."

Me Ask him:

"Are you guarding the mountain here?"

"Yes, yes, come in and take a rest. You have only walked half way here."< /p>

It seems that he is here alone day and night. It is rare for anyone to talk to him, so when he finally meets two people, they talk non-stop:

"You guys It takes an hour to climb up from here, first to the monk's grave, and then to the Lotus Temple."

We did not stop and continued walking up the mountain, but we stopped walking on the rocks. I took the ladder and planned to walk up slowly from this road with a lot of gravel. As I walked, I looked back at the county town below the mountain, looking for the direction of my third brother's home.

Walking on this gravel-covered road, you must be careful, otherwise there is a risk of slipping and falling, so we walked slowly.

After climbing a mountain peak, we decided to take a rest, took out the ocarina from the bag, and prepared to play a song standing among the green trees under the blue sky and white clouds.

After the two of us finished playing, we suddenly felt that the fatigue of mountain climbing was gone, so we continued climbing towards the last peak.

After walking for about twenty minutes, we finished walking on the gravel road, and then it was all cement road. We walked forward for a few more minutes, and then we saw on the slope of the mountainside in front of us. There are more than a hundred monk tomb towers, some square or round, with different shapes, some are fine and beautiful, some are rough and simple, and some are elegant and dignified. The number of tombs and pagodas and the width of the area are comparable to the pagodas of Shaolin Temple in Songshan Mountain. It can be imagined that there were many monks in the mountains and the incense in the temples was strong.

I heard such a story when I was a child:

One day, Master Baiyun and his disciples went out to rest under a tree when they returned to the mountains. The master stroked his beard and looked around, and suddenly said in surprise :

"Wonderful! Wonderful!"

Liao Su asked the master what was so wonderful, Baiyun said:

"Looking at this terrain, it is like a Taishi chair, leaning on the main peak, Stretching down to the foot of the mountain, there are dragons coming and veins going; Qinglong Peak is independent on the left, and White Tiger Mountain is lying on the right. Looking out between the two peaks, it suddenly becomes clear that the ancient city of Maixi (Guiding) can be seen, and the mountain is very open; Maixi River (Ximen River) flows calmly to the foot of the mountain and then disappears, which is called getting water. The surrounding trees sway in the wind, but the trees here are motionless, which is to hide the wind. It is located on a slope, and the water filters up and down without accumulation. It can be called a pure land. "

Although Liao Su was not proficient in geography, he did know some common sense. He followed the master's instructions and found it wonderful. He said to the master:

"It's a pity that Qinglong High, the white tiger is slightly lower and not suitable."

The master said:

"The wise disciple does not know that this is exactly the Feng Shui meaning that the green dragon can be as high as ten thousand feet, but the white tiger cannot look up. , is a blessing from heaven.

"

Liao Su said:

"After Master becomes an immortal a hundred years from now, we will enshrine Master here? ”

The master said:

“With your kindheartedness, it is enough for me to be my teacher.” I have devoted half my life to Yangbaoshan, and my soul will naturally stay in Yangbaoshan. However, I have traveled around the world all my life, and I am afraid that I will not be able to stay here in my mortal body, and I will not be able to enjoy this blessed land! However, this will be the best destination for my Baoshan monks to achieve successful transformation. ”

Since then, this place has become the cemetery of monks in Yangbaoshan. Hundreds of years later, there are many tombs and pagodas, which have become a major landscape in Yangbaoshan.

? After viewing the tower forest, sitting in the tower forest We each played the ocarina on the concrete chairs on the left for a while, and then continued walking on the cement road. We soon arrived in front of the Lotus Temple.

There is a large square in front of the Lotus Temple. Standing on the square, in front. In the distance, we can still see Guiding County surrounded by mountains at the foot of the mountain, and behind it is the gate of Lotus Temple. We walked here for three hours and forty minutes.

This was a few years ago. In the rebuilt Lotus Temple, we only heard the recording of chanting from the audio equipment, but for some reason, we couldn’t see a single monk.

The first hall after entering the mountain gate is the Tianwang Hall, with drum towers and drum towers on both sides. The second hall of the Bell Tower is the Main Hall. The words "Mainxiong Hall" are handwritten by Master Chunyi, the vice president of the Chinese Buddhist Association and the abbot of Lotus Temple. Then go up to the third hall: Guanyin Hall.

< p> Although the newly built Lotus Temple in the front mountain is very beautiful, we just visited it casually, thinking about the centuries-old Lotus Temple ruins in the back mountain.

In the main hall. In the corridor in front of me, after eating the Chinese food I brought, my wife said she wanted to take a nap.

