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37-662: It has an area of 1,255 km (485 sq mi), and contains 11 towns and five townships. Towards its south the district is bordered by the Qin Mountains and to the north by the Weihe River. Thirty-six rivers run through the area, making the land very fertile. Fifty-five acres of land are arable and 52.4 acres of land are covered by forests. The region has an abundance of minerals such as gold, silver, copper, iron, limestone and marble. In 2010 GDP reached 100 billion Yuan (about US$ 2000 per capita). The district enjoys

74-474: A central storage facility in the Qinling mountain range, though some are kept at smaller regional storage facilities." Mount Taibai Mount Taibai ( Chinese : 太白山 ; pinyin : Tàibái Shān ) is a mountain located on the border between Mei , Taibai and Zhouzhi counties in the south west of Shaanxi Province , China . The mount's highest point, Baxian Tower ( Chinese : 拔仙台 ), rises to

111-650: A height of 3,767 m (12,359 ft) and is the tallest in the Qinling Range , as well as the watershed between the Han River and Wei River . Mount Taibai is also the highest mountain in Eastern China. During the reign of the legendary, morally perfect Three Sovereigns (c. 2852–2070 BC) Mount Taibai was called Mountain of Rich Goods ( pinyin: Dun Wu Shān ). During the Xia dynasty (c. 2070–1600 BC) it

148-528: A peak in the 18th century in the Qinling Mountains. The region is home to the endemic Qinling panda ( Ailuropoda melanoleuca qinlingensis ), a brown-and-white subspecies of the giant panda ( A. melanoleuca ), which is protected with the help of the Changqing and Foping nature reserves . An estimated 250 to 280 pandas live in the region, which is thought to represent around one-fifth of

185-489: A warm tropical climate, free of extreme temperatures, with an average temperature of around 13.3 degrees Celsius (55 °F). The most pleasant months are in spring between March and May and September to November. The winters are cold but not excessively so, with an average temperature of -1 Celsius (30 °F) in January. The summers are warm and dry with most of the precipitation coming in the autumn. As 2020, Huyi District

222-427: Is composed of stone covered by yellow loess soil, while the middle elevations of the mountain are covered with hardy trees and spectacular rocky outcrops. The higher elevations of the mountain contain glacial remnants, cirque , peaks, aulacogen , and moraine , all of which have proven of great use toward geological research. Flora from both the sub-tropical and warm temperate climates inhabit areas of Taibai. Due to

259-408: Is divided to 8 subdistricts and 6 towns. This district is one of the main sources of Aggregata. There are 340 kinds of medicinal herbs that grow wild in the area including Iris , Aggregata, Bupleurum , Tianma, Honeysuckle , Fritillaria , and Schisandra . The district has a male population of 303,400 and female population of 274,600 (1.1 male:1 female). The majority of the district's population

296-413: Is famous for a variety of tourist attractions. Tourists can enjoy the landscape of this region, especially in two national parks—Taiping National Forest Park and Zhuque National Forest Park, which offer a great view of mountains and waterfalls. It is also the home to two famous temples: Caotang Temple and Chongyang Palace, where Wang Chongyang , founder of Quanzhen School , practiced Taoism and where he

333-426: Is no exception. Chinese gods are often historical figures, such as Laozi , who are elevated to gods first through their popularity amongst ordinary folks and then by the ruling emperor. Stories about the origin of the three gods of Mount Taibai therefore go back a long way. The oldest tale is about a man from Li Yang by the name of Gu Chun, meaning ‘Spring Valley’, who lived deep inside the forests of Mount Taibai during

370-604: Is one of the largest amphibians in the world, and is critically endangered ; it is locally pursued for food, and for use of its body parts in traditional Chinese medicine . An environmental education program is being undertaken to encourage sustainable management of wild populations in the Qin Mountains, and captive-breeding programs have also been set up. According to the Nuclear Information Project, China "keeps most of its nuclear warheads at

