Niuxinshan stands abruptly, aloof and majestic, looking at the peak like a bow, looking at the mountain like a bow, quite solemn. Qianlong's "Yanshi County Records" said that the temple at the top of Niuxin Mountain was called Hongjiang Temple. Tianmen, Bell and Drum Tower, guanyin temple and other original buildings. Unfortunately, most of them have collapsed now, and there is also a stone archway with exquisite carvings, such as kissing animals, stone lions and embossed patterns. The couplet is "The bamboo path is deep and sunny, and the lotus platform is covered with auspicious clouds."
Niuxinshan has a wonderful legend about its origin.
In those days, there was a mountain shaped like the back of an ox. Both the founder and Guanyin Bodhisattva took a fancy to this beautiful fairy mountain on earth and wanted to turn it into their own territory. They met on the way there and agreed that whoever arrived first would own the mountain. Ancestors walk fast and arrive first. He put the whip on the top of the mountain and went to see it elsewhere. When Guanyin arrived, she saw the whip of her ancestors and was about to leave. She was very discouraged. An idea suddenly occurred to her, so she took off her embroidered shoes and buried them under the whip. Then she went to the mountain stream and waited for her ancestors while washing and grooming.
When the ancestor came back, he smiled and said to Guanyin, "Look, I'm early, and my whip is stuck on the top of the mountain!" " "Guanyin pretended to look surprised and smiled:" Hey! You're late! Your whip is stuck in my shoe! When they reached the top of the mountain, the patriarch saw an embroidered shoe under the whip and knew that Guanyin had played a trick. He was very angry, but he couldn't tell the truth, so he took advantage of the whip to pick up embroidered shoes and left.
Just when Guanyin was proud, she suddenly saw her embroidered shoes fall into the Yellow River in the north and become mud shoes. She can't laugh anymore. That embroidered shoe is on the Yellow River beach north of Liang Dong Village, Menghui Town, Mengjin County. What about Guanyin? After that, I had to walk barefoot. Besides, after his father left angrily, Wang Lingguan, the protector who followed his father, didn't want to eat this yabakui. When he left, he secretly tried hard under his feet, took a few steps, stamped down the originally high "cow back" on the mountain and shook out the "cow heart". Now there is a protruding stone on the top of the mountain, like the heart of an ox, so people call this mountain Niuxin Mountain.
Later, although people built a temple for Guanyin on Niuxin Mountain, in order to praise his broad-mindedness, "men don't fight with women", they built an ancestral temple for their ancestors on the main peak of Wanan Mountain, which is higher in the south. There is a famous village at the foot of the mountain, and Niuxinshan Temple Fair is held every February 14 of the lunar calendar. Locals are commonly known as Shanzhanghui. In just one day, more than 100,000 people went up the mountain to worship Buddha and touch Niuxin Stone, which is an empty lane (Niuxin Stone is a small piece of ochre, which is said to have "special functions" such as eliminating all diseases, strengthening the heart and helping fortune, just under the incense burner in front of Guanyin Lotus in guanyin temple).
Zhang Cun Mountain has the lower hall of Hongjiang Temple, and Niuxin Mountain has Hongjiang Temple halfway up the mountain. We started climbing from Hongjiang Temple halfway up the mountain. The mountain is not too high or steep enough, but the slope is gentle, bluestones are everywhere, weeds are everywhere, and the scenery is beautiful. In less than half an hour, we arrived at the temple at the top of Niuxin Mountain.
This temple is now called Niuxinshan Temple (also known as Hongjiang Temple and Wen Yin Temple), which was built in the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty and rebuilt in Qianlong five years. Tianmen, Bell and Drum Tower, guanyin temple and other original ancient buildings. Unfortunately, most of them have collapsed now, and temple buildings have been rebuilt in recent years.
Since ancient times, most temples face south, but Niuxinshan Temple is an exception, and its gate faces north. Climbing up the steep stone steps, you can see the first mountain gate with a horizontal stone plaque that reads: Toutianmen. The first corridor is dedicated to four donkey kong, all of which are hideous. Going up the stone steps, you can reach the second mountain gate and corridor, where there are four heavenly kings, each with a magnificent image.
After the second mountain gate and corridor, you can see the only ancient stone archway left in Niuxinshan Temple. It is a very precious cultural relic and the best stone archway in yanshi city.
They are all buckled with Daqing stone carvings. The height is 6. 1m, the width is 5.2m, and the width of the middle door is 2m. There are three flower backs, four kissing animals, more than 40 relief patterns such as Melo performing arts, lying cows waiting to be plowed, auspicious phoenix, eight stone lions, 22 fighting arches, four banners and two couplets. The roof of the square is a hill-leaning structure, and the flower back, kiss sale, cornice and bucket arch support each other and overlap and buckle into one.
All the carvings on the archway, from the top of the square, stone pillars and sumitomo to figures, birds and animals, flowers and plants, are moving and moving, with different sizes, beautiful shapes, realistic lines and skillful knives, which can be called masterpieces of stone carving art in Qing Dynasty.
Many stone carvings in the archway are chiseled with mortises, and the connecting plate-like iron plates at the joint contain each other, making the whole archway structure tight and seamless. On the front of the square, there are four buildings with "Guangji Borderless", and on the side, there are "four continents with deep bamboo trails, bright sunshine and clean lotus terrace".
On the back of the square, there is the word "Nanhai Cihang", and on the side, the words "Dragon dancing on the lotus platform and the sound of crossing the sea on the sword pool column" are clearly recognizable. The font is old and spicy, and it should come from experts in the book industry. According to textual research, the stone archway was built in the 24th year of Qianlong (AD 1759). In 2006, it was listed in the fourth batch of cultural relics protection units in Henan Province.
