| Mount Wutai | |
|---|---|
| 五台山 | |
 Mount Wutai from the air | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 3,061 m (10,043 ft) |
| Prominence | 1,784 m (5,853 ft)[1] |
| Listing | Ultra |
| Coordinates | 39°04′45″N113°33′53″E / 39.07917°N 113.56472°E /39.07917; 113.56472 |
| Geography | |
  Mount Wutai Wutai County,Shanxi, China | |
| Climbing | |
| Easiest route | Hike |
| Criteria | Cultural: ii, iii, iv, vi |
| Reference | 1279 |
| Inscription | 2009 (33rdSession) |
| Area | 18,415 ha |
| Buffer zone | 42,312 ha |
| Mount Wutai | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Chinese | 五台山 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | "Five-Terrace Mountain" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Mount Wutai, also known by its Chinese nameWutaishan and asMount Qingliang, is a sacredBuddhist site at the headwaters of theQingshui inShanxi Province,China. Its central area is surrounded by a cluster of flat-topped peaks ormesas roughly corresponding to thecardinal directions. The north peak (Beitai Ding or Yedou Feng) is the highest (3,061 m or 10,043 ft from sea) and is also the highest point inNorth China.
As host to over 53 sacred monasteries, Mount Wutai is home to many of China's most important monasteries and temples. It was inscribed as aUNESCO World Heritage Site in 2009[2] and named aAAAAA tourist attraction by China'sNational Tourism Administration in 2007.
Mount Wutai is one of theFour Sacred Mountains inChinese Buddhism. Each of the mountains is viewed as thebodhimaṇḍa (道場;dàocháng) of one of the four greatbodhisattvas. Wǔtái is the home of theBodhisattva of wisdom,Mañjuśrī or "文殊" (Wénshū) in Chinese. Mañjuśrī has been associated with Mount Wutai since ancient times. Paul Williams writes:[3]
Apparently the association of Mañjuśrī with Wutai (Wu-t'ai) Shan in north China was known in classical times in India itself, identified by Chinese scholars with the mountain in the 'north-east' (when seen fromIndia orCentral Asia) referred to as the abode of Mañjuśrī in theAvataṃsaka Sūtra. There are said to have been pilgrimages from India and other Asian countries to Wutai Shan by the seventh century.
Wutai was the first of the mountains to be identified and is often referred to as "first among the four great mountains".[citation needed] It was identified on the basis of a passage in theAvataṃsaka Sūtra, which describes the abodes of many bodhisattvas. In this chapter, Mañjuśrī is said to reside on a "clear cold mountain" in the northeast. This served as charter for the mountain's identity and its alternate name "Clear Cool Mountain" (清涼山;Qīngliáng Shān).
The bodhisattva is believed to frequently appear on the mountain, taking the form of ordinary pilgrims, monks, or most often unusual five-colored clouds.
Reflecting regional rivalries between Buddhist centers, 9th-centuryChan Buddhism masterLinji Yixuan criticized the prominence of Wutai inTang dynasty China. According to the posthumously compiledLínjì yǔlù, Linji Yixuan once said, "There‘s a bunch of students who seek Mañjuśrī on Mount Wutai. Wrong from the start! There‘s no Mañjuśrī on Mount Wutai." His campaign was however not successful, and even after the Tang era Mount Wutai "continued to thrive as perhaps the single most famous Buddhist sacred site in China."[4]
Mount Wutai has an enduring relationship withTibetan Buddhism.[5] It was historically sacred toTaoistpilgrims on theSilk Road in the10th century as well.[6]
Mount Wutai is home to some of theoldest wooden buildings in China that have survived since the era of theTang dynasty (618–907). This includes the main hall ofNanchan Temple and the East Hall ofFoguang Temple, built in 782 and 857, respectively. They were discovered in 1937 and 1938 by a team of architectural historians including the prominent early 20th-century historianLiang Sicheng. The architectural designs of these buildings have since been studied by leadingsinologists and experts in traditional Chinese architecture, such as Nancy Steinhardt. Steinhardt classified these buildings according to the hall types featured in theYingzao Fashi Chinese building manual written in the 12th century.
In 2008, there were complaints from local residents that, in preparation for Mount Wutai's bid to become aUNESCO World Heritage Site, they were forced from their homes and relocated away from their livelihoods.[7][8]
Nanchan Temple (Chinese:南禅寺)38°58′53″N113°34′26″E / 38.9815°N 113.5738°E /38.9815; 113.5738 is a largeChan temple in Mount Wutai, first built in theTang dynasty. The whole temple comprises seven terraces, divided into three parts. The lower three terraces are namedJile Temple (極樂寺); the middle terrace is called Shande Hall (善德堂); the upper three terraces are named Youguo Temple (佑國寺). Other major temples includeXiantong Temple,Tayuan Temple andPusading Temple.
