华山

九华胜景在天台。天台峰是九华山的主峰，海拔1300多米。有“不登天台，等于没来”的说法。从九华街上天台，约15华里山路，沿路经过很多风景点。当你气喘吁吁，到达天台正顶，眼前的景色，将使你胸襟开阔，疲劳顿消。四周群山匍伏，远望九华街，只有巴掌那么大了。极目远眺，天地浑然一体，长江如练隐隐可见。清冽的山风送来阵阵松涛、竹喧，令人陶醉。周围的岩石，奇形怪状，多呈黝黑色。有一巨石上刻“非人间”三字。此时此刻，真使人有身临蓬莱仙境之感。在天台上看日出，据说其瑰丽景色不亚于在泰山日观峰看日出。因此“天台晓日”被列为“九华十景”之一。

九华山是令人神往的莲花佛国。它以灿烂的佛教文化和奇丽的自然景观为特色，是游览、观赏和开展科学文化活动的山岳型国家重点风景名胜区。改革开放以来，古老的佛山沐浴盛世朝阳，新姿焕发，活力再现，现为国家AAAA级旅游区、全国文明风景旅游区示范点。九华山坐落在池州市东南境，她是池州旅游业的品牌，是池州人民的骄傲，是安徽”两山一湖”风景区中一颗璀璨的明珠。为使名山披锦绣，更快地跻身于国际旅游先进行列，九华山风景区管委会指导、组织有关部门编写了这本九华山导游词。九华山佛教文化研究会的同志，尤其是几位老同志退而不休，辛勤笔耕，在很短时间就完成了编撰任务。这种精神是很可贵的，我向他们表示诚挚的敬意。这本书信息量大，内容丰富，形式活泼，图文并茂，以模拟导游撰文，准确、鲜明、生动，融科学性、知识性、趣味性于一炉，颇适合导游人员学习和使用，也可供广大游客阅读和欣赏。我相信，这本书的问世将会把你带进九华山文化博大精深、源远流长、美妙神奇的境界。我在池州工作多年，深深热爱九华山。我衷心祝贺此书的出版，并乐之为序。

Mount Jiuhua is one of the four sacred mountains of Chinese Buddhism. It is located in Qingyang County in Anhui province and is famous for its rich landscape and ancient temples.

Many of the mountain’s shrines and temples are dedicated to Ksitigarbha (known in Chinese as Dìzàng, Traditional Chinese: 地藏), who is a bodhisattva and protector of souls in hell according to Mahayana Buddhist tradition. Pious Buddhists often come to this popular attraction in Anhui to climb to Greater Tiantai peak, which is regarded as Jiuhuashan’s most important peak, although it is not the tallest.

History of Jiuhua Mountain

Jiuhu Mountain, known as a Buddhist wonderland and famous for its large number of temples and beautiful scenery, has been a resplendent pearl of Chinese cultural heritage.

Jiuhua Mountain was formed in the late Cenozoic Era, and Buddhism began in the Northern and Southern Dynasties (420-589) at the mountain. According to historical records, a monk named Fuhu built Fuhu Convent in 503; Monk Tanhao practised Buddhism here in 713; During 713-755, Jin Qiaojue, a Korean aristocrat, came to Jiuhua Mountain and lived in a stone cave at Dongya Peak. His hard practice moved the local people, and they contributed money to build a temple for him. In 781 the local official Zhang Yan presented a memorial to the emperor for the horizontal inscribed board "Huacheng". Upon Jin Qiaojue’s nirvana, it was said that the mountain roared, birds and monkeys cried, and the earth gave out fire and light. His body kept lively three years later, so he was respected as the Earth Buddha, wrapped with earth and has been preserved to present. Roushen Pagoda was built to revere him, and thus Jiuhua Mountain has become the place where Earth Buddhist rites are performed.

The history of Buddhism at Jiuhua Mountain can be divided into five periods: founded in the middle of Tang Dynasty ; decayed from the late Tang Dynasty to the Five Dynasties; slowly developed in the Song and Yuan Dynasties; and greatly developed in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. In the Ming Dynasty, the emperors granted money to rebuild Huacheng Temple for three times and two emperors bestowed inscriptions. The number of temples and nunneries was over a hundred, and many monks and nuns came. It was listed as one of the four famous Buddhist mountains, besides Wutai Mountain, Emei Mountain, and Putuo Mountain.

Ladies and gentlemen

On this day, we will visit Huashan Mountain, which is known as "stone forlotus and cloud for platform". Huashan, also known as Taihua mountain, islocated in the south of Huayin City, 120 kilometers east of Xian city.

Huashan Mountain, known as Xiyue in ancient times, is one of the fivemountains in China. It is named Huashan Mountain because its peaks are naturallyarranged like flowers. In December 1992, Huishan was rated as one of the top 40scenic spots in China. Even friends who have never been to Huashan will learnabout the situation of Huashan from some funny myths and anecdotes, such as "aroad to Huashan since ancient times", "fairy palm of Huayue", "aloes splittingmountain to save mother", "Huashan discussing sword", and modern wisdom tocapture Huashan. These Beautiful myths and stories reflect peoples yearning andworship for Huashan since ancient times.

South China mountain overlooks the Yellow River in the north and QinlingMountains in the south. It is known as "Huashan ruli". The whole mountain hassimple lines, such as knife cutting and axe splitting. The unique peaks areabrupt and majestic. It is known as "the most dangerous mountain in theworld".

When it comes to strangeness, it is made up of a huge and complete piece ofgranite. The ancients said, "its not strange that there are no stones in themountain, its not strange that there are no pure stones." "Huashan is cut intofour directions, its width is ten li, its height is five thousand Ren, one stoneis also called" Daqi ". Huashan has five main peaks, among which the East, Westand South peaks are the highest, and the three peaks stand in opposition,"flying out of the clouds and falling into the Yellow River", known as "threepeaks outside the sky". When it comes to danger, the "Changkong plank road"erected in the air, the "Quanzhen rock" engraved on the overhanging rock, the"Yaozi turning over" with three sides of the air, the "Yaozi turning over" withconvex top and concave bottom, and the "qianchitong", "baichixia", "Laojunfurrow", "chaerya" and "canglongling" dug on the overhanging rock of the cliffare all extremely dangerous. "Huashan has been a road since ancient times.".There is only a north-south line of roads in the mountains, about 10 kilometerslong, winding and rugged. In many places, it can be said that "one man is incharge of the pass, ten thousand men are not allowed to open.".

Huashan not only has magnificent natural landscape, but also has richhistorical and cultural accumulation, and cultural landscape is everywhere.Along the way up and down the mountain and along the Valley Road, inscriptions,poems and stone carvings will make people linger.

