Page 556 - The Encyclopedia of Taoism v1_A-L

516 THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF TAOISM A-L

lists a Kang Zhongxiongfu nei yuanqi jue ~ frp ~~ ~Ii i*J 5t ~ ffk: (Instructions on
the Ingestion of the Inner Original Breath According to Kang Zhongxiong;
van der Loon 1984, 114) that may correspond to Huanzhen xiansheng's text.
No evidence, however, supports the identification of Kang Zhongxiong with
Huanzhen xiansheng.
Catherine DESPEUX

ID Despeux 1988, 65-84 (trans. of Huanzhen xianshengfu nei yuanqi jue)
* yangsheng

Huashan

f
,
Mount Hua (Shaanxi)

Mount Hua (lit., "Flowery" or "Glorious"), located in the Huayin Tp'~? district
of Shaanxi, is the Western Peak (see under *wuyue). At about 2,000 m, it is
not the highest but certainly one of the most impressive mountains in China.
Its almost vertical granite cliffs rise just above the densely populated plain.
The pilgrimage trail leads through perilous stone steps and along ridges that
were gradually secured with iron rails, over the centuries. Looking northward
from the five summits, one can see the Yellow River bending at the famous
Tongguan @ ~m pass and flowing eastward toward the sea. Located along the
road between the cities of Xi'an and Luoyang, the mountain was visited by
innumerable literati who contributed to a huge accumulated travel literature
and poetry.
Like the other Peaks, as early as the second century BCE Mount Hua had a
temple-later named Xiyue miao .[Iti fr'J JfJj or Shrine of the Western Peak-lo-
cated at its foot where official sacrifices were conducted. Although such temples
came to be managed by Taoists throughout most of Chinese history, the
ceremonies performed there were never Taoist rites properly speaking. Tang 1
anecdotal evidence shows that besides the official state cult, the Xiyue miao
was the locus of popular devotion, with spirit -mediums communicating with
the god of the Peak and his underlings. The god of Mount Hua, like the gods
of all Five Peaks, was associated with the netherworld. In contrast to Mount
Tai (*Taishan, the Eastern Peak), however, Mount Hua did not emerge as a
nationwide cult connected with the realm of the dead. There were shrines to
the Western Peak in districts around Mount Hua, but apparently not much
further away. For this reason, Mount Hua was much visited by people of the