Azalea in Huading
Updated: 2018-11-21
Print PrintHuading Peak, the main peak of Tiantai Mountain, is 25 kilometers away from the north of Tiantai county, Taizhou, East China’s Zhejiang province. The scenic spot boasts a 7.5-square-meter national forest park. The 1,098-meter-high main peak, surrounded with mountains, is shaped like the corolla of a lotus with thousands of petals, so it is nicknamed "Huading". Its summit is a popular place of worship, where the sages and masters often worship and read the "Surangama Sutra". At Huading Peak, visitors can enjoy the sun rising over the East China Sea on a sunny morning or the "Cloud-pooled Huading Peak", renowned for its haunting mist and cloud among the majestic mountains.
At the foot of the Huading peak, Huding Temple (original name: Shanxing Temple) was founded by Deshao (the National renowned Buddhist Master) in the first year (936) of Jintianfu Period in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms (907-960) and rebuilt in 1998.
At the back of the temple, stands an over-1,700-year-old Guiyun Cave. It is said to have been Ge Xuan’s (a famous Chinese Taoist) tea plantation during the Three Kingdoms Period (220-280) according to the legend. At both sides of the temple, there are 72 huts. Yaoshi Temple is the largest hut out of the eastern huts. These huts attract flocks of monks and pilgrims.
Thanks to the fertile soil, ancient trees and enshrouding mist, the land around Huading Temple is suitable for tea planting. The famous Huading Cloud Mist Tea is popular both at home and abroad. The large areas of Yunjin Azalea Trees around Huading Peak are mostly more than 100 years old. The natural scenery of blooming azalea explodes in color in May every year.