Walking out of Hongchun Monastery,one crosses a bridge and climbs along the Path of 99 Bends. Soon
after one poasses Lingxiao Pavilion, he arrives at Xianfeng Monastery.The monastery was built originally in 1281. In
the following dynasties it was destroyed by fire disasters and rebuit many times. The current main buildings date back to the Qing Dynasty,and they include Xianhuang Stage,Maitreya Hall,the Great Buddha Hall,Sarira Pagoda and beautiful mountain
villas. All the buildings are now roofed with tin tiles for the purpose of fire protetion. As one views the roofline of the monastery,the tin tiles
glowing among luxuriously green trees look much like silvery or white jade. Therefore, the monastery is described as “Elongated Jade Tablet Among the Dark Green Sea”.
Sarira Pagoda,the third key hall,is also called Pali Hall. In the hall there is a gold gilded copper Sarira pagoda with seven_story,which stores
three Sarira pearls and two volumes of Pali sutra.They are all regarded as the treasures guarding the monastery. The pearls were broought into China from Sri Lanka by Monk Qing Fu and stored in Shanghai Longhua Monastery druing the period of the Republic of China (1921_1949). In the monastery guest hall hangs the paintings produced by Japanese monks in 1863. The brush strokes of these paintings posses a natural grace and elegance. One of the paintings is named the Nine Immortal Drawing, and the other A Bell Among Innumerable Valleys.To the left of the monastery is the Nine_Lotus Pool, one of the famous pools of the mountain. Several miles further beyond the pool is the Nine_immortal Cavern. Legend has it that the cavern used to be a place where some Daoist immortals secluded. Behind the Xianfeng Monastery is an age_old tree,whose height is 26m and central section 5.1m in diametre. The tree is at least 500 years old. The stone pavilion in front of the monastery is Xianhuang Stage. This is the place where Xuanyuan emperor, while traveling,encountred Immortal Tianhuang in legend. Sevel miles beyond the pavilion is Xiangui Stone. Around the stone are dove tress,covering a space of hunderds of mu. In April and May of the each year,
the countless flowers in full bloom look breath_takingly magnificent. These blossoms, bursting with light ,seem to dye the undulating
forest with spashes of white, as if numberless pigeons were hovering in flocks.