407-430: Is rural at 477,400, while the urban population is 100,600 (roughly 86.45% and 16.55% respectively). The population density is 477 people per square kilometer. Population density in urban areas can reach as high as 3400 per square kilometer, and can be as low as 11 per square kilometer in rural areas. Han make up 99.88% of the population, although 21 other ethnic groups also live there. Tourist attractions Huyi district

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444-520: Is the line of mountains along the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau . To the east are the lower Funiu and Dabie Mountains, which rise out of the coastal plain. The northern side of the range is prone to hot weather, the rain shadow cast by the physical barrier of the mountains dictating that the land to the north has a semi-arid climate, and is consequently somewhat impoverished in regard to fertility and species diversity. Furthermore,

481-544: The Golden Star fell upon the west of Zhongnan 's main peak, and thus it was titled Taibai Mountain." Here, the spirit of the Golden Star metamorphosed into magnificent white jade. Ever since, the mountain has been known as Taibai Shan, literally Great ( Tài ) White ( Bái ) Mountain ( Shān ) and Taibai being an ancient Chinese name for the planet Venus . The name Mount Taibai also refers to the permanent snow covering

518-579: The Han dynasty . When he died, his family buried him but during the night his body got up and they saw him leave. Local residents thus believed that he was the god of Mount Taibai and built a temple for him, calling it Taibai (and sometimes Gu Chun) Temple. More recent stories talk of not just one but three Taibai gods because, during the Yuan dynasty , there were three lakes on Taibai Shan. These lakes were revered for their water and cooling effect and were represented by

555-685: The Tiejia Taoist Ecology Temple . On the exact spot where one can today find the Tiejia Taoist Ecology Temple once stood the old Tiejiashu Temple, hidden amongst the foliage of age-old trees. The Tiejiashu Temple was built at the time of the Han dynasty and remained there until the Cultural Revolution. It was one of the oldest temples dedicated to the gods of Mount Taibai and the first temple on

592-453: The divide between the drainage basins of the Yangtze and Yellow River systems, providing a natural boundary between North and South China and support a huge variety of plant and wildlife, some of which is found nowhere else on earth. To the north is the densely populated Wei River valley, an ancient center of Chinese civilization. To the south is the Han River valley. To the west

629-428: The understory . The region is home to a large number of rare plants, of which around 3,000 have been documented. Plant and tree species native to the region include ginkgo ( Ginkgo biloba —thought to be one of the oldest species of tree in the world), as well as Huashan or Armand pine ( Pinus armandii ), Huashan shen ( Physochlaina infundibularis ), Acer miaotaiense and Chinese fir . Timber harvesting reached

666-602: The 18th century, the province of Shaanxi requested approval from the emperor to incorporate the Taibai gods into official provincial celebrations. This did not come about immediately. In 1774, the 39th year of the Qianlong Emperor , Shaanxi province again asked for consent and this time it was granted. As a result, the Taibai gods—previously ranked as mere dukes—acquired the official title of king. Halfway Mount Taibai, at approximately 1500 m (6,000 ft), stands

703-558: The Chinese Nationalist Party, poet and calligrapher, visited the Place of Charm and Beauty and wrote many poems there, including one carved into a rock which can still be seen today, right next to the grotto-heaven: "Sleeping Buddha is nice / Once asleep all troubles are gone / I want to come and sleep here / But who will look after the country." Sacred Mountains each have their own god or several gods and Mount Taibai

740-533: The Mountain" by the poet Li Bai : "You ask me why do I dwell in these green mountains / But I smile without a reply, only an easy mind / The river flows away silently / Bearing the fallen peach blossoms / Here is another world, but not the world of man." Peach blossoms refers to the legendary Peach Blossom Valley where deep in the mountains, in "a different world", happy people (immortals) live who know nothing of our existence. In 1933 Yu Youren , senior statesman of

