The 'Number One Famous Temple under Heaven' - Shaolin Temple
The ancient Shaolin, a home of Zen, where the remnants of the practice grounds are shrouded in misty peaks.
The mountain shades the stone base as the slanting sun rises early, the clouds obstruct the bell sounds emerging from the deep valley.
Barefoot, traversing the pass to heaven, so vast and boundless, for nine years facing the wall, the sea deep and profound.
To know if the descendants can transmit the Dharma, the cypress trees still reflect the saintly emperor's heart.
—— 'Poem of Shaolin Temple' Song Dynasty, Li Qi
It's rare to have the Spring Festival holiday, and unforgettable is the trip to Henan. The second tourist attraction I visited in Zhengzhou was the 'Shaolin Temple', which is definitely a must-visit spot in Henan. Shaolin Temple became globally famous due to a movie of the same name, and it is known to all.
Shaolin Temple is located on Mount Song in Zhengzhou City, Henan Province, China. It was founded in the 19th year of the Taihe era of the Northern Wei Dynasty (495 AD) by Emperor Xiaowen to accommodate the Indian monk Batuo who came to preach. It is named 'Shaolin Temple' because it is situated in the dense forest of the Shaoshi Mountain in the hinterland of Mount Song.
Shaolin Temple is not only the birthplace of Chan (Zen) Buddhism but also the origin of Chinese Kung Fu, known as the 'Ancestral Court of Chan Buddhism and the Holy Land of Kung Fu', and is acclaimed as the 'Number One Famous Temple under Heaven'. It is renowned worldwide for the Shaolin Kung Fu, which has been diligently researched, created, and developed by generations of Shaolin monks, hence the saying 'All martial arts under heaven arose from Shaolin, and Shaolin martial arts are the best under heaven'. Moreover, the story of the thirteen Shaolin monks who saved the Tang emperor in the early Tang Dynasty is well-known and worth seeing!
Because it was the Spring Festival travel season, there were really too many tourists, and many wonderful sights were missed. The commercialization of Shaolin Temple was even more astonishing; entering the temple, there were recruitment brochures for martial arts schools, stalls selling various cultural and religious items, fortune-telling services, and even monks charging 5 yuan for martial arts performances (in addition to the entrance ticket). I will not comment on this, but I just hope that such a great historical and cultural monument and creative tourism resource will not be destroyed by short-term greed. I say this because I like this place and sincerely hope it will get even better!
The place I wanted to come from since childhood, finally realized. You can see a beautiful martial arts performance inside, which is really unusual. Awesome 👍. After watching the show, you can take a photo with them. But it seems that I have to give money, it feels a bit pitted. Anyway, I didn't take a photo, just look at it.
Now Shaolin Temple is more commercialized, and it is all for sale. The Buddhist atmosphere is not as good as the White Horse Temple. The performance is worth seeing, but it is not the best. If you want to see it, you have to end the last game and immediately occupy the place, otherwise you can't see anything, and the performance venue is not maintained. If you want to go to Sanhuangzhai, you have to plan a day trip. We have to go back to Zhengzhou at 2 or 3 pm, and Sanhuangzhai has not gone, leaving a regret. There is a bus below the scenic spot, and the car is full, not necessarily according to the schedule.
The performance is worth a visit. The A-zone ticket bought is very good. The visual senses are very good. The details of the performance are in place. The sound effect is very good. The performance is 1 hour long. I feel that the meaning of watching is still not enough. When the sheep girl comes on, is it better to have a few Shepherd songs in concert? 😁
How to say it, it feels normal, take a photo at the door, the monument forest is quite beautiful, it is almost clearing, the inside is full of white yellow, the photo is not suitable. Let's talk about Shangshaoshi Mountain. Tourists who have not gone must be optimistic (knock on the blackboard): Go to Sanhuangzhai to take the cable car. The normal cable car that bought tickets today is fully enclosed, 100 round trips. When I was about to go up the mountain, I first encountered a cable car, a high house number, or an elevator archway. It looked quite formal. I didn’t look at the ticket and let me go in. I went in and took pictures for free. Of course, it must be expensive to come out. The biggest problem is that it looks a bit broken after entering. The railings are also very old, the sign says two people and one car, I think the cable car is so small? Look at the old-fashioned cable car semi-closed small cable car, the ticket inspector does not look at the ticket first said: you come to me and you said (I heard it is not good) She said that the cable car ticket was bought wrong, their cable car is 120, I bought 100, must buy again or make up 20, I said: what about the 100 cable car? She said: 100 cable cars are all climbing mountains, but still far away. I firmly do not take her cable car, she said: You are up. I said: It is not a big deal. I go down. Going 40 meters ahead of the door is the ticket gate of the rail cable car. It is really too good to cut off passengers halfway. Don't be fooled. You must take the 100 fully enclosed cable car, and the fully enclosed one is to go to Sanhuangzhai. The 120 small cable car is Erzu Xuan, she will not tell you, And it is a small cable car along the hillside. Don't be fooled because you have already arrived at the ticket gate. It can't be big. It's very close to the formal place.
The world's martial arts came out of Shaolin, visited the Daxiong Palace, Tibetan Jingge and so on often mentioned in the film and television dramas. This time, I went to the top of Damo Cave and contacted the Damo statue at close range. Although I had fat legs, I felt a worthwhile trip. The last return trip also caught up with the last Shaolin performance, really wonderful, Shaolin Temple is indeed true kung fu.
The second time I went to Shaolin Temple, took the cable car, went to the book cliff, walked over the suspension bridge, and then folded back, because there were many people during the Qingming holiday, and many places could only pass by one person. It took a while to wait, and there were people who added. When I first arrived, I saw the martial arts performance in the square. The children played very well. The last time I fainted during the visit to Shaolin Temple 10 years ago, it was the monk in the temple who cured me. I couldn’t walk to the strong foot like flying out of the gate. I was very grateful to Shaolin Temple, so I came to visit for the second time.
Shaolin Temple, Henan, is a good place worth visiting. It has a long history, beautiful scenery, and rich humanistic legends. Behind Shaolin Temple is the majestic Zhongyue Lushan. The cliff plank road is very dangerous. Below is the abyss, but there are also no risks. Feeling that the skilled craftsman built such a plank road on the cliff, it is indeed a treasure worth traveling.