nakedeyeview.com.my 2008
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D. Tianyou Feng (Heaven-Tour Peak)
To reach the top one has more than 800 stone steps to climb. At the top one can have a panoramic view of the surrounding peaks and of the 9-bend river girdling the peaks. However the best time to climb the peak is in the morning when one can see the peaks floating in a sea of clouds.
F. Folklores of Wuyishan The mystics of Wuyishan and its enchanting beauty have also evolved many folklores. In our short sojourn in Wuyishan we were fortunate to learn a few which were narrated by our tour leader, Jenny Zhang.
1 The origin of the name ‘Wuyi” The name of the mountain comes from a legendary tribe who thrived in the mountains. Their surname was Yi. They were fierce and ruthless. The mountain was then referred to as Man Yi. “Man” is “Ye Man” which means savage. Later, it was renamed “Wu Yi”; Wu here means “valiant” which sounds more meek and mild. 2. Da Wang Feng & Yu Nu Feng
Once upon a time there was a handsome and hardworking young man by the name of Da Wang who lived in Wuyishan. At that time, the people living in the mountains were poor and their livelihood depended very much on the produce from the land they tilled. Due to frequent floods, the harvests were meager and many farmers were hungry and sick. Da Wang was aware of the dire situation and started to mobilize the farmers to improve the drainage by cutting through the mountain and digging a river to discharge the flood water. They worked hard and soon the Jiuqu (nine-turn) stream was formed. The stream vastly improved the harvests from the land and the people were happy and contented. A young and beautiful god-daughter called Yu Nu from heaven was drifting in the sky in one clear day and saw below a vast stretch of green fields beside the beautiful meandering Jiuqu stream and the people were all happy and smiling. It was the most beautiful and peaceful place she had ever seen on earth. She descended from the sky and met Da Wang who showed her around and explained to her what he had done to transform this place into a wonderland. Yu Nu was deeply impressed and was pleased to stay in the scenic mountain. Soon Yu Nu fell in love with Da Wang and decided to marry him and settle down in this wonderland. In the mean time Yu Nu’s father up in heaven was concerned that his daughter had not returned for a long while and decided to send a messenger to earth to look for her. The messenger found her but could not persuade her to return to heaven because she was very happy to live on earth with Da Wang. The father was angry and decided to terminate the lives of Da Wang and Yu Nu. He gave his permission and power to the messenger to petrify them. They were soon transformed together into a massive peak. But the father was still not satisfied and wanted to separate the peak into two. To do that the messenger had to devise a means. A wicked man in the mountain knew about the god’s intention and volunteered to be used as a tool to separate the peak on condition that his soul would go to heaven. The god agreed and turned the wicked man into an iron plate to split the peak into two. The wicked man was turned into another peak separating the two so that Da Wang and Yu Nu could not see each other. So that was how Da Wang Peak and Yu Nu Peak were separated, one on each side of the Jiuqu stream with another peak called Tie Pan (iron plate) Peak in between the two. Though Da Wang and Yu Nu could not see each other directly they can still do from the reflection in Jiuqu stream! 3. Da Hong Pao (Big Red Robe) Tea
There lived high in Wuyishan a poor family with a son who excelled in his study. To further his studies he had to sit for an entrance examination in the city, a long distance from his village. He had to travel by foot and with little food to eat on his way he soon became exhausted and was completely spent and ill when he reached a temple in another village half way through his journey. The monk took pity on him and nursed him back to health with good tea and food. After his recovery, he resumed his journey and took with him three packs of tea and food given by the monk who advised him to drink the tea if he were ill. He reached the city just in time to sit for the entrance examination which he passed with flying colors. He later graduated from the university and became a renowned scholar. As he was also a handsome young man, the daughter of the Emperor fell in love with him and subsequently they got married and he became a nobleman. He lived a luxurious life in the palace but had not forgotten the people who had contributed to his success, particularly the monk. Then one day the Empress fell ill. After all the available herbs could not cure her, He fed her with the tea given by the monk many years ago. Very soon the Empress recovered and enquired from her son-in-law the source of the tea. The son-in-law told her the story how he obtained the tea. The Empress told him to return to the village and obtain more of the tea to help the sick. The request by the Empress gave him the opportunity to return to the village to pay respect to the monk. He gathered sufficient food and with some of his subjects, journeyed his way to the village. He was glad to meet the monk but was sad to note that the temple was in a very run-down state. He decided to stay in the temple and help to renovate it. To help, he had to disrobe, put on the ordinary workers’ clothing and soil his hand. As a nobleman, his official attire was a big red robe. After disrobed, he spread it over three tea plants beside the temple. The leaves of these three plants had good therapeutic values which had helped to cure his illness and that of the Empress. And that was how the tea obtained from those plants derived its name. These three tea plants are said to be still growing today. F. Wuyishan Min Yao (Folk Rhyme) As expected, the mystical Wuyi Mountains had also attracted many scholars and poets who, imbued with inspiration, wrote many poetical compositions. One of these, also narrated by our tour leader, is given below:
Last but not least, Wuyishan have a couplet for their men and women. In Malaysia we have one for men but it only applies to people of a particular Chinese dialect.
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