777-515: The Zhou king", they refused ever to eat again and so starved to death on Mount Taibai . Zhou Ben, the general, chose the same fate. Learning of their deaths, the wise minister of the Zhou dynasty, Jiang Ziya, made the three men local gods of Mount Taibai for their great virtue and sense of righteousness. Others claim that the third god is not Zhou Ben but Li Bai , the famous poet. During the Qing dynasty of

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814-408: The center of a new Nature Preserve covering the surrounding 56,325 hectares , with the purpose of protecting its warm temperate zone ecosystem. Mount Taibai has warm temperate, temperate , cool temperate, and alpine climate. The flora and fauna of Taibai are quite diverse, with species from both northern and southern Chinese environments uniquely coexisting in the region. The base of the mountain

851-569: The entire wild giant panda population. The Qinling Mountains are also home to many other species of wildlife, including numerous birds , like the crested ibis , Temminck's tragopan , golden eagle , black throat and golden pheasants , as well as mammals like the Asiatic golden cat , Asiatic black bear , clouded leopard , golden takin , golden snub-nosed monkey , yellow-throated marten , and leopard . The Chinese giant salamander ( Andrias davidianus ), at 1.8 meters (5 ft 11 in),

888-414: The fourth century, grotto-heavens were places where heaven and earth touched. By entering a grotto-heaven you penetrate deep within the mountain and arrive in the world of immortals: you enter "the beyond within". Mount Taibai has dozens of grotto-heaven. One of the grotto-heavens is called Place of Charm and Beauty ( pinyin: Bieyou Dong Tien ). Bieyou also refers to a celebrated poem "Question and Answer in

925-450: The middle elevations, conifers, like Pinus armandii , are mixed with broadleaf birch ( Betula spp.), oaks ( Quercus spp.), and hornbeams ( Carpinus spp.); from about 2,600 to 3,000 meters (8,500 to 9,800 ft), these mid-elevation forests give way to a subalpine forest of firs ( Abies fargesii , A. chensiensis ), Cunninghamia , and birch ( Betula spp.), with rhododendrons ( Rhododendron fastigiatum ) abundant in

962-964: The mountain's rapid rises in elevation, plants from the middle temperate climate and alpine climates are also found in the same areas. Within the Nature Preserve's borders more than 1,700 different types of seed-bearing plants are found, comprising approximately 60% of the flora in the Qinling Range. Among the flora are found many second- and third-tier protected Chinese species, such as chuan-guo wine ( Sinofranchetia ), Eucommia , Kingdonia , Dipteronia sinensis , Cercidiphyllum japonicum , Euptelea pleiosperma , Acer miaotaiense , Trochodendraceae , Sinowilsonia , Taibai rainbow ( Larix chinensis ), Qinling crow's head ( Aconitum lioui ), Chinese hemlock , Populus purdomii , Circaeasteraceae , and purple-speckled peony ( Paeonia rockii ), and others. About 40 types of animals inhabit

999-474: The mountains have also acted in the past as a natural defense against nomadic invasions from the north, as only four passes cross the mountains. In the late 1990s a railway tunnel and a spiral were completed, thereby easing travel across the range. The highest mountain in the range is Mount Taibai at 3,767 meters (12,359 ft), which is about 100 kilometers (62 mi) west of the ancient Chinese capital of Xi'an . Three culturally significant peaks in

1036-577: The old master Ren Farong , the three Taibai gods are Bo Yi, Shu Qi and Zhou Ben from the Shang dynasty . Bo Yi and Shu Qi were two princes of the Kingdom of Gu Zhu and Zhou Ben was a general. The king made Shu Qi the crown prince even though Shu Qi was only the third son and Bo Yi the eldest. After the old king died, Shu Qi asked Bo Yi to be the new king but Bo Yi said: "We shouldn’t resist our father’s will," and ran away to Mount Taibai. Shu Qi did not think it

