Kunlun Mountain and Myth (1)

Kunlun Mountain Range "Kunlun Mountain (Central Asian Mountain Range)" generally refers to "Kunlun Mountain Range (Central Asian Mountain Range)", which is the backbone of the mountain system in western China and belongs to the Central Asian mountain system. Also known as Kunlun Xu, the first famous mountain in China, Kunlun Mountain or Yushan Mountain. Kunlun Mountain starts from Pamir Plateau in Shandong, passes through Xinjiang and * * *, and extends to Qinghai, with a total length of about 2,500 kilometers. Kunlun Mountain starts from Pamirs, with an average elevation of 5500-6000m and a width of130-200km. With a total area of more than 500,000 square kilometers, it spans Qinghai, Sichuan, Xinjiang and * * provinces in China. As the "ancestor of thousands of mountains", Kunlun Mountain has a prominent position in the cultural history of the Chinese nation. The ancients called Kunlun Mountain China's "Long Mai ancestor". According to ancient mythology, there lived a fairy named "Queen Mother of the West" in Kunlun Mountain, and she was served by a leopard head and two bluebirds. This is a problem. Taoism is the true god, and Dong is divided into men and women to cultivate immortals. It is the basic skeleton of plateau landform and an important natural division boundary of Qinghai Province. The Black Sea at the head of the Kunlun River is 4300 meters above sea level, with clear water, flocks of birds, wild animals and colorful weather. There are precious rock paintings in the Wild Cow Valley across the Kunlun River. Jade Peak and Jade Everest are wrapped in silver all the year round, and clouds surround the mountains. Located on the north bank of Kunlun River, Kunlun Spring is the largest unfrozen spring in Kunlun Mountain. The snow-reflecting spectacle of Kunlun in June is formed, which is a natural barrier spectacle with a depth of tens of meters. The northern slope is close to the center of the driest Asian continent and belongs to the Tarim Desert and Qaidam Desert in the warm temperate zone. The precipitation in front of the mountain is less than 100 mm, 60 mm in the west and 20 mm in the east, and only 15 ~ 20 mm in Ruoqiang. The annual precipitation increases slightly with the elevation, and the warm temperate desert is replaced by the alpine desert, which is composed of unique Ceratoides mats and chrysanthemums. Rivers originating from the northern slope of Kunlun Mountain have a long history and meet in the flowing water system of Tarim Basin and Qaidam Basin. Kunlun Mountain is high in the west and low in the east. According to the topography, it is divided into three sections: 3 peaks above 7000 meters above sea level, 7 peaks above 6000 meters above sea level, with an average altitude of 5500-6000 meters; There are 8 peaks in the Middle Kunlun Mountain with an altitude of more than 6000 meters, with an average altitude of 5000 ~ 5500 meters, and the snow line on the north slope is 5 100 ~ 5800 meters. East Kunlun Mountain has 4 peaks above 6000 meters above sea level and 8 peaks above 5000 meters, with an average elevation of 4500 ~ 5000 meters, and the snow is distributed on the peaks above 5800 meters. The western section of the New Tibet Highway stretches from Setu in the upper reaches of Karakash River to Mazha in the upper reaches of Yerqiang River, which constitutes the watershed between the western and central parts of Kunlun Mountain. The main mountain passes in the western section are Uzbekri Mountain Pass, Mingtiegai Mountain Pass, Hongqiladaban Mountain Pass and Kangxiwa Mountain Pass, which are the main roads leading to Afghanistan and Pakistan. There are three peaks over 7000 meters and seven peaks over 6000 meters in the West Kunlun Mountain, with an average elevation of 5500 ~ 6000 meters. Geological Features Kunlun Mountain is separated from Tarim Basin and Qaidam Basin by deep faults. Kunlun mountain area was built on the pre-Sinian system; Paleozoic is a strongly sinking sea area accompanied by volcanic activity. At the end of Paleozoic, it rose through the Variscan movement fold, forming the central axis of Kunlun and the middle ridge of mountains. Depression occurred in Mesozoic, and the mountains above 4000 meters on both sides of the main ridge were formed by Yanshan movement. Kunlun Mountain and the banded mountains separating the north and south of China. The neotectonic movement in Kunlun Mountain is extremely strong, which has risen by about 4000 ~ 5000 meters since the Late Tertiary. The thickness of gravel layer in Yeerqiang Depression is more than 2500 meters, and Quaternary volcanic tuff and volcanic breccia are distributed on the valley highlands. Middle Pleistocene basalt flows and craters are preserved in the upper reaches of the Keriya and Andiel rivers. 