Mount Taishan (泰山), one of the five most sacred mountains in China, is situated in the central Shandong Province of Eastern China. UNESCO lists it as one of the world natural and cultural heritage sites.
Peak Jade Emperor (玉皇顶)is the highest peak of Mount Taishan with an altitude of 1,538.2m. On the summit there is the Temple of Jade Emperor. In ancient times, people would scale the mountain and set up sacrificial altars to offer sacrifices to heaven. It is also excellent place to view sunrise and cloud sea.
The South Heaven Gate (南天门), also called Three-Heaven Gate, is the last gate on the climb to the summit of Mount Taishan. On the way up, there is a well-known Valley of Scripture Stone, in which carved the scripture of the Vajracchedika Sutra. There were originally over 2,500 characters, only 1,043 remain after 1,400 years of raind and wind. Every character is about 50 cm long and 50 cm wide.
Temple to the God of Mount Taishan (岱庙), located at the foot of Mount Taishan, is a place where Chinese emperors of every dynasty worshiped God of Mount Taishan. Its main building, The Heavenly Grant Palace, was built over thousand years ago in the Song Dynasty (960 - 1279 AD). The most famous masterpiece in the palace is its huge mural (62m long and 3.3m high) describing God of Mount Taishan's tour of inspection.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Mount Huangshan – pine trees, rocks, cloud sea, hot springs
Mount Huangshan, the most spectacular mountain in China, is well-known for its four unique scenes – peculiar pine tress, odd-looking rocks, cloud seas, and hot springs. Located in the southern Anhui Province of central China, there are 77 peaks over 1,000 m high, among which 30 peaks are famous with their special names and legends to go with. The highest one is the Lotus Peak (1,873 m), followed by the Peak of Celestial City and the Peak of Brightness, both above 1,800 m.
Pine trees – Huangshan Pine (Pinus huangshanese) is peculiar for its various posture because of its growth mainly on the cliffs and rooted in the cracks between rocks. The most famous Huangshan pine is the so-called Guest-Greeting Pine which comes out of rocks and stands upright over the Wisdom Cave east of Peak Jade Screen. The branches stretch forward as if it is spreading its arms to greet guests from far away. It is said more than 800 years old.
Rocks - There are numerous strange-looking rocks with or without names. Depending on how it looks from different angles by different people, Huangshan rocks look like a lotus in blossom, squirrel jumping over the Celestial City, Monkey watching the sea, celestial girls scattering flowers, immortals playing chess, and so on. WOW is the only word suitable for the Huangshan Rocks.
Cloud Sea – When the splendid cloud sea appears, peaks emerge and disappear from time to time. You would think you were high above in the Heaven. Especially at sunset, there sometimes appears a colorful aureole encircling people and following people. This is the famous Treasure Light, also called Budda’s Halo.
Hot Springs – The Vermillion Hot Spring is the most famous one on Mount Huangshan for its water turning from red to clear within six to seven days. The hot water usually stays at 42ºC temperature, and it is said to be drinkable for curing some chronic illness.
Pine trees – Huangshan Pine (Pinus huangshanese) is peculiar for its various posture because of its growth mainly on the cliffs and rooted in the cracks between rocks. The most famous Huangshan pine is the so-called Guest-Greeting Pine which comes out of rocks and stands upright over the Wisdom Cave east of Peak Jade Screen. The branches stretch forward as if it is spreading its arms to greet guests from far away. It is said more than 800 years old.
Rocks - There are numerous strange-looking rocks with or without names. Depending on how it looks from different angles by different people, Huangshan rocks look like a lotus in blossom, squirrel jumping over the Celestial City, Monkey watching the sea, celestial girls scattering flowers, immortals playing chess, and so on. WOW is the only word suitable for the Huangshan Rocks.
Cloud Sea – When the splendid cloud sea appears, peaks emerge and disappear from time to time. You would think you were high above in the Heaven. Especially at sunset, there sometimes appears a colorful aureole encircling people and following people. This is the famous Treasure Light, also called Budda’s Halo.
Hot Springs – The Vermillion Hot Spring is the most famous one on Mount Huangshan for its water turning from red to clear within six to seven days. The hot water usually stays at 42ºC temperature, and it is said to be drinkable for curing some chronic illness.
