Legends in a land where the gods once trod
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I looked across the sea and finally came to acknowledge the ocean’s temper. His face here is different from his other faces elsewhere on the island.
Here, at the South Mountain (Nanshan) on the southernmost side of Hainan Island, the ocean presents his most frightening face straight on — roaring, hurling, tiding and no more hiding — challenging and yet tempting you to admire him at the same time.
Intriguingly, the place is known to be paradise on earth, famous for the countless tales of Taoist monks and gods meditating and entertaining themselves here.
Perhaps it is the rough waves that make it particularly easy for one to appreciate the tranquility of the long breezy coastline, the smooth sand, the shining prisms and the chilly hidden caves that present a sharp contrast to the ocean showing its most ferocious face.
The South Mountain Cultural Tourism Zone includes two major sites — the Buddhist Nanshan Temple and the Taoist Dongtian Park — both renowned spiritual hideaways alongside the ocean, according to local legends.
About 40 minutes’ drive from downtown Sanya, Nanshan Temple is said to be the largest Buddhist temple built in the past 50 years.
It is one of the most popular attractions on the island, especially during the peak season in Chinese Lunar New Year, when it is traditional to ring the temple’s bell and pray for health and happiness for the coming year.
Legends and tales
In addition to the various religious sites and halls, the grand garden and coastline at both the temple and the park are also wonderlands for everyone.
There are many legends about the sites along this stretch of the Hainan coastline as well as up in the mountains.
Here is a rock that two Taoist gods once sat on for days to fish; there is a cave where a Taoist scholar lived and finally came to peace with what had been troubling him; and a bit further up there is another rock where a Taoist monk and a god played chess for hours until they realized it was already years that had passed in the human world.
Many sculptures and sites have been built, rebuilt and renovated since the parks were established. Some of these are rather hilariously cheesy, such as a sculpture of an old man’s face on one of the hills named “Laozi Observing the Ocean” — after the ancient Taoist scholar and philosopher.
The 108-meter sculpture of Guanyin, or Bodhisattva, is not so offbeat, and is more in tune with the grander Buddha sculptures all over the country. Wherever there is a large Buddha sculpture, with a tale to be told of some miraculous phenomenon in its construction, there are always crowds coming for thousands of miles to pray.
Some Buddhist scripts record Guanyin once wishing to reside in the South China Sea, leading to many legends that passed through centuries about the Enlightenment Being strolling around the area. It has always been considered a special place.
This sculpture, which arises from the ocean, is an amazing sight as the sun shines upon it, but what really captured my breath was the finest craftsmanship carried out by nature itself.
Pounded by the waves for centuries, the rocks near the coastline are naturally sculptured into various shapes that inspire one’s wildest imaginations — some like turtles only half-revealing its head and tail, some a man facing up to enjoy the bluest sky, and others of fish and birds fighting in a duel that lasts forever.
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