Peak-Mountain Monastery (Fengshan Si 峰山寺)

Peak-Mountain Monastery (Fengshan si 峰山寺) is located about 150 meters south-east of the old walls of Zheng Family Village (Zhengjiazhuang cun 鄭家莊村), beneath the towering cliffs of the Taihang Mountains (Taihang shan 太行山). The architecture of the main hall of the monastery is Ming-dynasty; according to an 1849 repair stele, the temple was founded during the Hongwu reign of the Ming (1368-98), and repaired once during the Shunzhi reign of the Qing (1644-61). The murals within the main hall date from the 1849 repair, and the stele lists five painters: Lan Wen 藍文, Yan Jia 閻加, Wang Zhong 王中, Wang Hui 王惠, and Bi Yi 畢依. The stele is reproduced at Deng Qingping 鄧慶平 ed., Yuxian beiming jilu 蔚縣碑銘輯錄 (Guilin: Guangxi shifan daxue chubanshe, 2009), 460-3. In 2018, the monastery was inhabited by a single nun. A front hall contains statues and paintings of the Four Great Heavenly Kings (Si da tianwang 四大天王). The main hall contains a recently-built central image of a ‘reclining Buddha’ (wofo 臥佛), surrounded by life-size attendant figures; the size of these statues and the narrowness of the room make the wall-murals also difficult to photograph in full. The two side walls have panel murals showing the life of the Śākyamuṇi Buddha. The text of the story is unusual, and is not the same as that found in other nearby monasteries. The narrative reads as follows, transcribed by Hung Lichien 洪儷倩. East wall: Bottom row, left to right: 淨飯遠祖捨國修行受瞿墨姓; 大茅草王出家學道成王[僳]; 諸弟子以籠盛懸樹上滴血於地出二甘蔗; 二甘蔗日炙出一男一女即善生與妃; 釋迦能仁昔甘蔗王斥四子於雪山北以德化人成大國; 淨飯國霞光萬道地出珠玉水生金蓮; 兜率天降落瑞氣□有大聖佛降生; 淨飯天國王捨□□以□□民施齋茶普度僧道. Middle row, right to left 清境妙王妃夢吞日光; 即周昭王二十四年甲寅歲四月初八日也三皇捧童駕鹿投胎淨飯國王皇宮; 清境妙王妃深宮左[脇]生嬰孩京城香聞十里; 淨飯天國王登殿二妃□靈芝與王報喜; 九龍吐水深宮沐浴童佛; 梵王太子讀書誦經; 王太子力舉石象; 王太子箭穿鐵鼓. Top row, left to right: 周昭王四十二年三月初八太子十九歲欲求出家當後□遇; 太子遊東門偶遇產生者; 太子遊南門又遇老人者; 太子遊西門復遇得病者; 太子北門看見死人者; 太子歸宮目睹勞苦人; 太子獨坐宮中自思死終可厭; 太子是夜子時有一天人名曰淨居於窗牖中叉手曰太子言出家時至可去矣. West wall: Bottom row, left to right: 太子以聞點化滿心喜悅即逾城而去; 太子於檀特山中修道; 太子始於阿藍迦藍處三年遇摩; 太子[實?]知其非便捨去復至鬱頭藍佛處學三年又知其非便捨去; 太子又至象頭山同諸外道日食麥徑於六年; 諸外道先歷試邪法示[秘?]方[便?]發諸異見; 太子修煉烏鴉貫頂; 山中苦修蘆芽穿膝. Middle row, right to left: 太子於山林中禮拜菩提; 太子在雪山十二月八日明星出射成佛號天人師時年三十[歲?]即周穆王三十年癸未歲; 佛於鹿野苑中為憍陳如等五人而論道果說法; 佛復授摩阿迦葉將金樓僧迦黎大衣傳州獎如□授補處; 佛至拘戶耶城告諸大象吾今背痛欲涅槃即往熈連河側娑羅雙樹下右脇累[足?]泊然宴寂; 諸弟子即以[熏?]薪競茶毗之燼後金被[加]故爾時大象即於佛前以偈讚語; 爾時金棺從坐而舉高[上?][蘇?]羅樹往返空中□灰三昧須臾灰生得舍利八[槲?]之斗/即周穆王五十二年壬辰歲二月十五日也; 佛世尊駕毫光至本國與母[傳?]淨□夢中說法. Top row, left to right: 後至一千一百七十年[發?][玉?]中□後漢明帝夜夢金人身長大項有日月光; 明帝登殿命群臣原[臺?]奏曰西方有佛至名曰佛世尊陞□所□得無是乎; 明帝差官到天笙問其道得其經書及沙門同來; 沙門見帝奏曰佛身長一丈六尺黃金色項中佩日月光變無所不通而大濟群生; 佛世尊遇給孤長者願金銀施捨齋眾供亦無他[式?]講經說法; 佛世尊遇祇陀太守願捨祇園要給孤長者金銀步海祇園; 給孤長者金銀步海祇園獎誦經說法祇陀太子心喜施捨; 佛世尊功來成就萬德圓滿諸佛菩薩沙門比丘來朝. Written on the upper right panel margin: 真心迷聰廣悟成佛.Non UBCUnreviewedAuthor Affiliation: University of California, BerkeleyGraduat