My friends, what we are here now is yuquanyuan. It is said that because thespring water there is connected with the jade well on the top of the mountain,the water quality is pure and sweet, so it is called "yuquanyuan". It is theonly way to climb Mount Hua. It is said that it was built by Chen Tuan, ahermit. In the courtyard, the pavilions and corridors are zigzag, and thesprings are murmuring. It is a tourist attraction. Yuquan temple, together withthe Dongdao temple and Zhenyue palace that we will see later, are places forTaoist activities. Now there are 53 temples. Most of the buildings in thecourtyard were rebuilt in the Qianlong period of Qing Dynasty.

Dear friends, we are now at the foot of Beifeng, one of the five peaks. Itis about 10 kilometers away from the mouth of Huashan Valley, which is thesource of water flow in Huashan valley. Please follow the direction of my fingerto see the trees. Maybe many people will know it. Yes, its the coca tree.There, the green trees float here, so it is called "qingkeping".

From qingkeping to huixinshi. The climbing road turns from a flat stoneroad to a narrow stone ladder cut on the cliff. Seeing the mountain roadcircling up, many tourists with weak will will turn their minds to look at themountain and sigh and come back in vain.

Friends, we have reached the north peak now. After the previous threepasses, I think you have a necessary understanding of Huashan insurance. Thenorth peak is named Yuntai peak, 1550 meters above sea level, where themountains are towering, hanging on three sides, majestic and unique, just like acloud, so it is named because it is just like a Yuntai. Its height is thelowest, but it has a very important geographical location. It is the pivot ofthe four peaks. The pavilion in front of us is called "military soul Pavilion",the name of which comes from the feature film "outwit Huashan".

Now we come to Zhongfeng. Zhongfeng is also called Yunv peak. It is saidthat in the spring and Autumn period, Xiao Shi, a hermit in Huashan, was good atplaying the flute. The beautiful sound of the flute won the admiration ofNongyu, the youngest daughter of Duke mu of Qin. She put down her luxurious andcomfortable life in the palace and lived in seclusion with Xiao Shi. Many yearslater, they became immortals and went away by the Phoenix. Many scenic spots onthe mountain also got their names. There are jade girl shampoo basin, sacrificetree, etc. Because of this beautiful love story, Huashan is endowed with someromance and gentleness after it is broad, solemn and deep.

After Zhongfeng, I will accompany you to Dongfeng.

Dongfeng, also known as Chaoyang peak, has a Chaoyang terrace at the top,which is the best place to watch the sunrise. Mountains are not high, butimmortals are famous. Huashan is said to be a place where many immortals live.Taoist fairyland. It is said that Zhao Kuangyin, the song Taizu, and Chen Tuan,the Huashan hermit, are in a lonely peak, where they play chess. Chen Tuan, alsoknown as Mr. Xiyi, was a virtuous man. After discussion, they decided to bet onHuashan. As a result, he lost to Chen Tuan. According to the pre-determinedconditions, Huashan became the Taoists Taoist center and would receive foodforever. On the East Cliff of Dongfeng, there is a natural pattern. You see, isit like a giant palm? This giant palm is more than 20 feet long. Its fivefingers are uneven, and its middle finger runs straight through the peak. Whenthe sun shines, its five fingers are like hanging on the picture. This is theso-called "Huayue fairy palm" which is the first of the eight scenic spots inGuanzhong. It is said that a long time ago, Huashan Mountain was connected withZhongtiao Mountain, and the right foot ascended to open Zhongtiao Mountain toopen a passage for the Yellow River. What we see now is the fingerprints left bythe fingers of the river god in tuohua mountain.

Nanfeng, also known as Luoyan peak, is the highest peak of HuashanMountain, with an altitude of 2160 meters. It is like a fairyland when you comethere. As the ancient poem says, "only the sky is above, and there is nomountain with Qi. When you look up, the red sun is near, and when you look down,the white clouds are low.". There are pine forests all around, mixed withcypresses, meandering for several miles, dense shade closed. At the moment, whatwe see in front of our eyes is the fourth danger "long empty stack fatigue".Changkong plank road is one of the most dangerous places in Huashan. Without thecourage and determination of others, I dare not travel. There is "taishangquan"at the top of the peak. The water in the pool is green and clear, which isinexhaustible all the year round. It is commonly known as "yangtianchi". Thereare many inscriptions on the cliff, most of which are inscribed by poets of Mingand Qing Dynasties and modern times. "Hua Shan Lun Jian" described in themartial arts novel biography of archery heroes probably happened in Nanfeng.

We are now coming to the essence of Huashan. Xifeng, also known as Lianhuapeak, gets its name from the big stone on the right side in front of Cuiyuntemple on the top of the peak. It looks like a lotus. The peak is extremelysteep, like a sword cutting, standing on a cliff. At the top of the peak is the"star picking platform". When you look down from the platform, you can see thevast Qinchuan River, the blue sky, the Wei and Luo rivers, and the Yellow River.Li Baiguan, a great poet of the Tang Dynasty, wrote a beautiful poem after thisscene: "the west mountain is magnificent, and the Yellow River is like silk inthe sky.".

The huge stone we see at the moment is called "axe cleaving stone". Thestone body has a 0. There is a 66 meter wide crack. There is also a touchinglegend about this crack. The Virgin Mary, the youngest daughter of the JadeEmperor, fell in love with jindanxi, who was beaten down by the Jade Emperor,and married. Yang Jian, the God of Erlang, cursed his sister, the third VirginMary, for marrying a mortal, which violated the rule of heaven. So she put thethird Virgin Mary under the huge stone at the top of the West peak of HuashanMountain. Later, the third virgin gave birth to a son named Chenxiang. WhenChenxiang grew up, she came to Huashan Mountain and defeated Yang Jian. Sherescued her mother from the huge stone on her mothers body, and the wholefamily got together. This is where the myth of "splitting mountains to savemother" took place.

For hundreds of millions of years, the uncanny craftsmanship has created abreathtaking and magnificent natural landscape of Huashan. For thousands ofyears, the praise of scholars has accumulated rich cultural connotation ofHuashan. It can be said that Huashan is closely linked with Huaxia, which is thesymbol of the Chinese nation. From the legends and anecdotes about Huashan, wecan see that it is not only broad, tactful, elegant, deep and serious, but alsohumorous, witty, and even romantic and gentle. Isnt that the portrayal of ourChinese nation?

There, the tour of Huashan is coming to an end. I hope my explanation willleave you a perfect memory!!