Friday, May 14, 2010
The Tibetan People in China
Tibet, the Roof of the World, is a place full of mysteries.
Numbering 5.4 million, the Tibetan are the 10th largest of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China.
The Tibetan people are indigenous to Tibet and surrounding areas stretching from Central Asia in the North and West to Myanmar and India, Nepal and Bhutan to the south. In the east within China, the Tibetan are mainly distributed in the Tibetan Autonomous Region, Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan, and Yunnan provinces, and most of them live on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau over 4,000 m altitude.
Numbering 5.4 million, the Tibetan are the 10th largest of the 56 ethnic groups officially recognized by the People's Republic of China.
The Tibetan people are indigenous to Tibet and surrounding areas stretching from Central Asia in the North and West to Myanmar and India, Nepal and Bhutan to the south. In the east within China, the Tibetan are mainly distributed in the Tibetan Autonomous Region, Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan, and Yunnan provinces, and most of them live on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau over 4,000 m altitude.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Feng Shui - Chinese Way of Living
Feng Shui, literally means “Wind” “Water” in Chinese. Fengshui is a living skill that demands a degree of acceptance of the Chinese view of the universe, which includes the concept of the five elements, the symbolism of the trigrams, and the philosophy of the yin and yang of energy, to name three fundamental components.
Does your home reflect your life? If you view your home through the eyes of a stranger, considering the arrangement of each room, the amount of clutter or the lack thereof, the colors, the textures, the scents and sights, what do you think your home reveals?
How much clutter is in each room of your home, the living room, the dining room, kitchen, bathroom, master bedroom or kids’ bedrooms? Work on one room or area of your house at a time. Do not try to declutter your whole house in one weekend — it takes plenty of “reflective time” to consider your actions and to determine the changes that will feel best.
Start with a clean space with good intention. Space clearing will be most effective if you do it on a regular basis, such as when each new season arrives or whenever you have made any kind of change in your life. Be sure to bless the change, your space, and all who enter it from the moment forward.
Let FengShui guide you to have a dream home with harmony and peace in every room and area. What matters most in a home with good feng shui is:
* the dramatic entrance
* the living room full of life and memory
* the dynamic dining room with inviting atmosphere to the table
* the well-balanced kitchen with healthy chi flowing,
* the bathroom with positive chi flow,
* the bedrooms with peaceful and soothing chi.
Does your home reflect your life? If you view your home through the eyes of a stranger, considering the arrangement of each room, the amount of clutter or the lack thereof, the colors, the textures, the scents and sights, what do you think your home reveals?
How much clutter is in each room of your home, the living room, the dining room, kitchen, bathroom, master bedroom or kids’ bedrooms? Work on one room or area of your house at a time. Do not try to declutter your whole house in one weekend — it takes plenty of “reflective time” to consider your actions and to determine the changes that will feel best.
Start with a clean space with good intention. Space clearing will be most effective if you do it on a regular basis, such as when each new season arrives or whenever you have made any kind of change in your life. Be sure to bless the change, your space, and all who enter it from the moment forward.
Let FengShui guide you to have a dream home with harmony and peace in every room and area. What matters most in a home with good feng shui is:
* the dramatic entrance
* the living room full of life and memory
* the dynamic dining room with inviting atmosphere to the table
* the well-balanced kitchen with healthy chi flowing,
* the bathroom with positive chi flow,
* the bedrooms with peaceful and soothing chi.
Nixon’s China Visit in 1972
1972 Nixon visit to China was the first step in formally normalizing relations between the United States and the People’s Republic of China. It also marked the first time a U.S. president had visited the PRC, which considered the United States one of its biggest enemies. From February 21 to February 28, 1972, U.S. President Richard Nixon traveled to Beijing, Hangzhou and Shanghai.
May 4th, China Youth Day
May 4th is the China Youth Day, which was established in December 1949 by the Government Administration Council to commemorate the beginning of the May Fourth Movement.
