Wawu Mountain, also known as Shushan, is located in Hongya County, Meishan City, Sichuan Province, 180 kilometers away from Chengdu.

The mountain here has a magnificent and beautiful scenery. Surrounded by sheer cliffs, it forms a roof – shaped mountaintop that slopes slightly towards the east and west. No matter from which angle it is viewed from afar, it resembles a tile – roofed house, hence the name “Wawu Mountain”.

Wawu Mountain has a long history. As early as the Tang and Song dynasties, it was known as the “Two Wonders in Sichuan” together with Emei Mountain. It is said to be the place where Lord Laozi ascended to heaven and one of the birthplaces of Taoism.

This was once the last place where the Qingqiang ethnic group lived, leaving behind rich historical relics and ethnic culture.

Literati of all dynasties have left praises for Wawu Mountain. Li Bai wrote in his poem “Visiting the Beihu Pavilion in Liyang, Looking at Wawu Mountain, Commemorating the Past and Presenting to My Fellow Travelers”: “In the morning, I climbed the Beihu Pavilion and looked afar at Wawu Mountain.” Su Shi wrote, “The cold Wawu Mountain piles up with the snow after spring, and the green Emei Mountain is like a painting after the rain.” He Shaoji directly praised, “Among the landscapes of Bashu, Emei Mountain accounts for three – tenths, while Wawu Mountain accounts for six or seven – tenths.”

People often say when describing Wawu Mountain, “The mountain is like a table, and the table is like a mountain.” Volume 17 of “Jingding Jiankang Annals” in the Song Dynasty states: Wawu Mountain “has a continuous shape, with the two cliffs slightly raised, just like a house.”

Yes, Wawu Mountain is a veritable flat – topped table – shaped mountain. Its mountaintop area is about 11 square kilometers, making it the second – largest mountaintop platform in the world, second only to Mount Roraima in South America. It was hailed by the British botanist and explorer Wilson as “a huge Noah’s Ark above the clouds”, and is known as one of the “Three Great Table Mountains in the World” together with Mount Roraima and Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa.

The Taoist culture of Wawu Mountain has a long history and is the birthplace of Taoism. According to “Records of Huayang”, at the end of the Han Dynasty, Zhang Ling from Peiguo learned Taoism in Heming Mountain in Sichuan, created the Taoist scriptures, and required a contribution of five dou of rice, so it was called “Rice – based Taoism” in the world, also known as “Five – Dou – of – Rice Taoism”.

At the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, Lord Laozi traveled westward to the sacrifice place of the Qingqiang people on Wawu Mountain to seek Taoism and live in seclusion. During the Eastern Han Dynasty, Zhang Daoling, the founder of Taoism, traveled to the foot of Wawu Mountain and founded “Five – Dou – of – Rice Taoism” together with the local Qiang people.

In order to deal with the suppression and persecution of “Five – Dou – of – Rice Taoism” by the imperial court, Zhang Daoling chose Wawu Mountain as a secret stronghold to hide weapons and followers. He led the imperial court’s pursuers into the bewildering area and set up an Eight – Trigram bewildering array, causing the entire army to be wiped out.

At the end of the Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, Zhang Sanfeng came to Wawu Mountain to practice and founded the “Wawu Mountain Sect”. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, Wawu Mountain was regarded as an evil mountain and was sealed off for nearly 400 years. However, pilgrims still came in an endless stream, and they regarded Wawu Mountain and Emei Mountain as sister mountains.

Small link to road – related books, videos and audios: “The Story of Sichuan Taoism History”: The content is relatively basic and can help readers get an initial understanding of the history of Taoism in Bashu. It clearly explains important Taoist temples and figures.