欢迎大家来到九华山，我是今日的导游牛牛，古代诗人李白曾说过‘昔在九江上，遥望九华峰。大河挂绿水，秀出九芙蓉。’的著名诗篇。今日我就带领大家好好感受一下九华山的独特美

前两天一场大雨刚过，唤起了九华山的漫山云雾，所以呢，我们能够穿云踏雾走上山径。能够看到山路两旁杉竹成林，泉水淙淙，远远望去，天台峰高穿云间，如一把穿天银剑耸立在云雾之中。仰望天台，峰上云雾缭绕，山径蜿蜒曲折，像一条彩带从云间飘落下来。

我们此刻还在半山腰，我看很多游客似乎都已经很累了呀，那我们停下了休息一会吧，大家能够拍拍照，此刻那里也是很美的，有没有一种神山住的地方那种感觉，休息够了我们就继续，因为九华山的全景启示是更美的，可是你要看到九华山全景就必须登上山峰，所以为了不虚此行，走吧，咱们一齐上，一齐加油。

经过一番艰苦的努力，我们最终登上峰顶，大家深呼吸一下是不是觉得空气异常清新呢，并且在那里耳听松涛流泉，环顾四周，但见莽莽苍苍，九华山群峰犹如朵朵莲花在云海中若隐若现，极目远眺，大江如练，是不是好美啊!

大家站在那里，还是不是有一种神仙般的感觉，难得有这么新鲜的空气，大家可必须要到深呼吸几下，我们此刻就慢慢欣赏九华山的美吧。

唐代诗人李白曾胡“或在九江上遥望九华峰。天河挂绿水，秀出九芙蓉……”的千古名句。

暑假中，我有幸跟爸爸到九华山两日游。

天台是九华群峰之冠，古人有不到天台不算游过九华山的说法。因此我与爸爸到九华山的当天早晨，便马不停蹄地向天台进发。

一场大雨刚过，唤起漫山云雾，我和爸爸穿云破雾踏上山径。山路两旁衫竹成林，泉水淙淙。远远望去，天台峰高插云间，如一把穿 天银剑佴立在云雾之间。我们一边赶路， 一边欣赏着沿途风景，经过百岁宫，四香阁，直至天台峰下的凤凰古松前。

仰望天台，峰上云雾缭绕，山径蜿蜒曲折，像一条彩带从云间飘荡下来，游人似一个个小白点，零零星星散布在彩带上，缓缓地向上移动着。

起初，我劲头十足，赶过了几位白头发的老教授，但是，随着山路的明显变陡，我的冲劲渐渐小了。走了一不一会已汗流浃背，肢上像挂了铅似的不走了，小花好像在说：“这么快就想打退党鼓真没用。”我一听生气了，于是接着向上爬。

经过一番艰苦的努力，我们终于登上峰顶。此时看到万壁上的“非人间”三个字，觉得非常非常的传神，让我懂得了“一份耕耘，一份收获。”

“欲穷千里目，更上一层楼。”是啊，攀登高峰，必须会出极其艰辛的努力!

Hello, tourists! Welcome to Jiuhua Mountain. Its my great honor to be yourtour guide, to accompany you to appreciate the charm of Jiuhua Mountain andspend a perfect time together.

Jiuhua Mountain, located in Qingyang County, South Anhui Province, is oneof the four famous Buddhist mountains in China. Liu Yuxi, a writer of the TangDynasty, praised Jiuhua Mountain after climbing it. He thought that the famousmountains in the world could not compete with Jiuhua Mountain. Li Bai went toMount Jiuhua three times. Jiuhua Mountain is characterized by beautifulmountains and numerous Buddhist temples.

As early as the Eastern Jin Dynasty (401), temples began to be built on themountain. Since then, they have been added and expanded to form a small templein three li and a big temple in five li. The temples spread all over themountain. It is said that there were more than 300 temples with 4500 monks inthe prosperous period. At the moment, there are still 50 or 60 temples incomplete preservation.

When you visit Jiuhua Mountain, you first go to Jiuhua street, which ismore than 600 meters above sea level. It is the center of Jiuhua Mountain, andtemples are mainly concentrated there, so it is called the lotus Buddha kingdom.It is actually a village on the mountain. Besides temples, there are shops,schools, hotels and farmhouses. Visitors can stay there and take it as astarting point to visit the scenic spots on the mountain.

Huacheng temple on Jiuhua street.

Jiuhua Mountain is the oldest ancient temple of Jin Dynasty, and also themain temple of Jiuhua Mountain. The layout of the temples buildings is inaccordance with the mountain situation, reflecting the superb art ofarchitectural design. In the temple, there is an ancient clock which is morethan ten feet high and weighs about 20__ Jin. It is exquisitely cast and has aloud voice. It is struck with a mallet. The solemn and clear sound of the bellreverberates in the valley, which often makes people feel extraordinarilyrefined. Huacheng evening bell became one of the ten scenic spots in Jiuhua.

The jiuhua mountain in the territory of the county in the south of anhui,is one of the four famous buddhist mountains in China. Astronomers liu yuxi intang dynasty, after the jiuhua mountain, the admiration, think long and famousall cant contend with the jiuhua mountain. Li Baiceng jiuhua mountain on three.The characteristics of the jiuhua mountain is the mountain show, the buddhisttemple many.

In the early years of the eastern (401), has built the temple hill, thenbuild, expansion, the formation of "three mile a small temple, the five to atemple," temple throughout the whole, is said to be thriving period up to morethan 300, one thousand monks four or five. Now intact 五六十座 are temples.

Jiuhua, first of all to jiu hua street, here more than 600 meters above sealevel, is the center of jiuhua mountain, temples are mainly concentrated inhere, therefore is called "lotus buddhist". Here is actually a mountain villagesand towns, in addition to the temple, there are shops, schools, hotels,farmhouse, visitors can stay here, and as a starting point, to visit the sightsof the mountain. Jiu hua in the street of the city temple, ancient temples,jiuhua mountain is the oldest of jin dynasty is Lord also of the jiuhua mountaintemple, the temple of the building layout according to the mountain, reflect thesuperb architectural art. Temple has a higher consisting, weighing about 20__pounds of clocks, casting, loud noise, use the hammer impact, dignifiedrealisation of the bell, echoed in the valley, often make the person has thefeeling of extraordinary to take off the vulgar. "The city production" becameone of the ten views "of" nine China.

From jiu hua street walk far east, there is a palace built on the cliff, isthe famous "hundreds of years old palace". Saying is its plaques "qincentenarians palace, participated in ten thousand the temple" ten gold. It issaid that in the Ming wanli years, monk, too, was a 26-year-old arrived injiuhua mountain, in a solitary penance for 100 years in the cave. Three yearsafter the death, people found his body in the cave. The mountain monk thinks heis the living Buddha reincarnation, hence the body with gold. After the Mingemperor chongzhen know seal him as "bodhisattva" should be. So consecrate hissmall temple incense, temple extension, become one of the four big jungle jiuhuamountain. Visitors can see it in the flesh temple temple wearing mitral, wearinghis red robes, seated on a lotus of the monks gold body.