May 4th is also Peking University (http://english.pku.edu.cn/)’s Anniversary, because Peking University students, representatives of college students of Beijing, held demonstrations on May 4, 1919, and became the initiator of the “May 4th Movement”. Beida is short for Peking University in Chinese.
May 4th is also Peking University (http://english.pku.edu.cn/)’s Anniversary, because Peking University students, representatives of college students of Beijing, held demonstrations on May 4, 1919, and became the initiator of the “May 4th Movement”. Beida is short for Peking University in Chinese.
The Importance of Living: don’t worry, be happy!
“The busy man is never wise, and the wise man is never busy.” — Lin Yutang
The Importance of Living was authored by LIN Yutang, and was published in 1937. This was one of the original “don’t worry, be happy” books.
LIN Yutang, Harvard scholar, Taoist, and modernist, wrote The Importance of Living to expound on the mindset people need to develop in order to have a more successful and peaceful life. He expressed his highly subjective, personal feelings after years of studying ancient Chinese texts, and created a wonderfully slow-going yet radiantly clear guide to the simple life. Taking walks, drinking tea, long talks with friends are all important to Lin, whose stories and retellings of Taoist classics meander away from his points, find new ones, and remind us to enjoy the life that’s all around us without needless worry.
The Importance of Living was authored by LIN Yutang, and was published in 1937. This was one of the original “don’t worry, be happy” books.
LIN Yutang, Harvard scholar, Taoist, and modernist, wrote The Importance of Living to expound on the mindset people need to develop in order to have a more successful and peaceful life. He expressed his highly subjective, personal feelings after years of studying ancient Chinese texts, and created a wonderfully slow-going yet radiantly clear guide to the simple life. Taking walks, drinking tea, long talks with friends are all important to Lin, whose stories and retellings of Taoist classics meander away from his points, find new ones, and remind us to enjoy the life that’s all around us without needless worry.
Shanghai World Expo 2010
May 1st, 2010 was the first day of Shanghai World Expo 2010. http://en.expo2010.cn/
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Expo 2010, officially Expo 2010 Shanghai China (simplified Chinese: 中国2010年上海世界博览会; traditional Chinese: 中國2010年上海世界博覽會; pinyin: Zhōngguó Èrlíngyīlíng Nián Shànghǎi Shìjìe Bólǎnhuì) is being held on both banks of the Huangpu River in the city of Shanghai, People’s Republic of China, from May 1 to October 31, 2010. It is a World Expo in the tradition of international fairs and expositions. The theme of the exposition is “Better City – Better Life” and signifies Shanghai’s new status in the 21st century as the “next great world city“. The expo Logo features the Chinese character 世 (‘world’, Chinese “shì”) modified to represent three people together with the 2010 date. It is the most expensive Expo in the history of the world’s fairs. The Shanghai World Expo is also the largest World’s Fair site ever at 5.28 square km.
More than 190 countries and more than 50 international organizations have registered to participate in the Shanghai World Expo, the largest ever. China expects to receive almost 100 foreign leaders and millions of people from across the world to come and visit the World Expo. More than 70–100 million visitors are expected to visit the expo, the largest in history.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Expo 2010, officially Expo 2010 Shanghai China (simplified Chinese: 中国2010年上海世界博览会; traditional Chinese: 中國2010年上海世界博覽會; pinyin: Zhōngguó Èrlíngyīlíng Nián Shànghǎi Shìjìe Bólǎnhuì) is being held on both banks of the Huangpu River in the city of Shanghai, People’s Republic of China, from May 1 to October 31, 2010. It is a World Expo in the tradition of international fairs and expositions. The theme of the exposition is “Better City – Better Life” and signifies Shanghai’s new status in the 21st century as the “next great world city“. The expo Logo features the Chinese character 世 (‘world’, Chinese “shì”) modified to represent three people together with the 2010 date. It is the most expensive Expo in the history of the world’s fairs. The Shanghai World Expo is also the largest World’s Fair site ever at 5.28 square km.
More than 190 countries and more than 50 international organizations have registered to participate in the Shanghai World Expo, the largest ever. China expects to receive almost 100 foreign leaders and millions of people from across the world to come and visit the World Expo. More than 70–100 million visitors are expected to visit the expo, the largest in history.
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