Stairway to heaven : a journey to the summit of Mount Emei
Annotation. Located in a remote area of modern Sichuan province, Mount Emei is one of China's most famous mountains and has long been important to Buddhists. Stairway to Heaven looks at Emei's significance in Chinese history and literature while also addressing the issue of "sense of place" in Chinese culture
eBook, English, ©2006
State University of New York Press, Albany, ©2006
1 online resource (xvii, 294 pages) : illustrations, map
9781423766223, 9780791466810, 9780791482186, 1423766229, 0791466817, 0791482189
65339751
Stairway to Heaven; Contents; Illustrations; Acknowledgments; Conventions; 1. Introduction; Text and Context; On Studying Mountains; Crashing Continents and Salty Seas; Source of Life, Abode of Gods; An Extraordinary Place; Flora and Fauna; A Great Globe of Light; 2. Land of Shu; The Road to Shu Is Hard; Tang and Song Visions; 3. A Journey of Ten Thousand Miles; Brocade City; The Journey Begins; 4. Within Sight of Mount Emei; Administration and Immigration; Way of the Celestial Master; Adepts and Abbeys; Sa. Patrons in the Capital, Supporters in the ProvincesThe Ascent; 6. The Summit; The Immortal Sage Appears; 7. How and Why Did Mount Emei Become a"Famous Buddhist Mountain"?; Background and Beginnings; Founding Myth; Scriptural Authentication; Pilgrims, Diaries, and Gazetteers; Four Great Famous Mountains; The Big Picture; 8. The Ming, Qing, Republican, and Modern Eras; A Bloody Interlude; Florescence in the Ming; The Qing (1644-1911) and Republican (1912- ) Era to 1949; Recent Developments; The Tourist Era Emerges; Closing Thoughts; Abbreviations; Notes; Selected Bibliography; Glossary-Index; A. BC; D; E; F; G; H; I; J; K; L; M; N; O; P; Q; R; S; T; U; V; W; X; Y; Z