Jiu hua scene in tiantai. Tiantai peak is the jiuhua mountain, 1300 metersabove sea level. "Tiantai, the not equal to didnt come". From the rooftop injiu hua street, about 15 li mountain, after a lot of scenic spots along the way.When you are panting, reached the tiantai is top, the view, will give you abroad-minded, fatigue elimination. To look around the mountains prostrate, jiuhua street, is the size of a slap. Atop the, heaven and earth one integratedmass, the Yangtze river such as faintly visible. Cool wind sent the pines,bamboo is raging, intoxicating. The surrounding rock, strange, takes the tans.There is a "the human" three characters carved on stone. At this moment, reallymake the person were in penglai fairyland feeling. See the sunrise on the roof,it is said that the magnificent scenery as RiGuanFeng on mount tai see thesunrise. So "tiantai xiao day" is listed as one of the ten views "9".

九华山位于安徽省池州市，是安徽“两山一湖”黄金旅游区的主要景区，这里景色秀丽，古刹林立，与四川峨眉山，山西五台山、浙江普陀山并称我国的四大佛教名山。

九华山原来并不叫九华山，在唐朝的时候叫做九子山，因为九华山山峰秀丽，高出云层的山峰有九座，因此九座九子山。唐天宝年间，诗仙李白曾两次到

下面我们首先进入的是九华街景区，首先看到的是一座石门坊。它是大理石雕刻而成，高9米，是仿清的徽派建筑。横额上镌刻着康熙皇帝御书的“九华胜境”四个大字。中门两柱南北下方雕有石狮。门仿端庄典雅，过了门坊大家看到的就是迎仙桥了，这座桥修建于乾隆年间，是一座单孔石拱桥，下面就请大家随我一起踏上这座古桥，一起步入仙境之中吧！

好，游完祇园寺，我们现在来到的便是九华街的中心位置，大家看到的便是九华山开山祖寺化城寺了。化城寺石阶下有宋代石狮一对，一雌一雄，古拙浑厚。化城寺依地形渐次升高，结构严谨，古朴典雅，基本保存了开山祖寺原有风貌。

好了，我们九华山的游览到此就告一段落了，感谢各位对小王工作的支持与配合，希望以后还有机会继续为大家服务，祝大家一路顺风！谢谢！

化城寺为九华山开山祖寺,四进院落式民居建筑,属全国重点寺院。

相传为九华山地藏王菩萨生前修行的地方,也是九华山最古老的寺院.是九华山四大丛林的总丛林,它的四进殿宇分别部署在三个台基上，层层升高，序落有致。第一进天王殿,进深16.5米，面阔5间，有两个小天井，两侧为厢房。其台基比平面高出3.7米。第二进宽20米，进深20.5米，敞厅堂，有四落水天井，东、西两侧有半廊。台基比第一进高出1.5米。第三进是大雄宝殿，进深20.5米，有藻井3只，中间为浮雕“九龙戏珠”,为全国罕见!最后一进为3层藏经楼，高20米，进深14米，其台基比大殿高出2.7米。三、四两进之间夹有长方形院落，种植牡丹、桂花等花木，院墙嵌有明、清以来的石碑八方。全寺对称严整，硬山顶、马头墙、砖木结构。寺背倚虎形山，前有放生池和石板广场。化城寺历经兴废，前三进殿宇为清末修建，第四进藏经楼仍保持明代建筑风貌。建筑面积1705平方米。

游客朋友们大家好！我叫王翔宇，这就是大家此次旅行的导游，大家叫我小王就好了。欢迎大家来到九华山旅游！下面首先向大家介绍一下我们九华山的概况。九华山位于安徽省池州市，这就是安徽“两山一湖”黄金旅游区的主要景区，这里景色秀丽，古刹林立，与四川峨眉山，山西五台山、浙江普陀山并称我国的四大佛教名山。

九华山原来并不叫九华山，在唐朝的时候叫做九子山，因为九华山山峰秀丽，高出云层的山峰有九座，因此九座九子山。唐天宝年间，诗仙李白曾两次到

下面我们首先进入的是九华街景区，首先看到的是一座石门坊。它是大理石雕刻而成，高9米，是仿清的徽派建筑。横额上镌刻着康熙皇帝御书的“九华胜境”四个大字。中门两柱南北下方雕有石狮。门仿端庄典雅，过了门坊大家看到的就是迎仙桥了，这座桥修建于乾隆年间，是一座单孔石拱桥，下面就请大家随我一起踏上这座古桥，一起步入仙境之中吧！

好，游完只园寺，我们现在来到的便是九华街的中心位置，大家看到的便是九华山开山祖寺化城寺了。化城寺石阶下有宋代石狮一对，一雌一雄，古拙浑厚。化城寺依地形渐次升高，结构严谨，古朴典雅，基本保存了开山祖寺原有风貌。

好了，我们九华山的游览到此就告一段落了，感谢各位对小王工作的支持与配合，希望以后还有机会继续为大家服务，祝大家一路顺风！谢谢！

北魏太和十九年(公元495年)孝文帝为安顿年年个印度高憎拔陀落迹传教而依山敕建少林寺。释迦牟尼大第子摩诃迦叶的第二十八代佛徒达摩泛海至广州，经南京，北渡长江来到嵩山少林寺，广集信徒手传禅宗，被佛教界尊奉为中国禅宗的祖初，少林寺也被奉为中国佛教的禅宗祖庭。

天下第一名刹、禅宗祖庭、少林武术的发源地少林寺，因其座落在河南省登封市中岳嵩山的腹地少室山下的茂密丛林中，所以取名“少林寺”。少林寺以禅宗和武术并称于世。隋唐时期，已具盛名;宋代，少林武术已自成体系，风格独绝，史称“少林派”。成为中国武术派别中的佼佼者。

元明时期，少林寺已拥有憎众二千余人，成为弛名中外的大佛寺;清代中期以后，少林寺逐渐衰落。少林寺虽历经沧桑，但是留存下来的文物仍然相当丰富。如：自北齐以后的历代石刻四百余品;唐至清代的砖石墓塔二百五十余座;北宋的初祖庵大殿;明代的五百罗汉巨幅彩色壁画;清代的少林拳谱和十三和尚救秦王等彩色壁画等等，都具有较高的历史，艺术和科学价值。

少林寺僧练习武艺形成的拳术派别，世称少林派，声震海内外。无奈清末以降，屡被战火。尤以1928年之祸为剧，军阀石友三火烧少林寺，致使主要建筑天王殿、大雄殿、藏经阁、钟鼓二楼等和诸多珍贵文物如少林寺志、少林拳谱木刻版、北京铜版藏经、达摩面壁石等俱为灰烬。不过解放后数次修缮，又使寺院得大改观。

