Jiashan National Forest Park

Jiashan National Forest Park is located 8 kilometers southeast of Shimen County. It is a tourist attraction integrating Chuang Wang mausoleum, Buddhist holy land, source of tea ceremony and forest scenery. The National Forest Park was established in 1993, selected as the National Forest Park demonstration park in 1994, and rated as China's AAA tourist attraction in 2001. The territory has warm and humid climate, deep and fertile soil, undulating terrain, vertical and horizontal gullies, rich vegetation, and forest coverage rate as high as 93.6%.

There are 204 species of woody plants in Jiashan National Forest Park, including Davidia involucrata, fragrant fruit tree, Liriodendron tulipifera and other valuable tree species under state key protection, as well as 18 ancient trees listed in the protection list of ancient trees in Shimen County. There are more than 10 scenic spots in the park, such as Chuang Wang tomb, Lingquan temple, ximechi, yuxijing, biyanquan, Foguang Pavilion and celebrity tomb.

Jiashan temple has experienced ups and downs for thousands of years. In the Ming Dynasty, most of the temples were destroyed due to the successive years of war. There were only more than 60 monks. In the early years of Shunzhi in the Qing Dynasty, Li Zicheng, the leader of the peasant uprising, was defeated and stationed here under the name of fengtianyu. He led thousands of monks and soldiers to the jungle, forming a grand pattern of "nine halls and one palace" and "closing the Mountain Gate on horseback". From Jiashan temple to the period of the Republic of China, the hall was in disrepair for a long time, and after the war, there were only three halls and one chamber. After the founding of new China, after the "land reform", "great leap forward" and "Cultural Revolution" period, only Daxiong Hall (now Guanyin Hall) was completely preserved. Jiashan temple is composed of Shanmen hall, Jiuqu bridge, bell tower, Drum Tower, Tianwang hall, Daxiong hall, Guanyin hall, Fatang hall, yonghuating Lingquan pagoda, Chuangwang secret palace, Jushi building, Prajna gate, teahouse, etc.

Chuang Wang tomb (Mausoleum) is located in the central scenic area of Jiashan National Forest Park and the west slope of shizou highway. The tomb was built in the early Qing Dynasty. It was proved that it was the place where Li Zicheng, the leader of peasant uprising in the late Ming Dynasty, died after his defeat in the army. From the end of 1980 to the beginning of 1981, the municipal and county cultural relic departments and archaeological experts excavated the tomb of the great monk Fengtian, and found that the burial style of one tomb and three caves was the same as that of Mizhi County in Northern Shaanxi. Together with the unearthed cultural relics from his tomb and many documents and cultural relics found in Jiashan temple in recent years, they further confirmed Li Zicheng's reclusion in Jiashan, which caused a great sensation in the academic circles. Nowadays, many historians at home and abroad hold the view of Jiashan. The whole cemetery is composed of Lingwei, Dashun bridge, purple stone archway, Shinto, Mausoleum, Yefu tower, minglou, memorial hall, kitchen, stele Gallery, etc. it covers an area of more than 30 mu and is known as "the first mausoleum in Hunan".

Jiashan National Forest Park

Jiashan National Forest Park is located eight kilometers southeast of Shimen County in Hunan Province. It is named "Jiashan" because of the confrontation between East and West peaks and the connection between North and south. The planning area of the forest park is 1530 hectares, and the current operating area is 740 hectares. The forest coverage rate is more than 90%. The park is surrounded by emerald hills, towering trees, fresh air and elegant environment. With a long cultural history and beautiful natural scenery, it has become a scenic spot in the south of the Yangtze River. It is a suburban garden type forest park and was rated as "China's AAAA tourist area" in 2014.

Development history

In 1993, it was approved as a national forest park by the Ministry of forestry;

In 1994, it was designated as the national 20 Forest Park demonstration park by the Ministry of forestry;

In 2002, it was rated as AAA scenic spot by National Tourism Administration;

In 1959 and 1983, Jiashan temple was declared as a provincial cultural relic protection unit by Hunan Provincial People's government;

In 1999, it was approved by Hunan Provincial People's government as a key place for religious activities in Hunan Province;

Chuang Wang mausoleum was announced by Hunan Provincial People's government as a provincial cultural relic protection unit in 1996;

Jiashan was rated as the best scenic spot in Hunan Province in 1998;

On August 31, 2006, with the approval of the State Forestry Administration, Jiashan forest park became one of the first national forest parks authorized to use the special signs of national forest parks in China;

In May 2014, it was rated as national AAAA scenic spot.

Main attractions

The holy land of Buddhism

Jiashan Lingquan temple, commonly known as Jiashan temple, is an open place for Buddhist activities and a provincial cultural relic protection unit. It covers an area of more than 50 mu and has a history of more than 1130 years. It enjoys the reputation of "imperial cultivation in Three Dynasties" in Tang, song and Yuan Dynasties. It once lived in the cultural center of the Lishui River Basin for a long time. It has been listed in the dictionary of Chinese places of interest. There are the following scenic spots in the temple: Shanmen hall, nanqingchi, the second floor of Zhonggu, Tianwang hall, Daxiong hall, Dabei hall, Fatang hall, Jindian, Chuang wangmi palace, Lingquan pagoda, Zhaitang, and the ancient tree community landscape of the temple.

