Hot Springs

Huangshan: Yuexi Sleeping Buddha Mountain Hot Spring Resort

Updated: 2011-01-13 15:57

Located in Yuexi county near Dabie Mountain, Yuexi Sleeping Buddha Mountain Hot Spring Resort features scenic mountain views and a pleasant climate. The resort is near the Sleeping Buddha on Lingshan Mountain, and boasts high-quality hot spring waters. It is an ideal place for sightseeing and relaxation. The resort was built in the architectural style of the Hui school. All buildings are primitive stone and wood structures and blend with the natural setting.

Yuexi Sleeping Buddha Mountain Hot Spring is also called Ling Spring. It is at the eastern foot of Dabie Mountain at Tangchifan in Wenquan town on the northern outskirts of Yuexi county in Anhui province. The area is surrounded by mountains, the climate is generally warm, and the scenery is inviting. The hot spring waters of Sleeping Buddha Mountain are on a par with Huaqing Pool in Xi’an, Shaanxi province, and the Dayingkou Hot Spring in Henan province. The spring is rated one of the four famous historical hot springs in China.

As early as the Ming Dynasty, local villagers and gentlemen dug pools at the hot spring to store water. They also built simple bathing pools for bathing and disease treatment. In the 15th year of Emperor Daoguang’s reign in the Qing Dynasty (1838), local officials and investors spent money to rebuild the pools and build new pavilions for bathing and recuperation. Later, the hot spring became a public bathing and recuperation site. In the era of the Republic of China, the hot spring became a military bathing pool. After 1949, following a series of renovation and expansion projects, men’s pools, women’s pools, clothes changing pools and rest rooms were built.

Since the water temperature varies, the spring waters have different curative effects. The hot spring has been said to ease pain, relax muscles, treat skin diseases and help in the treatment of arthritis, psoriasis and pityriasis roseola. The pH value of 9.35 is said to be especially helpful in treating cure seborrhea, seborrheic dermatitis and rosacea. A high zinc content is said to help treat eczema, lower limb chronic ulcers and sores. Thus, patients can choose baths based on their needs for relaxation or specific treatment of ailments

Yuexi Sleeping Buddha Mountain Hot Spring Resort is conveniently located adjacent to No 105 National Highway, only 5 kilometers from the exit for Jinan-Guangzhou Expressway and about 200 kilometers from Wuhan and Hefei. There are many tourist attractions near the resort, including Tianzhu Mountain, Shikong Mountain, Miaodao Mountain, Mingtang Mountain, Yaoluoping Natural Reserves and Tianxian River.

Legend of the Sleeping Buddha Mountain

According to the legend of Sleeping Buddha Mountain, there were once seven fairies in heaven. Every day, they bathed in the river. They bathed in Immortal River, Nine-Well River and White Horse Pond, but Immortal River was their favorite. Although these areas were vast, they lacked tranquility. For this reason, the fairies looked for a serene place. One day, on the way to Immortal River, the seven fairies passed ancient Nanyue and saw rolling mountains, luxuriant trees, jagged rocks and beautiful scenery. Out of curiosity, they descended to the earth and took a closer look. After they visited the mountains (today’s Tianzhu Mountain, Shikong Mountain, Miaodao Mountain and Mingtang Mountain), looked for a place for bathing. To their surprise, there was a spring not far from the mountains, and near the spring there was a large pool. The steaming water was so clear that the bottom could be seen. They were very happy to bathe and play in the water.

After bathing, they asked their good friend, Sleeping Buddha, for lotus seeds and scattered the lotus seeds over the water. In the blink of an eye, beautiful lotus grew all over the pond, as if transformed into a fairyland on the earth. Since then, the fairies in the heaven often visited. Sleeping Buddha visited, too, and was captivated by the beauty. He gradually fell into dream and didn’t wake up. Later he was transformed into a mountain and existed as an angel. Thousands of years later, the legend continued, the lotus withered, but the hot spring and pool where the seven fairies bathed remained as a place of permanent beauty.

(chinadaily.com.cn)