少林寺规模很大，现在人们通称的少林寺是此寺的中心部分，总占地面积约3万多平方米，它沿山坡而建，中轴线建筑自山门至千佛殿共七进院落。山门为清雍正十三年(1735年)奉敕创建，1974年翻修。门额上的“少林寺”横匾为清圣祖康熙皇帝亲笔字。碑林中多唐、宋、元、明四朝名人的作品，在书法、绘画、雕刻艺术上都有很高的造诣。如王知敬书写的《大唐天后御制讨书碑》、宋代米芾的《第一山》等碑及诸禅师的传记、少林拳法等。天王殿前悬挂清干隆皇帝御书“天下第一祖庭”匾一块。天王殿东北角的碑楼内有大唐碑一通，正面是李世民为表彰少林寺僧助唐战功而写给少林寺主持的赐文，俗称“李世民碑”，是寺内最重要的碑刻，还有明《达摩一苇渡江画像碑》等。

天王殿东西分别有钟楼、鼓楼。在钟楼上放有金代大铁种和明代的地藏王铁像两件铸铁文物。当年大火吞没钟楼时，大铁钟正好落在地藏王铁像上，钟碎像毁，后修复如初。大雄殿为正殿，金代建筑，明清时重修。再后为藏经阁，乃是法堂，阁后是方丈院。方丈室之后，为达摩亭，也称立雪亭。是二祖慧可立雪断臂得受达摩衣钵法器处。

相传慧可前来拜谒达摩之时，说：我心不安。达摩师让其交付本心，方可安心。二祖遍寻不得，于是乃悟。后慨然断臂以示决心，终得达摩认可，遂传衣钵。亭内有达摩铜像，上面有清高宗干隆皇帝御书“雪印心珠”横匾一块。

千佛殿是少林寺内最大的殿宇，地面有48个坑，是少林僧人练拳站位所留脚步遗迹。千佛殿东侧是白衣殿，有白衣大士铜像，现为白玉佛像并置面壁石等。少林寺西南约300米处的山脚下，是我国现存古塔数量最多的塔墓群，为少林寺历代和尚的墓地外还有初祖庵，内有古柏一株，相传为唐初禅宗六祖慧能所植。

达摩洞是相传达摩当年曾在此面壁9年的洞。少林武术源于达摩祖师所创“心意拳”，是达摩观察百兽动态，结合民间武打艺术所创的拳术，少林武术馆馆内设有露天演武场，可供游人观摩少林武术表演。

残峰断崖主要指玉案峰、甘湫峰、翠华峰及形成的山崩临空面。三峰鼎立，负势竞上，突兀险俊，直冲云霄。"南望终南如翠屏环列，芙蓉万仞直插青冥。"(清·陕西巡抚给乾隆奏章)

"太乙近天都，连山到海隅。白云回望合，青霭入看无。分野中峰变，阴晴众壑殊。欲投人处宿，隔水问樵夫。"(唐·王维《终南山》)翠华山国家地质公园有其悠久的历史文化背景，是牛背梁国家羚牛自然保护区的缓冲区，也是终南山国家森林公园最具特色的组成部分和一级开发区，陕西省著名风景名胜区。据《西京胜迹图志》载，翠华山自秦汉唐王朝起被辟为皇家的"上林苑"、"御花园"，长安八大寺院围绕其周。汉武帝因"山林川谷丘陵，能出云，为风雨，见怪物，皆曰神"于公元前112年在翠华山拜谒太乙神，故翠华山又名太乙山，太乙山至今在东南亚等世界华人地区享有盛名。

"终南毓秀太乙钟灵 始悟翠华招汉武;冰洞垂凌龙湫池玉应知胜景在长安"陕西翠华山山崩景观国家地质公园不仅有山崩湖光、奇石异洞，气势蓬勃的天崩地裂壮景，更有其深厚的大文化、大自然背景和优质服务。当您在观赏山崩奇观同时，更多的会感到中国国家地质公园的特色和地质遗迹与自然文化的相融，开发与保护的可持续发展。

华山位于陕西省西安市以东约120公里的华阴县城南，是秦岭的一个小支脉，因其西临少华山，古称太华。华山北濒黄河、渭水，南连秦岭，共有五峰，即南峰落雁、东峰朝阳、西峰莲花、北峰云台、中峰玉女，其海拔都在20xx米以上。古书《山海经》道“太华之山，高五千仞，削成四方，远望若华然”；北魏郦道元在《水经注》中说，华山“远而望之若花状”，故名华山，因为古时候，“华”与“花”两字是相通的。也有人说，华山起名于山顶的莲花池。

华山在五岳之中以雄险著称，向有“华山天下雄”的盛誉。华山属断层山，由抗风化能力特别强的花岗岩组成。大约在距今7000万年前的白垩纪时，秦岭一带发生强烈的地壳运动，形成一个巨大的花岗岩体的侵入“岩株”，其东西长15公里，南北宽10公里，面积约150平方公里。至新生代，由于华山北麓渭河地堑不断陷落，秦岭山地几经抬升，使形成华山主体的花岗岩侵人体出露地表，并在第三纪新构造运动中大幅上升，加上大自然的风雨雕琢，形成险拔峻秀的山势。

“自古华山一条路”。登华山只有一条长约15公里的峪道可行，山路逶迤曲折，艰险崎岖。玉泉院是游人登山的必经之地，相传在宋朝，道士贾得升为其师陈传（号稀夷）建的祠。因院中泉水与华山上的玉井潜通而命名，亦名希夷祠。院内长廊回合，殿宇、亭台、秀石别致，溪流环绕，茂林修竹，环境幽雅，泉水清冽甘美。康有为曾写道：“谷口清泉引曲流，长廊回合树无忧，泉声岳色可忘世，让与希夷睡万秋。”

从玉泉院进山，南行2500米，有石门挡路，这就是五里关，人称“第一关”。不远处希夷峡谷，又有一道石门，仅容只身通过，号称“华铁门”，俗称“第二关”。经沙萝坪、毛女洞、过云门，就到了青柯坪，路程恰为一半。前面西峰拔地而起，气势磅礴，北跳秦川，渭河如带，黄河隐约可见。“西岳峥嵘何壮哉！黄河如丝天际来……”坪东有块“回心石”，石前万丈陡崖直耸云端，令人望而生畏。游人至此，上则畏险，退则不舍，有徘徊犹豫之感。

