Song Shan, rising to a height of 1512m, is considered to be the central mountain in China, symbolising the element of earth. Situated around 80km west of Zhengzhou in Henan Province, Song Shan is also famous for being the sacred home of the world renowned Buddhist Shaolin Temple.
Directly underneath the mountain, lies the quaint little town of Dengfang. Used mainly as a base for travellers hiking up the mountain, it may be a little rough around the edges in terms of prettiness, but nevertheless it is still a place to visit.
The Shaolin Temple (Shaolin Si) is the legendary birthplace of gongfu (kung fu). Because of its fame, it has become a victim in itself over the years; a target of war, the temple has been ruined, rebuilt, destroyed and rebuilt several times throughout the decades. The last fire was in 1928 and since then has seen restoration ever since, especially with the droves of tourists who visit each year.
At the Shaolin Temple, there is much wushu (athletic Chinese martial arts) instead of true gong fu. True gong fu takes years of intense mental and physical study instead of just physical training.
Coming here, you enter the temple just past some of the most wonderful stelae, some are delicate works of art from abroad. You can also see the Pilu Pavilion (Pilu Dian) with its famous depressions in the floor, as well as the Guanyin Hall (Guangyin Dian). Here are some wonderful frescoes depicting fighting monks.
Directly opposite of the entrance to the Shaolin Temple is the beautiful Arhat Hall which lies in the Shifang Chanyuan. Here you will find some coarsely sculpted luohan (monks who have achieved nirvana on their death). Outside is the Pagoda Forest (Shaolin Talin), which is a cemetery holding 246 small brick pagodas, including an important and famous monk. Some of the stupas here are not in perfect condition, others are completely ruined. However, it’s a beautifully haunting location.
Left of Shaolin Temple is a path that will lead you up to Wuru Peak (Wuru Feng). It gets quite busy up here with tourists, but you can escape them by visiting the cave (DAmo Dong) where the Domo Bodhidharma meditated for nine years. Although the signs say it’s only 500m away, it’s really 3km.
The tallest of the three peaks is Shaoshi Shan at 1512m above sea level. There is a pleasant trail which will take you on a hike around craggy rocks and a path that will make your heart race as it hugs the cliffs! The trail will take about six hours to do a complete return trip, and covers a distance of 15km, leading you to the 782 step Rope Bridge (Suo Qiao).
You can reach the Shaolin Temple from Dengfeng by taking the number 8 bus which takes about 15 minutes. When you get to the drop off point, you then take a buggy to the entrance or else you can walk. If you are coming from Luoyang or Zhengzhou you can catch a minibus which will take around an hour and half to two and half hours. You can catch your return trip from the Pagoda Forest.
If coming to Song Shan, then there are more places to visit apart from the Shaolin Temple. Why not take a trip to Songyang Academy (Songyang Shuyuan), located at the foot of Taishi Shan. This is one of the oldest academies in China, and in the courtyard are two cypress trees which are believed to have been growing for 4,500 years! Songyue pagoda (Songyue Ta) is nearby and is one of China’s oldest brick pagodas, dating from the Song Dynasty.
If the Shaolin Temple is not enough for you, pay a visit to Zhongue Miao, an active Daoist monastery complex which gives more of a sense of mysticism than the Shaolin Temple. An ancient building, the complex dates back to the second century BCE. The main hall is dedicated to the Mountain God. You can walk through the Huasan Gate and expel the pengju, pengzhi and pengjiao – the three insects which inhabit the brain, the stomach and the feet. Visit the Ministry of Hades (Qishier Si) where you can rub the four Iron Men of Song, which is said to cure illnesses.
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