Qiyun Mountain is also one of the four famous Taoist mountains in China, a holy site of the mainstream Daoism of the Quanzhen School, and has a status similar to that of Mount Wudang. It was formerly known as White Peak (Baiyue) and Cloud Peak (Yunyue), located about 15 kilometers west of Xiuning County in Huizhou City. Its altitude is 585 meters with an area of 110 square kilometers, named after its highest peak, Qiyun Rock. It is renowned for its deep, mysterious, and perilous scenery, and got its name Qiyun Mountain because of its peak that rises to the sky and stands on par with the clouds.
Qiyun Mountain is a mountain scenic area characterized by Taoist culture and Danxia landforms, historically known as “Huangshan and Baiyue top the south of the Yangtze River”. Qiyun Mountain is located at the foot of Mount Huang, and it is also a national key scenic spot. Taoism was introduced to Qiyun Mountain during the Tang Dynasty. During the Jiajing and Wanli periods of the Ming Dynasty, the Zhengyi Sect from Mount Longhu in Jiangxi Province established a presence in Qiyun Mountain, leading to increasing religious activities. From this time onwards, Qiyun Mountain became a center for Taoist activities in southern China, ranking among the famous Taoist mountains in the country, becoming one of the four famous Taoist mountains in China, and known as the “Little Wudang of the South”.
The Fairy Pass of White Peak – Qiyun Mountain, along with Mount Huang and Mount Jiuhua, are known as the “Three Beauties of Southern Anhui”, and it has always been praised as “the unparalleled scenic spot in the world, the first famous mountain in the south of the Yangtze River”. It is interspersed with mysterious caves, winding ravines, blue pools, and clear springs, forming a stunning landscape. Qiyun Mountain, together with Mount Longhu in Jiangxi, Mount Wudang in Hubei, and Mount Qingcheng in Sichuan, are known as the four major Taoist mountains in China.
The scenery of Qiyun Mountain is stunningly beautiful, with various strange peaks, rocks, mysterious caves, and numerous lakes, ponds, springs, and waterfalls. Among them, the incense burner-shaped Incense Burner Peak, the ingenious Stone Bridge Rock, the mystic Fairy Cave, the elegant Yunyan Lake, and the golden and jade Pearl Curtain Spring are most captivating, and it used to be known as the “Little Wudang of the South”. During the Qianyuan period of the Tang Dynasty (758-760), Taoist priest Gong Qixia wandered here and lived in seclusion in Tianmen Rock on the mountain. In the Baoding period of the Southern Song Dynasty (1225-1227), Taoist priest Yu Daoyuan entered the mountain for cultivation, and he built the True Wu Shrine of the Holy Helper on Qiyun Rock. After that, wandering Taoist priests came in succession, and the scale of Taoist buildings grew increasingly large; reaching its heyday in the Ming Dynasty. According to the “Qiyun Mountain Gazetteer,” there were 108 large and small Taoist buildings such as palaces, temples, halls, courts, pavilions, buildings, towers, pavilions, terraces, etc., following the model of Mount Wudang in Hubei Province, with a grand scale and magnificent appearance. Later, due to disrepair over time and continuous warfare, many buildings were destroyed one after another. Now, more than ten palaces, temples, halls, pavilions, and buildings remain, all of which have been rebuilt. It is one of the famous Taoist mountains and a major venue for Taoist activities in Anhui Province, as well as a famous tourist attraction. (Compiled by Li Fengsen)