1073-559: The range are Mount Hua (2,155 meters or 7,070 feet), Mount Li (1,302 meters or 4,272 feet), and Mount Maiji (1,742 meters or 5,715 feet). The environment of the Qin Mountains is a deciduous forest ecoregion . The Qin Mountains form the watershed of the Yellow River and Yangtze River basins; historically, the former was home to deciduous broadleaf forests, while the latter has milder winters with more rainfall, and

1110-699: The route taken by pilgrims along the south side of the mountain. Next to the Tiejia Taoist Ecology Temple stand the Ecology Education Center. Respect for nature has always been deeply rooted in Taoist thought and is crucial to China in the present era of ecological crisis. Through the Ecology Education Center, the Taoist monks of the Tiejia Taoist Ecology Temple would be able to organize meetings and training programs designed to help people think in terms of sustainability, not only local visitors but also monks from other temples. In 1965 Mount Taibai became

1147-533: The summit of what is the highest peak in the Qinling range . The poet Li Bai wrote in his gufeng poem: "How vast is great Taibai / The Stars across its slopes arrayed / From Heaven it stands three hundred li / From Mortal Earth so far away." Taoists believe that the sacred mountains are interconnected via an underground network of dong tien, or grotto-heavens , with dong meaning "to penetrate something" and tien referring to heaven. Going back as far as

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1184-572: The three Taibai gods, who were known as Ku Ji (Relieving the Suffering), Hui Min (Benefiting the People) and Ling Ying (Enlightening Answers). Local residents, however, called the three gods Da A Fu (The Great Fortune), Er A Fu (The Second Fortune) and San A Fu (The Third Fortune). But according to poet and politician Yu Youren , the three Taibai gods are Yao, Shun and Yu, or the three demi-gods Earth, Heaven and Water from Chinese legend. And according to

1221-578: The universe. It was Tai Ji who gave birth to everything and therefore occupies a prominent place in Taoism. The Commentary on the Water Classic records: "During the time of Emperor Wu of Han , a Taoist temple already existed on Mount Taibai that was dedicated to Gu Chun, a man recorded in the Liexian Zhuan ." The Tang dynasty work Lu Yi Ji ( Chinese : 錄異記 ) says: "The Essence of

1258-563: Was appropriate for him to succeed to the throne since tradition dictated that the throne should be inherited by the oldest son. He therefore gave the throne to the middle son, Ya Ping, and ran after Bo Yi to Mount Taibai. When the Zhou dynasty overthrew the Shang dynasty, the two brothers believed it was not right for a vassal lord such as the duke of Zhou to snatch the kingdom from its lawful ruler. Having been told that "all under heaven now belongs to

1295-553: Was buried. It is said that great ancient Chinese poets such as Du Fu , Cen Shen , Su Shi , and Cheng Hao visited Meibei Lake, which lies to the west of the downtown area of Huyi District. Qin Mountains The Qinling ( Chinese : 秦岭 ) or Qin Mountains , formerly known as the Nanshan ("Southern Mountains"), are a major east–west mountain range in southern Shaanxi Province, China. The mountains mark

1332-699: Was generally covered in warmer, temperate, evergreen broadleaf forests. Thus, the Qin Mountains are commonly used as the demarcation line between northern and southern China . The low-elevation forests of the Qin foothills are dominated by temperate deciduous trees, like oaks ( Quercus acutissima , Q. variabilis ), elm ( Ulmus spp.), common walnut ( Juglans regia ), maple ( Acer spp.), ash ( Fraxinus spp.) and Celtis spp. Evergreen species of these low-elevation forests include broadleaf chinquapins ( Castanopsis sclerophylla ), ring-cupped oaks ( Quercus glauca ), and conifers , like Pinus massoniana . At

1369-529: Was known as Mount Taiyi, referring to the brightest star in Chinese astrology with all other stars orbiting around it. In Taoism , Taiyi is a supreme deity and the mountain its physical representation. Furthermore, Taiyi symbolises taiji , a cosmological state of the universe and its affairs on all levels, involving the interaction of Yin and Yang, the Five Phases and finally, all the concrete things in

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