195 1 year, Caldarcy Volcano Group 1 in Kunlun Mountain, Tianxian County erupted, accompanied by modern volcanic debris flow. Kunlun Mountain in the east has risen more than 2800 meters since Quaternary, and its related sediments are buried in the depth of 2800 meters in Qaidam Basin. The neotectonic movement of Kunlun Mountain is intermittent, and the Yarkant River, Karakash River and Niya River all form 4 ~ 5 terraces. Each river exits the mountain pass to form 4 ~ 5 superimposed alluvial fans. The mountain is almost completely unaffected by the monsoon climate in the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. On the contrary, it is under the continuous influence of continental air mass, causing great fluctuations in annual and daily temperatures. The central part of the mountain system is the driest; The climate in the west and east is slightly milder. In the driest mountainous area, the annual precipitation is less than 50 mm at the foot of the mountain, and it is about102 ~127 mm at high altitude; Near Pamir and Mount * * *, the annual precipitation increased to 457mm (18 inch). Under the mountain (mountainous area bordering the northern plain), the average temperature in July is 25 ~ 28℃, and 65438+ 10 is not lower than-9℃; But in the upper part of the mountain and the boundary of * * *, the average temperature in July is lower than 10℃, and it often drops to -35℃ or lower in winter. The northern slope of Kunlun Mountain belongs to Tarim Desert and Qaidam Desert in warm temperate zone, with little precipitation. With the elevation, the warm temperate desert transits to the alpine desert, and the precipitation increases accordingly. The snow line is 5600 ~ 5900 meters above the snow line, which is a perennial glacier with an area of more than 3000 square kilometers. It is one of the major glacier areas in China. Glacier meltwater is the source of several major rivers in China, including Yangtze River, Yellow River, Lancang River (Mekong River), Nujiang River (salween) and Tarim River. Kunlun Mountain Kunlun Mountain is a part of Central Asia, with only internal water system. It is mainly related to the Tarim Basin and Qaidam Basin in the north and the * * * Plateau in the south. Only the easternmost end of the mountain system where the source of the Yellow River and the Yangtze River is located has a water system that flows into the ocean. There are mainly two river networks in the mountain: the big river that originates from Karakorum Mountain and northern Tibet, the flowing water cuts the canyon and runs through the whole Kunlun Mountain chain, and the small river that drains the flowing water on the peripheral hillside. Major rivers form long and tortuous valleys; Several rivers provide irrigation water for oases on the northern edge of Kunlun Mountain. Although the rivers in Kunlun Mountain have received some rainwater, they are mainly replenished by snow and glaciers. The flow varies with seasons; 60 ~ 80% of the flow occurs in summer months, when the severe melting of ice and snow is combined with the maximum precipitation. The violent evaporation of snow and glaciers led to the formation of shallow salt lakes. Although the mountain is very high above sea level, there is almost no glaciation because of the extremely dry climate; Exterior snow only exists in the deepest canyons in Gao Shanfeng. The main center of glacier activity is about 70 10 meters above sea level. All glaciers are famous for their unusual steepness and lack of meltwater. There are more than 100 kinds of higher plants in Kunlun Mountain area, but they are generally low shrubs. Wild animals are endemic to the plateau, such as Tibetan antelope, wild yak and wild donkey. The foothills of Kunlun Mountain in Hotan, Xinjiang produce the highest quality jade, which has been the main source of jade in the Central Plains since ancient times. Therefore, "Thousand Characters" "Jade Out of Kungang". The whole mountain is covered by desert or grassland at most, which restricts the development of vegetation. Many areas are made up of rocky deserts. Occasionally, the dead pond provides aquatic plants for several wild ungulates, such as Tibetan antelope and Tibetan antelope, as well as flocks of wild donkeys and herds of wild plowshares. In the humid western mountains, bighorn sheep graze on the high grassland. Qingyang, Ladakh Oriental argali and Plateau goat are scattered on the rocks in the upper part of the western mountainous area. Brown bears often haunt the willows near the waterway; Wolves are endemic to this area, but snow leopards are rare. Many waterfowl often haunt this lake during seasonal migration. Despite the extreme climatic and topographical conditions, Kunlun Mountain and its adjacent areas still support the permanent population and floating population. On