[Photo from tylyhy.cn]

Dragon Hill Taoism Grotto is located at the peak of the Dragon Hill, 20 kilometers southwest of Taiyuan. As the only Taoism grotto in China, it was initially built in the early Yuan Dynasty with its construction taken charge of by the Quanzhen Religion Taoist Song Defang (Taoist monastic name: Piyunzi). The Taoist temple “Hao Tian Guan”, which was built in the same period, has disintegrated, but the Taoism grotto is well preserved and it is now a key national cultural relic protection site.

Dragon Hill Taoism Grotto consists of eight caves, which are the Xuhuang Shrine, Sanqing Shrine, Woru Shrine, Xuanzhen Shrine, San Da Fashi Shrine, Qizhen Shrine and two others whose names are unknown. Inside the caves there are a total of over 40 stone statues which feature different content and are well preserved. These stone carvings are simple in style. They look dignified and display concise techniques. The clothing on the statues is concise and neatly decorated, which is different in style from the statues in the Buddhist grotto. The tops of some of the shrines are carved with patterns of lotus, dragons and phoenix. The front walls on both sides of some shrines are left with inscriptions from the Yuan Dynasty. There is important information for studying Yuan’s Taoism development and the grotto art.

Dragon Hill Taoism Grotto focuses on the portrait of Taoism founders and Taoism immortals. Among these statues, some are sitting, some lying some moving and some motionless. The statues in some grottos bear expressions which are worth concentrating on and have great appeal as art attractions too.

Dragon Hill lies in a tranquil place. It is sheltered by green trees in summer and creates pleasant sceneries when the leaves are dense and flourishing. It is an ideal place for escaping from the summer heat.