Other important temples inside Mount Wutai include Shouning Temple,Bishan Temple,Puhua Temple, Dailuo Ding,Qixian Temple, Shifang Tang,Shuxiang Temple,Guangzong Temple,Youguo Temple, Guanyin Dong,Longhua Temple, Luomuhou Temple,Jinge Temple, Zhanshan Temple, Wanfo Ge, Guanhai Temple, Zhulin Temple, Jifu Temple, Jihe Temple, andGufo Temple.
Outer Mount Wutai temples includeYanqing Temple,Nanchan Temple,Mimi Temple,Foguang Temple,Yanshan Temple,Zunsheng Temple, and Guangji Temple. A giant statue of Maha Manjushree was presented to the Buddhists of China by foreign minister of Nepal Ramesh Nath Pandey in 2005.
TheWutaishan Airport in nearbyDingxiang County opened in December 2015.[9][10]
In April 2020, it was selected into the "2020 World Famous Summer Mountains List".[11]
In April 2020, it was selected into the "2020 China's Famous Summer Mountains List".[11]
In September 2022, the planation surface of Mount Wutai was selected into the list of the most beautiful geological relics in Shanxi Province.[12]
Mount Wutai has asubarctic climate (Köppen climate classificationDwc). The average annual temperature in Haidian is 2.2 °C (36.0 °F). The average annual rainfall is 686.7 mm (27.04 in) with July as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in July, at around 15.0 °C (59.0 °F), and lowest in January, at around −11.8 °C (10.8 °F). The temperature in Mount Wutai is comfortable from July to August, which is suitable for travel. It's very cold from November to March. The extreme low temperature in Mount Wutai occurred on 15 January 1958, which was -44.8°C.
| Climate data for Mount Wutai, elevation 2,208 m (7,244 ft), (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1951–present) | |||||||||||||
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 8.8 (47.8) | 10.1 (50.2) | 16.1 (61.0) | 23.8 (74.8) | 25.6 (78.1) | 29.6 (85.3) | 28.6 (83.5) | 25.1 (77.2) | 24.2 (75.6) | 18.7 (65.7) | 13.5 (56.3) | 7.8 (46.0) | 29.6 (85.3) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −7.5 (18.5) | −4.7 (23.5) | 1.2 (34.2) | 8.6 (47.5) | 14.2 (57.6) | 17.6 (63.7) | 19.1 (66.4) | 17.7 (63.9) | 13.5 (56.3) | 7.7 (45.9) | −0.1 (31.8) | −6.6 (20.1) | 6.7 (44.1) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −11.8 (10.8) | −9.2 (15.4) | −3.8 (25.2) | 3.2 (37.8) | 9.0 (48.2) | 12.8 (55.0) | 15.0 (59.0) | 13.6 (56.5) | 9.3 (48.7) | 3.2 (37.8) | −4.3 (24.3) | −10.8 (12.6) | 2.2 (35.9) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −15.4 (4.3) | −12.8 (9.0) | −7.8 (18.0) | −1.0 (30.2) | 4.8 (40.6) | 9.0 (48.2) | 11.8 (53.2) | 10.6 (51.1) | 6.2 (43.2) | −0.2 (31.6) | −7.7 (18.1) | −14.2 (6.4) | −1.4 (29.5) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −44.8 (−48.6) | −39.2 (−38.6) | −34.7 (−30.5) | −26.2 (−15.2) | −15.9 (3.4) | −7.8 (18.0) | −3.5 (25.7) | −2.9 (26.8) | −15.7 (3.7) | −24.2 (−11.6) | −36.0 (−32.8) | −37.6 (−35.7) | −44.8 (−48.6) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 6.6 (0.26) | 11.2 (0.44) | 19.3 (0.76) | 31.0 (1.22) | 53.6 (2.11) | 97.5 (3.84) | 168.8 (6.65) | 153.2 (6.03) | 85.6 (3.37) | 38.2 (1.50) | 16.1 (0.63) | 5.6 (0.22) | 686.7 (27.03) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 0.1 mm) | 4.1 | 5.5 | 6.6 | 7.1 | 8.6 | 13.5 | 15.7 | 14.2 | 10.9 | 6.9 | 5.3 | 4.3 | 102.7 |
| Average snowy days | 5.6 | 6.9 | 7.9 | 6.0 | 1.8 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0 | 0.3 | 3.3 | 6.3 | 5.4 | 43.8 |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 50 | 53 | 48 | 49 | 51 | 66 | 78 | 80 | 72 | 61 | 55 | 52 | 60 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 220.1 | 203.5 | 248.1 | 246.3 | 276.7 | 225.7 | 216.5 | 189.0 | 200.3 | 220.9 | 211.0 | 211.7 | 2,669.8 |
| Percentagepossible sunshine | 72 | 67 | 66 | 62 | 62 | 51 | 48 | 45 | 54 | 65 | 71 | 73 | 61 |
| Source:China Meteorological Administration[13][14] all-time extreme temperature[15]NOAA[16] | |||||||||||||
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| South Central |
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| Northwestern | ||
| Multiple regions |
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