This article presents a vivid brief introduction to the Tibetan Buddhism in Wutai Mountain which is comparatively rarely known to the outside world. Readers will learn from the scenic description that Tibetan Buddhism exists actually not only in Tibet but also in some other parts of China with their own characteristics.

As one of the four Buddhistic holy lands in China, Wutai Mountain lies in the northeast part of Wutai County, Shanxi Province, China. It gets the name Wutai because of its five peaks, each with a flat top, like five terraces. The highest one is called Beitai (The North Terrace). 3061 meters in height, it is well known as "the roof of Huabei Area". Taihuai Town is the center of the basin formed by these five peaks.

Wutai Mountain plays an important role in the Buddhistic History of China. It is famous for its long history and grand Buddhistic architectural groupings. Even from the time of Yongping (58 - 75 A.D.) in the East Han, the emperors of China began choosing Wutai Mountain as the place to build temples. Till now 47 ancient monasteries still exist. Among them the lamaseries are preserved the best, such as Nan Shan Si(The Temple on the South Hill), Zhen Hai Si (The Temple for Prostrating the Sea), Guang Ren Si (The Temple of Great Benevolence), and Pu Sa Ding (The Top of Budhisattve).

I. Nan Shan Si (The Temple on the South Hill) was set up in the Yuan Dynasty. At that time it was named The Grand Temple of Blessing the Country. In the Qing Dynasty and the period of the Republic of China, more and more buildings were added. Now with ten courtyards or so, it stretches along the hillside. Inside the courtyards, stony stairs link the kiosks, palaces and stony bridges, under or between which are springlets. The scattered trees and flowers, the entrances behind the spinneys, and the smaller yards interlinking inside the bigger ones make the temple charming, deep and serene.

In the temple there is the Da Xiong Bao Dian (Jeweled Palace of the Great Hero)in which jade images of Bodhisattva, Avalokitesvara as well as the Eighteen Luohans are enshrined. The horizontal inscription board by Qing Empress Dowager Cixi hangs on the Meditation Room in the yard behind the Da Xiong Bao Dian.

II. Zhen Hai Si (The Temple for Prostrating the Sea) is located between two hills, surrounded by old trees and wild flowers. By it floods a spring that, according to legend, is an eye of the sea. The temple was built here in order to prostrate the sea; otherwise it would cause disasters.

In the courtyard of the temple stands a stony monument with the inscriptions by Qing Emperor Kangxi in 1711.

Zhen Hai Si is also famous for its Pagoda of Kntuchtu XV, Kntuchtu Drang Ca who died in Beijing during the reign of Qing Emperor Qianlong. His relics were buried in the temple and the Pagoda was built for him. Its magnificence surprises all the visitors.

III. Guang Ren Si (GuanThe Temple of Great Benevolence) was built during the reign of Qing Emperor Daoguang for Mongolian and Tibetan Lamas to live when pilgrimaging on Wutai Mountain. One of the differences between it and the other temples in the Mountain is that its 1200 figures of Buddha including Sakyamuni are bronze.

The portrait of Panchen Erdenis X enshrined by the Lamas is hung in the Palatial Hall. In the Back Hall, thousand volumes of Tibetan scriptures written during the Ming and Qing Dynasty are kept in the color glass bookcases.

Besides the religious settings, there is a clinic and a shop in the lamasery which are run by the Lamas and the Tibetan doctors from Gansu respectively. The goods sold here come from Lhasa by air, such as figures of Buddha and ornamental articles, good in quality but not being expensive.

IV. Pu Sa Ding (The Top of Bodhisattve) is the lead lamasery in Wutai Mountain, and one of the Five Arenas for Meditation there. Sitting on the top of Ling Jiu Feng (The Hill of Intelligent Vulture), the building is composed of 400 rooms with glazed-tile roofs. From the foot of the steep hill a stony ladder of 108 steps leads to the lamasery. The high ladder that looks like touching the heaven becomes an attractive scene.

V. Along a wooden archway leading to the lamasery, people can find some imperial monuments with the inscriptions by Emperor Kangxi and Qianlong among which the highest one is 6 meters high, inscribed by Qianlong. On its four sides, each 1 meter wide, the inscriptions are carved in the languages of Chinese, Mongolian, Manchu and Tibetan.

Tibetan Buddhism originated in the Yuan Dynasty. Emperor Kublai Khan believed in Tibetan Buddhism sincerely. Tibetan Lamas therefore were greatly empowered and from then on Tibetan lamaseries appeared in Wutai Mountain. In the Ming and Qing Dynasty the emperors carried out the same religious policy. They not only reconstructed and fixed old lamaseries but also transformed some temples into lamaseries. For instance, Pu Sa Ding, established originally during the reign of Emperor Xiaowen (471 - 477A.D.), was reconstructed and became a lamasery at the beginning of the reign of Ming Emperor Yongle.

Every scene in the center of Taihuai Town makes you feel like in Lhasa. The houses standing under the sunlight are Tibetan style, shinning with white, flat roofs. The Lamas are mostly from Tibet. They wear woolen roseal robes, baring their shoulders, are distinct among the monks and nuns. The Tibetan Lamas feel easy to get used to the weather here because of the high elevation of Wutai Mountain. I am very impressed by the Lamas' vivification, honesty, sincerity and satisfactory in their attitudes. They are totally free at home. Their religious system here is the same with that in Tibet. In Guang Ren Si I meet a child Lama about ten years old. In the clinic he has a bed on which are picture books in Chinese and Tibetan. Obviously he comes here as a student learning from the Lama doctors, whose medical skill is spoken highly of.

The Lamas take active part in social life. Everyday they receive a lot of visitors coming from all over the country and abroad. Some are followers of Buddhists or Lamaists; some are excursionists. Through the lamaseries, the window on Tibet, more and more people learn Tibetan civilization and Tibetan Buddhist culture that influenced the development of Tibetan culture.

With more and more hotels, restaurants and shops opening in Taihuai Town, Wutai Mountain changes a lot. Pilgrimage and tourism bring flourish for Wutai County, a developing area in Shanxi Province. But there are problems also. First of all, it is short of money to repair the temples, although some approaches are taken to raise funds. For instance, every visitor must pay 20 yuan as the Fee for Entering the Mountain. It is said that the money will contribute to repair the ancient monasteries. Still, the renovation needs more money. The dirty stalls running by crowds of people who sell odds-and-ends and other souvenirs stain the holy land. Visitors don't like them. The noise from the exhibitions, together with the smoke given out by the hotels burning coal makes visitors sick.

The lamaseries in Wutai Mountain are not only a place for pilgrimage. They have been making their contributions to the unity of the Chinese nationalities. Scholars should pay more attention to the study of their functions in history, at present, and in future.

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
The history about these temples comes from WutaishanYoulanTu by Shanxisheng Cehuiju, 1994.
See also Bai Shouyi Zhongguo Tongshi Gangyao Shanghai Renmin Chubanshe,1983 and
Ming) Song Lian Yuanshi   Zhonghua Shuju, 1976.

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