从回心石挽索拾阶而行就是华山第一天险——“千尺”。危崖峭壁、突兀凌空，高约20米，凿有370多个石阶，左右垂有铁索，宽仅容身。仰望直岩崭立，一线天开，俯视如临深井，确有“一夫当关，万夫莫开”之险。与“千尺”紧邻的“百尺峡”，其陡险之状更甚于“千尺”，现在几经修整，已化险为夷。“老君犁沟”也是登山必经险路，依山傍壑，陡坡直上，铺有570多个石阶。相传是当年太上老君在华山修炼，看到人们开山凿道，十分艰辛，便以自己的青牛挽铁犁，辟出这条山路，故名“老君犁沟”。当地有民谣曰：“千尺、百尺峡、老君犁沟往上爬。”在“老君犁沟”的尽头是“猢狲愁”，顾名思义，崖壁太陡峭了，连猴子都发愁。

从北峰南上，要经擦耳崖、上天梯和苍龙峰等险道。在岩陡路窄的擦耳崖，人面壁挽索贴身而进，有时候岩石会擦着耳朵；至其尽头壁立60°，登30级“石”，手足并用，称之“天上梯”。过此不远，就到了苍龙岭下，一道黑色的山脊，似苍龙横在空中，首尾各搭一山，上下长达1500米，登山道就开凿在岭脊上，径宽不过1米，中突旁杀，两侧深壑千仞不辨水石，游人出没于浮云游丝之中，令人无不惊叹。

“过了金锁关，另是一重天”。金锁关形势险要，是华山东峰、西峰和南峰的咽喉。在三峰之间是一片洼地，西面有镇岳宫，它依山岩而建，松林笼罩，有名的“玉井”就在院中。每当雨季，玉井的水溢流出来，经过“二十八宿潭”奔注东西两峰之间，变成瀑布飞流直下，成为华山名胜。

西峰也叫莲花峰，笔立千仞，悬绝异常，峰顶一巨石，上覆石叶，形如莲花瓣，故称莲花峰。峰顶另有一大石，中部大凹，状似刀削，名“斧劈石”，为“沉香劈山处”。神话“宝莲灯”中，华山女神三圣母的儿子沉香劈山救母的故事，就发生在这个地方。

东峰朝阳峰，山势壮丽，古松参天，峰顶朝阳台是观日出的绝妙之处。每当破晓，火团冉冉升起，水光相映，霞光万道，身临其境颇有“江山如此多娇”之感。峰东北有巨崖直垂，黄白相间，远望五指分明，形如巨掌，因名“仙掌崖”。传说是古代河神巨灵劈山开河之处。过去华山和中条山是连在一起的，挡住了黄河的去路，河神巨灵手托华山，足踏中条，劈山开河，使黄河东流大海。唐代大诗人李白赞颂道：“巨灵咆哮辟两山，洪波奔流射东海。”峰东侧有险径“鹞子翻身”通往博台，为汉武帝时卫叔卿下棋遗址，相传宋代的开国皇帝赵匡胤与陈抟在山上下过棋，宋王输了华山，亦名下棋亭。

南峰是华山主峰，峰有二顶，分称“落雁”与“松桧”，其中落雁峰海拔2200米，是华山最高峰。在绝顶之处“仰天池”旁的石壁上，镶刻着“太华绝顶”、“登峰造极”、“儿视诸峰”、“洗手摩天”等明清和近代诗人题词。

近年来，华山游客与日俱增，为缓解上山道路拥挤阻塞，建了华山黄甫峪旅游公路暨“智取华山”登山路，结束了自唐代以来“自古华山一条路”的历史。

Dear friends:

Mount Hua is located in the qinling mountain range, which lies in southernshaanxi province.

Mount Hua (hua means brilliant, chinese, or flowery; shan means mountain)is one of the five sacred taoist mountains in china. Mount Hua boasts a lot ofreligious sites: taoist temples, pavilions, and engraved scriptures arescattered over the mountain.

Mount Hua is well-known for its sheer cliffs and plunging ravines. it isknown as “the most precipitous mountain under heaven” and is probably the mostdangerous mountain in the world frequented by hikers.

Mount Hua is located 120 kilometers east of xian, about 3 hours from thecity centre. there are five peaks that make up the mountain: cloud terrace peak(north peak, 1613m)， jade maiden peak (middle peak, 2042m)， sunrise peak (eastpeak, 2100m)， lotus peak (west peak, 2038m) and landing wild goose peak (southpeak, 2160m). north peak, the lowest of the five, is the starting point. it hasthree ways up it: the six kilometer winding track from Mount Hua village, thecable car or the path beneath it.

next on the route is jade maiden peak. legend has it that a jade maiden wasonce seen riding a white horse among the mountains, hence the name. the hikerscan choose to take a left to sunrise peak, a fine place to enjoy the view of thesunrise in early morning (which would involve climbing the mountain in the darkas there is nowhere to stay on the mountain).

alternatively visitors could take a right to lotus peak. Mount Hua meansflower mountain, and it got the name from lotus peak, which resembles abeautifully blooming lotus flower. finally there is a gondola which taksvisitors acroa steep valley to landing wild goose peak, the highest among thefive summits. the path to the summit is characterized by steep rock faces, withobstacles including a foot-wide plank walkway fixed to a sheer rock face withonly a chain along the rock for support. the route continues with footholds inthe rock and a chain for holding. this is followed by a vertical ladder in acleft in the rock. finally there are steep stone steps. the south peak is notfor the faint of heart and is particularly dangerous in winter weather. however,the views are breathtaking. the climb to its summit makes it clear how theimpenetrable mountain repelled attackers over the centuries.

as early as the second century bce, there was a daoist temple known as theshrine of the western peak located at its base. daoists believed that in themountain lives a god of the underworld. the temple at the foot of the mountainwas often used for spirits mediums to contact the god and his underlings. unliketaishan,which became a popular place of pilgrimage, Mount Hua only receivedlocal pilgrms, and was not well known in much of the rest of china. Mount Huawas also an important place for immortality seekers, as powerful drugs werereputed to be found there. kou qianzhi (365-448)， the founder of the northerncelestial masters received revelations there, as did chen tuan (920-989)， wholived on the mountain prior to receiving immortality. in the 1230s, all thetemples on the mountain came under control of the daoist quanzhen school. in1998, the management committee of Mount Hua agreed to turn over most of themountains temples to the china daoist association. this was done to helpprotect the environment, as the presence of monks and nuns deters poachers andloggers.