Chuang Wang cemetery

Located in the dock shaped land on the west side of Jiashan temple, it covers an area of 30 mu from the west to the East. It is the burial ground for Li Zicheng, the leader of peasant uprising in the late Ming Dynasty and the early Qing Dynasty, after his defeat in the army. It has a group of antique buildings and green belts. It is solemn and majestic. There are the following landscapes in the cemetery: Lingwei, Li Zicheng's chanyin Jiashan memorial hall, Yongchang pool, Dashun bridge, purple stone archway, Shinto, shixiangsheng, Mausoleum, Yefu tower, minglou, stele corridor.

Wash ink pool scenic spot

The scenic spot is located between Jiashan temple and Chuang Wang mausoleum, with the following landscape facilities: wash ink pool, Yuxi well.

Wash ink pool: This is the place where literati poets, eminent monks and scholars from Jiashan wrote poems, painted and cleaned ink, so it is called wash ink pool. Li Zicheng once wrote such a poem here: "full of dissatisfaction, clear not clear, together against, get peace." Literally, Li Zicheng thinks that all the emperors of the Qing Dynasty should be overthrown by him. If he is the Emperor himself, the world will be peaceful, so it is also called dissatisfied unclear pool.

Yuxi well: it's said that Li Zicheng attacked Beijing and took the seal to Jiashan temple. He wanted to use the seal after making a comeback. But he didn't expect that the situation was over. He wanted to kill the enemy, but he couldn't go back to heaven. In a fit of anger, he threw the seal into the well and got the name of Yuxi well.

Jiashan ancient street

Biyanquan, Shanhui tomb, Yuanwu tower, Yudai lake.

Biyan spring: it is located 1km southwest of Jiashan temple. It is named because the two eyes spring water flows out from the five stone peaks. In the 11th year of Xiantong in Tang Dynasty (870 A.D.), the association of eminent monks came to Jiashan in Shimen and founded Jiashan Lingquan temple. The monks of good association drinking tea and sitting in meditation realized the "Jiashan situation" of "apes holding their sons back to qingzhangling, birds holding their flowers down to Biyan spring", which became the most representative and exemplary opportunity and realm of tea zen in the Tang and Five Dynasties Zen, and the Zen forest of past Dynasties was also called "Biyan". The newly renovated Biyan spring scenic spot, centered on Biyan spring, is composed of Biyan stream, Biyan bridge, Biyan pool, Biyan lake, Biyan Pavilion, Biyan cave, Biyan tea garden, Biyan square, Biyan cliff stone carvings and other scenic spots. Visitors can experience a quiet, pure, beautiful, unrestrained and free state of "tea Zen".

Forest scenery

In the northwest of Jiashan Park, there are high mountains ranging from 180m to 420m above sea level. In the south, there are a row of hills and low mountains, forming a horseshoe shaped basin with high in the West and low in the East. The whole garden is lush with 95% forest coverage, forming a microclimate of natural oxygen bar. Foguang pavilion has the following scenic spots: Foguang Pavilion, fox cave and yerenwan.

On August 31, 2006, with the approval of the State Forestry Administration, Jiashan forest park became one of the first national forest parks authorized to use the special signs of national forest parks in China.

Jiashan Temple

Jiashan temple, also known as Lingquan temple, was first built in 870 ad (in the 11th year of Xiantong in Tang Dynasty). It has experienced "three dynasties of imperial cultivation" by Yizong of Tang Dynasty, Shenzong of Song Dynasty and Shizu of Yuan Dynasty. Before the Ming Dynasty and the early Qing Dynasty, Li Zicheng, the king of Dashun, defeated the abbot of chanyin Jiashan for 30 years. In the heyday of Jiashan temple, it had nine halls and one palace. Later, it was revived and abandoned several times after the chaos of war. Now, six halls and one palace have been restored. Jiashan temple is the place where the Buddhist patriarch of Zen preached. The Song Dynasty eminent monk Yuan Wu Ke Qin commented and sang Bi Yan Lu, which is known as "the first book of Zen" in the world, and has a far-reaching influence in China, Japan and Southeast Asian countries.

Since 1993, the Institute of history of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the society of Ming history of China, and the Hunan society for the study of Li Zicheng's fate have held three academic seminars in Shimen. Through the analysis and textual research of the cultural relics and historical materials collected and unearthed in Jiashan, the historical conclusion that Li Zicheng was defeated, changed his name to fengtianyu, became a recluse of Zen, and passed away in Jiashan has been made clear to the world. In order to commemorate the leader of the peasant uprising who rested here, in 1992, according to He Yu, the prefect of Lizhou in Qianlong of Qing Dynasty, the original appearance was restored and rebuilt. Covering an area of more than 30 mu, the cemetery is composed of memorial hall, Mausoleum, Mausoleum guard, purple stone archway, Shinto, Ming Lou, God kitchen, stele Gallery, wild Buddha pagoda, etc.

Jiashan is the ancestral court of tea Chan, which is famous in East Asia. Jiashan Niudi tea has been listed as a tribute from Song Dynasty to Qing Dynasty, and Biyan spring is the best spring for tea making. The founder of Jiashan mountain was good at talking about Zen and tasting tea, and realized the true meaning of "tea Zen". According to the research of experts from China tea zen Association, Jiashan is the authentic source of "tea Zen" and "tea ceremony".

Tourism information

Park Name: Jiashan National Forest Park

Province: Shimen County, Changde City, Hunan Province

Chinese PinYin : Jia Shan Guo Jia Sen Lin Gong Yuan