While she was resting, I looked around for the exit to the ruins.

There were only a few tourists on the mountain. Maybe there were too few tourists. All the doors were locked. Finally, I walked to the foot of the back mountain and found the back door. The two stainless steel doors were locked. There was a small door in the middle of the left door. Open it. Then you can go out.

I returned to my wife and told her that I had found the exit. She wiped her eyes, put on her bag, and walked up the mountain with me.

p>

Only the stone walls, stone gates, and stone tablets remain on the ruins of Lianhua Temple. The words "Yangbaoshan" on the stone tablet are still clearly visible.

The foundation of the house is covered with grass, not a single piece of it. Wooden boards, it is said that the house was demolished in the 1960s, and all the wooden pillars and boards were moved down the mountain to build a school. The unobstructed stone walls and the few remaining Bodhisattvas on the site look like old people covered with vicissitudes of life. , continuing to tell the past history to passers-by.

The stone wall is made of thick stones, and the stone door and the windows on the stone door are bright. Although there is no modern cement, the wall still remains. It is still solid.

Regarding the construction of Lotus Temple, I heard my father talk about it when I was a child. After checking the information, I found that it was similar to what my father said.

It is said that Master Baiyun built it. When Yangbaoshan was built, some people advocated using local materials, which would save trouble and convenience, but would be harmful to the mountain; some people advocated logging wood from outside, which was troublesome but could protect the natural environment of Yangbaoshan.

At this time, there was a problem. An old man in ragged clothes, who seemed crazy but not crazy, staggered over and said to himself:

"No, no. "

No one paid much attention to what he said. Only his young apprentice, the monk Liaosu, thought the old man was strange. He had not seen this man in the mountains on weekdays, so he asked after him:

"Please tell me. Donor, why not?

The old man sang as he walked: "To add beauty to the mountains and build temples, the trees from Baoshan cannot be taken. If you take the trees from Baoshan, the natural scenery will disappear." ”

The monk asked again:

“Can I take the trees from other mountains?” "The old man still sang again without looking back:

"Scattered in the ridge, concentrated on Baoshan Mountain. "

The secular monk felt that the old man was extraordinary, and asked again:

"How can we collect trees from thousands of peaks? "The old man sang again:

"There is no need to pick Qianfeng wood. When the Yin time comes, pick it from the well. "After singing, the old man disappeared.

Liao Su told others what the old man said, and people said that he was also crazy. He couldn't sleep that night, so he went to wander in the mountains. He didn't realize that he was ugly. After that, he wandered to the well. Under the moonlight, he found a big log in the well. He thought who cut down the trees in the mountains and hid it in the well. He spent a lot of effort to get the log up, but when he looked back, he was surprised again. Take out one, lift it again...

At this time, he remembered what the old man said during the day, and he realized it. He immediately woke everyone up and moved the log together until the white fish belly appeared on the horizon. There were 999 pieces left, but there was still one under the well, but the time had come and it could not be brought up. The monks all knelt down facing the east and thanked the gods, so you can still see a stone log lying at the bottom of the well.

After walking out of this temple that has gone through vicissitudes of life, we came to the top of Houshan Mountain and stood on the wooden plank road. Looking back, we could see the broken walls of the temple at our feet. They seemed to continue to tell the story of the past. history.

Looking far to the north, you can still clearly see the entirety of Guiding County, but the original old town has been obscured by tall buildings of modern buildings.

Looking to the southwest, there are villages everywhere in the mountains at the foot. The original black old-style houses have been replaced by the current cement brick wall buildings.

Looking further away, you can see my hometown village and the deep green forest behind it. I remember that every time I go home and open the window of my fourth brother’s house, if it’s a sunny day, I can definitely see the buildings on Yangbao Mountain.

Although it is cloudy today, there is no fog on the mountain. I think if I bring my astronomical telescope here, I will definitely be able to see the group of chickens on the roof of my fourth brother’s house.

At this time, there were still beautiful blue skies and white clouds in the sky. We looked around at the green mountains. We were in a very good mood. We were so happy that we took out the little mini ocarina in our pocket and played the music we had just heard. I played some of the songs I learned.

After blowing, it started to rain lightly in the ever-changing sky on the mountain, so we started to go down the mountain with umbrellas. Before we walked out of the temple ruins, the rain stopped, and blue sky and white clouds appeared again. We followed the road , walking and playing, walking from the direction of Wenjiang Temple for two hours and eighteen minutes, until we reached the foot of the mountain, ending today's mountain climbing activity.

In Guiding on August 21, 2020