There are many stone tablets in the courtyard, among which the inscription "Rebuild guanyin temple, Rebuild the Golden Body" is still clearly visible: "Funiu 800, with vertical and horizontal branches. Only solitary seal, natural stone, ochre red, shaped like a bull's heart, taking the aura of heaven and earth and collecting the essence of the sun and the moon. Human contact can cure all diseases, prolong life, and be auspicious and safe. It has guanyin temple on it. It should work. There are many pilgrims from far and near, and incense has flourished since ancient times. "
It is said that Niuxinshan is named after this Niuxinshan. Every year in February of the lunar calendar, during the Niuxinshan Temple Fair, hundreds of thousands of people can go up the mountain to worship Buddha and touch Niuxinshan one day. It seems that, as contained in this inscription, this bull heart stone is somewhat magical, mysterious and even deified. Does this have anything to do with Niu Xinshan in the mysterious center?
Go through the corridor, climb three steep stairs, and reach the highest point of the mountain. Guanyin Hall is here. Sitting on the lotus platform is a Guanyin bodhisattva, which is more than five meters high and serene and amiable. Guanyin Bodhisattva in the middle is slightly taller than Manjusri Bodhisattva and Samantabhadra Bodhisattva on both sides. According to legend, the ox heart, which can dispel all diseases, strengthen the heart and help fortune, is located under the incense burner in front of the Bodhisattva. I can't slide my hand because there are too many people touching it.
Although Niuxinshan is named after the magical Niuxinshan stone, it is rich in another kind of stone-blue marble, which cannot be ignored. Two kilometers north of Niuxin Mountain, there is an important quarry in ancient times. The blue marble here is famous for its clear texture and delicate texture. Mr. Xu Jinxing, a famous scholar in Luoyang, said that in the Song Dynasty, the imperial court sent people to quarry stones near Niuxinshan on a large scale, with tens of thousands of people at most. There are many stone statues, wild animals, stone pillars, stone tablets and so on. In Song Ling, Gongyi, all the stones used were taken from here.
Stone can't be said to be the cutest. The most famous poem describing the beautiful scenery of Niuxin Mountain in ancient times is the Hermit Room of Niuxin Mountain Villa written by Du Qian, assistant minister of the Ministry of Industry in Ming Dynasty. He wrote in the poem:
How heavy are the sounds of birds and apes?
Half a day, quinoa stick, sunset peak.
It was difficult for the Qing Dynasty to get addicted to smog.
There are traces of stones and valleys in the sky.
Clear water, a stream, autumn and full moon,
Green radish thousands of feet Xiaoling pine.
The perch doesn't wait for the autumn wind,
Washing your ears is no problem.
On the left side of the main hall is the God of Wealth Temple, where Guan Gong of Wu Caishen is enshrined. On the right is the Hall of Six Ancestors, dedicated to the six ancestors of Zen Buddhism. Behind the Guanyin Temple is the change pavilion, where the mother of change is enshrined. After the pavilion was changed, Anyang Palace was dedicated to barren mothers. A small temple on the left is a white temple dedicated to white mothers. There is an unnamed pool next to the temple. However, the water in the pool does not freeze all year round, and it is warm as spring in winter and freezing cold in summer.
There is a path behind the mountain leading to the viewing pavilion 300 meters away. You can enjoy the stretch of mountains from the viewing pavilion and look back at the majesty of the ox's heart. There is Shuanglongshan National Forest Park behind the mountain. The grandeur of the mountains is hidden in the darkness.
Having a rest at the foot of the mountain, I saw a small house by the road. A friend said it was a teahouse with a stone tablet on the wall. The inscription is "obey mother's last words", which contains a lot of content. I can't remember clearly after browsing once, but I had a great effort to find the relevant information after I got home. It turned out that this teahouse was built by nearby villager Li Tianxing in accordance with his mother's last words. Probably in order to be handed down from generation to generation and never forget, he carved his mother's last words on the tablet and embedded them in the wall.
The inscription reads as follows:
Listen to me carefully, my son, and remember what happened at home.
In the old society, your father died young, leaving a woman and five men.
Hungry, mother and child suffer.
Since I brought my fifth daughter-in-law, my family has been United and harmonious.
It's not easy to be a man. You should take the lead in repairing bridges and roads.
Loyalty, filial piety, benevolence and morality are hard to occupy, and greed for wine, sex and wealth.
In front of difficult people, it is easy to open your mouth, but difficult to keep your mouth shut.
Don't be arrogant and look down upon it. Do your best to overcome the difficulties.
When business people come to the front, tea and rice are the same mouth and heart.
Stay at home at night and pass it on from generation to generation.
Mother's death, in short, no horse, unfilial.
Do not burn paper, burn money, or waste money.
Children and grandchildren's daughter-in-law take care of their families and are thrifty.
There is a teahouse at the foot of Niuxin Mountain, which is convenient for men and women.
A gentleman in the Tao can quench his thirst and live up to his mother's entrustment.
Now, in my eyes, the deceased old lady and her filial son are just like the people in the temple on the mountain. This dilapidated tea temple is as sacred as the temple that the abbot of Shaolin Temple is spending 10 million yuan to rebuild. Isn't this inscription a "bull's heart stone" to treat people's inner soul?
A flower is the world and a leaf is the Buddha. Buddha is everywhere, in my heart, in your heart, in everyone's heart.
What is Buddha? I thought goodness was Buddha, nothing else!
Photography: Batu, hereditary condensed characters: Dofu