仙华山又名仙姑山，位于浦江县城北9公里处，总面积18平方公里。主峰少女峰，海拔728米。相传因轩辕少女元修在此修真得道升天而得名。仙华山崛起于1.5亿年前的中生代，由于燕山运动强烈的断裂挤压和火山活动而形成。属低山丘陵地貌区，山顶缓坡地发育良好。

地处亚热带季风气候区，雨热同步，光温互补，四季分明，气温适中，景区气温比县城低5℃左右。山地植被覆盖率约90%。交通方便。仙华山以奇秀的山巅峰林为胜，在海拔600米以上的仙华山巅，石峰耸峭壁立，拔地而起。如彼旗，如宝莲花，如铁马临关。

明刘伯温有诗云：“仙华杰出最怪异，望之如云浮太空。”故仙华山又有“第一仙峰”之称。分四个景区：北为石峰林立、怪石纷呈的“仙华峰林”景区;南有明赵祟袍植梅数里的“梅坞香雪”景区;东为千岁宝掌和尚修行之地“宝掌幽谷”景区;西有山环水抱的“仙湖碧水”景区。共有24奇峰、14怪石异洞等120处景点。

各位女士们先生们，大家好!

我是旅游团的导游，大家能够叫我小赵。我将带领大家去一个美丽，壮观的华山。

华山是我国著名的五岳之首之一，海拔2154·9米，位于陕西省西安以东120公里历史文化故地渭南市的华阳市境内，北临坦荡的渭河平原和咆哮的黄河，南依秦岭，是秦岭支脉分水脊的北侧的一座花岗岩。凭藉大自然风云变化的装扮，华山的千姿万态被有神有色的勾画出来，是国家级风景名胜区。

“大家赶上队伍。华山向以险要而闻名于天下，其之陡险位居五岳之首。常言道：“自古华山一条路”。一路行过，必经千尺幢、百尺峡、老君犁沟、上天梯、苍龙岭等绝险要道。

大家看这个，这个就是华山松。华山松，雄球花黄色，基部围有数枚卵状匙形鳞片……树干可割取树脂;树皮可提取栲胶;针叶可提炼芳香油;种子可食用也可榨油。

期望大家能度的过愉快的一天!下次我再和大家一齐旅游!

各位女士们先生们：

大家好!我是雪花旅游团的导游，大家可以叫我小赵。我将带领大家去一个美丽，壮观的华山。

华山，《水经注》里说：“远而望之若花状”，故名“花山”，因古代“花”、“华”通用，加上当地人的口音，故称为华山。华山与华夏紧密相连，是中华民族的象征。据清朝学者章太炎考证，“华夏”、“中华”都是因华山得名。早在《尚书》中就有华山的记载，《史记》中也记载有黄帝、尧、舜都曾到过华山巡游。秦始皇、汉武帝、唐太宗、武则天、唐玄宗等数十位帝王也曾到华山进行过大规模的祭祀活动。

华山是我国著名的五岳之首之一，海拔2154.9米，位于陕西省西安以东120公里历史文化故地渭南市的华阳市境内，北临坦荡的渭河平原和咆哮的黄河，南依秦岭，是秦岭支脉分水脊的北侧的一座花岗岩。凭藉大自然风云变化的装扮，华山的千姿万态被有神有色的勾画出来，是国家级风景名胜区。

我们此刻来到的是华山的精华部分。西峰，又称莲花峰，得名于峰顶翠云庙前右侧的那块大石，其状如莲花，山峰奇拨峻峭，如刀切剑削，壁立千仞。此峰最高处有“摘星台”，登台俯瞰，秦川茫茫，蓝天如洗，浩瀚无际，渭、洛二水如银带，北望黄河细如丝。唐代大诗人李白观此景后曾写下“西岳峥嵘何壮哉，黄河如丝天际来”的美丽诗句。

此刻我们看到的巨石叫“斧劈石”。石身有一条0。66米宽的裂缝，关于这条裂缝也有一个感人的传说。玉皇大帝的小女儿圣母与被玉帝打下凡世的金单玺相爱之后，结为夫妻。二郎神杨戬大骂其妹三圣母私配凡夫，违反天条，于是将三圣母压在华山西峰顶的巨石下方，之后三圣母生下一个儿子，取名沉香，沉香长大成人得知真相后，来到华山，战胜杨戬，了压在母亲身上的巨石救出母亲，全家得以全聚。这就是“劈山救母”神话发生的地方。

亿万年来鬼斧神工，造就了华山惊险壮丽的自然景观，千百年来文人墨客的咏颂，使华山积累了丰富的文化内涵。能够说，华山与华夏紧紧相连，是中华民族的象征;从关于华山的传说、掌故中我们能够看出，它不但博大、计策、典雅、深沉、严肃，而且幽默、诙谐，甚至还有一丝浪漫与温柔，这不正我们中华民族的写照吗?

大家看这个，这个就是华山松。华山松，雄球花黄色，基部围有数枚卵状匙形鳞片……树干可割取树脂;树皮可提取栲胶;针叶可提炼芳香油;种子可食用也可榨油。

希望大家能度过愉快的一天!下次我再和大家一起旅游!

西岳华山是我国著名的五大山岳之一，位于华阴市城南，海拨2200 米，北瞰黄河，南依秦岭，“远而望之若花状”(《水经注》)，故有其名。又因其西临少华山，古称太华山。为国家级风景名胜区。这里有誉为关中八景之一的"华岳仙掌"。

华山以奇险峻秀而驰名天下，自山麓至绝顶，名胜古迹极多，庙宇道观，亭台楼阁，雕塑石刻随处可见，险径奇石，鬼斧神工，更有云海劲松，引人入胜。山顶有朝阳(东峰)、落雁(南峰)、莲花(西峰)三峰，皆岿然笔立，直插云霄。三峰之下，有云台(北峰)、玉女(中峰)诸峰环侍拱卫，各具特色，显得山势雄伟，峰峦叠翠耸削。

北峰，亦称云台峰，是总辖四峰的冲要处所，山势峥嵘，三面悬绝，只有一岭南通，故险要异常。峰顶有真武宫，依山为屋，叠起层楼，隐映于苍松翠柏之间，周围山色如画，绚丽多姿。

东峰，峰顶朝阳台，、是华山观日出的绝佳境地，故称朝阳松林，东峰有甘露池、青虚洞、下棋亭、鹞子翻身等景点。据说宋太祖赵匡胤曾在这里和陈抟下棋，结果失败，而将华山输与陈抟。

南峰，又称落雁峰，是华山的最高峰，海拨2200米。四周皆松林，杂以桧柏。迤逦数里，浓阴匝地。南峰上有明代建造的金天宫也称白帝祠。峰顶有老君洞，相传道家始祖老聃隐居于此。洞北有太上皇，泉水碧绿，东注涧下，今称“仰天池”。东面崖下有石坊，称“南天门”。坊外西出有长空栈道，通至贺老石屋。南峰上还有老子峰、炼丹炉八卦池等名胜古迹。

西峰，是华山最秀丽奇峻的山峰，因峰顶翠云宫前有莲花石，形状如莲花。故称莲花峰。据传说故事《宝莲灯》中的三圣母之子沉香壁山救母之处就在西峰。翠云宫旁有一巨石中裂，形如斧劈，名斧劈石。石旁树立一柄铸铁长把大斧。峰的西北面，笔立如削，空绝万丈，人称舍身崖。此外，还有西元洞和莲花洞等古迹。

华山登山道路蜿蜓曲折，处处是悬崖绝壁，峭峰陡立，奇险异常。1985年修筑了12公里长的华山登山道，对其它险要处也设有铁链护栏保护游人的安全，使登山者感到有惊无险。1994年沿当年人民解放军智取华山道路又修筑了一条登山台阶路。1996年华山索道建成营运。“自古华山一条路”已成为历史。山上山下，风景区内，新建了旅游饭店、餐馆、商店等旅游服务设施，可以满足旅游者吃、住、行、游、购、娱等方面的需要。

华山英文导游词

hua shan is the highest of china’s five sacred mountains. it is 120 kilometers east of xian. it has five peaks that resemble the petals of a flower. the highest peak is 2180 meters (7085 feet).

we had had discussions about going to hua shan with some graduate students from computer science. that didn’t work out due to changes in schedules on both sides. also, they were planning to do the climb at night to be able to reach the peak at sunrise. that did not appeal to us. we wanted to spend a night on the mountain. fran’s department arranged a trip for us, making reservations at the simple hotel on the north peak. they sent two graduate students to accompany us, though they had not been to hua shan before. we met them at 8:00 on saturday morning and took a taxi to the train station. there we asked around and located a mini-bus. the bus made a couple of stops. one was to see a presentation about the traditional medicines grown on the mountain and a chance to buy some of them. it probably would have been interesting if we understood chinese. our guides gave us the general outline about what was said. the other stop was a quick lunch stop.

there are two approaches to hua shan. [chinese proverb: “there is one road and only one road to hua shan,” meaning that sometimes the hard way is the only way.] the west entrance involves 10 kilometers of walking on a road before you start climbing. we went with the east entrance, where the bus brings you to the base of a cable car that goes up to the 1500 meter north peak. our plan was to walk up to the north peak, then climb to the four other peaks the next day and take the cable car down.

we started the climb in the early afternoon. the path consists of stone steps with rough chain link handrails in the narrowest areas (we wore our bicycling gloves for hand protection). physically, it is more like climbing the steps of a skyscraper than trails at home. however, the temperature was about 95 degrees and there was not much shade. we brought lots of water, including some bottles that we froze and some gatorade that we got at the fancy department store in downtown xian. there are plenty of refreshment stands along the way where you can buy bottled water, the chinese equivalent of gatorade, and other drinks or snacks at a premium price.

we reached the north peak before 4:00 pm and rested at the hotel. our room was basic, but comfortable and clean enough. because water is scarce on the mountain, there were neither showers nor sinks available for washing. in that sense the experience felt like camping, but we were sleeping in a big tent!

after dinner at the hotel restaurant, we spent some time talking with our guides. we were a bit surprised to find that they both think of japan negatively, but like the u.s. it seems that japan’s wwii behavior in china has not been forgotten, and is emphasized in school.

we saw a beautiful sunset and watched the sky become resplendent with thousands of stars, including the milky way galaxy. this was the clearest sky that we have seen in china. the fresh air at hua shan is a treat!

our guides had both been planning to get up at 4:00 am to watch the sunrise. fran and i made sleep a priority. we did happen to wake up a bit before sunrise (our room faced east) and went outside to watch the sky become rosy. ironically, our guides missed the sunrise because they had stayed up late watching the european soccer championships on the television in their room

the plan for the day was to climb the other four peaks, but we reserved the right to shorten the route. the first part was a steep climb to middle peak. after the low north peak, all the others are at roughly meters. there were crowds on the way to middle peak – mostly chinese hikers but we did see a few other wai guo (foreigners) as well.

we visited two taoist temples en route to middle peak. each one had an altar with incense and offerings of fruit. the friendly monks invited us to say a prayer or to send blessings to loved ones. fran accepted their invitation. at the first temple, she lit incense sticks and knelt on a cushion in front of the altar saying a silent prayer for our safe journey to the various summits of hua shan (the prayer was answered). at the second temple, she knelt on a cushion in front of the altar and sent silent blessings to several friends who are experiencing challenging situations in their lives at present. after each blessing, she leaned forward and the monk struck a drum.

after middle peak, the crowds got much thinner. the next was east peak, which had a steep ladder climbing rock. fran was dubious about this ascent, but realized that the ladder wasn’t so bad and went for it. that was a good decision because we were then able to do a loop and the trails got almost empty at this point. after skirting the top of a cliff with a steep dropoff on both sides, we had a pleasant walk to south peak and west peak. there was even a small amount of dirt trail! the summit of south peak was the highest point on hua shan, so of course we asked another hiker to take a photo of our guides and us. the views from the tops of each peak were beautiful. hua shan and the surrounding mountains are very rugged and remind us somewhat of hiking in the southwestern united states or the sierras.

we took a route that eventually brought us to the main line returning down from middle to north peak. we were happy to have ascended each of the five peaks (petals) of flower mountain.

by cable car (the longest in asia), it was just 7 minutes down to the park entrance. we caught a shuttle bus into town, then transferred to a bus for xian.

our guides told us that we had walked up and down a total of 4000 stairs! we were glad that we did not have this information when we started. for three days after returning home, our sore leg muscles instructed us to take the elevator to our fifth floor apartment rather than climbing the stairs.

我们先坐上了游览车，车子沿着长龙一般的盘山公路飞快的行驶着，我透过窗户清楚的看到了外面的风景。高大的华山像一个个勇敢的战士，身上穿着青绿色的伪装服，站在盘山公路旁保护群众的安全。我打开窗户，感到了阵阵的凉风在吹拂我的脸颊，我还听到小溪奏出的乐曲，让我感受到了大自然的亲切。

进入华山，我就感到了一种清闲，路的两边，一边是绿油油的树丛和野草、野花，另一边当然是栏杆和岩石。当我爬到一个平台时，往下望去，只见空中云雾弥漫，仿佛我在登天山一般，身边的云雾好像一伸手就可以摸到。远处的山有的像老人的背，有的像骆驼的驼峰，有的像坚韧的利剑。

我们继续向上爬，上面的景色越变越美，空中的云雾在山中漂浮着，就像我们在云海上空，真想在里面游一圈啊!我身边的一棵树，长的歪歪扭扭的，但是十分茂盛，像一个老爷爷在我旁和我一起欣赏这美丽的景色。云雾在空中跳舞，跳得十分投入，一会儿在空中转一个圈，一会儿翻一个滚，一会儿还在空中劈叉，跳得很高很高。

华山虽然比不过黄山的美，比不过泰山的高，但是那一座山由华山这样的险呢?