the north slope, there are oasis people and occasionally Mongols; In the south of northern Tibet, nomads have occupied a large area of grassland pasture that was abandoned before. Kunlun Mountain, as the "ancestor of thousands of mountains", has a prominent position in the cultural history of the Chinese nation. The ancients called Kunlun Mountain China's "Long Mai ancestor". For example, Li Bai's quatrains "If it weren't for the first sight of Yushan, I would have met Yaotai Moon", Chairman Mao's "Out of the Sky, Mang Kunlun Mountain", Nu Wa's refining stones to fill the sky, Jingwei filling the sea, the banquet of the Queen Mother of the West, the white snake stealing fairy grass, the Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon and so on. This is recorded in detail in Shan Hai Jing. Many well-known novels, such as China's classic The Journey to the West, Romance of the Gods, modern classic novels, Jin Yong's Eight Dragons, Tong Hua's Once Promised, Cang Yue's Nana Yi Xue, Muye Zhang's Ghost Blowing the Lamp, and rustic laughter, all mention Kunlun Mountain. Many myths and legends handed down in ancient China are related to Kunlun Mountain, which is regarded as the birthplace of the Chinese nation. However, Kunlun Mountain is not the "Kunlun Mountain" mentioned in many myths, but the Kunlun Mountain. The mythical Kunlun Mountain is the "Kunlun Fairy Mountain" that exists in reality. The Relationship between Kunlun Immortals and Taoism In the Taoist culture of China, Kunlun Mountain is known as "the ancestor of all mountains" and "the hometown of all gods". This is the location of the Daoist mixed-yuan Dojo in the late Ming Dynasty, but it gradually disappeared due to changes. In the 26th year of Guangxu reign in Qing Dynasty (1900), real people Hu and Zhang Jindanzi in Yongdeng County, Gansu Province arranged Taoist priests and searched for the legendary "land of all gods" in Kunlun Mountain. Near Kongjiazui, Maying, Ledu County, Qinghai Province, they saw the surrounding mountains, and the terrain was like lotus, which was mysterious and unusual. It is a wonderful place to build a Taoist temple on the stamen, so Shanxin began to build a "Kunlun Taoist temple" at 19 16. By 1930, the "Kunlun Wanshen Palace" community was finally completed, with one hospital and five hospitals, with a regular pattern and facing south. There are archways outside the temple in turn, and the words "Kunlun Mountain" are written in gold on the blue hall; There are three rooms on the second floor of Shanmen Building, with a blue hall gold plaque in the middle, which reads "Palace of All Gods"; In front of the gate building, a bucket-shaped roof stands on the east and west sides, and there is a fence about three feet high. In the Second Hospital, there is a Guanyin Hall with front and rear water splashing, front and rear eaves and front and rear doors, and there are three bungalows with civil structures on the east and west sides. To the north of the third courtyard is the Taiji Hall, with a hall for God's guests, a waiting temple and an upper-level temple. There is a bell and drum tower in the back three rooms. Due north of the Fourth Courtyard, there is Sanqing Hall, and there are three single-abdomen-waist Eight Immortals Temple and Seven Immortals Temple on both sides. To the north of the fifth courtyard is the Jade Emperor Pavilion (two floors). Except for bungalows, the buildings of this building complex are all civil structures, and all the temples are brick and wood structures, carved with beams and painted with buildings, which are very magnificent and worthy of being called Taoist holy places. However, in ten years of turmoil, it became a ruin. After Kunlun Mountain 1998, China gradually rebuilt the Kunlun Taoist Temple, but it was not the whole picture. According to records, Kunlun Mountain does not refer to Sun and Moon Mountain, which is due to the misunderstanding of the Han Dynasty. As mentioned in Biography of Dawan in Historical Records, Zhang Qian thinks that the river flowing from Khotan (Hotan, Xinjiang) is the source of the Yellow River, and there are many jade in the river (it can be seen that Hotan jade was famous at that time). On the other hand, the geographical understanding before the Han Dynasty was that the Yellow River originated from Kunlun Mountain, but this geographical understanding was handed down from the myths and legends of ancient ancestors, and the specific location was not clear, so the Han Dynasty. It is recorded in Historical Records Biography of Dawan: "The Han Dynasty made Heyuan poor, and Heyuan started in the mountains, and the mountains were rich in jade, so it was collected. The emperor recorded ancient books, and the famous river started from the mountain, named Kunlun Cloud. " Records about Kunlun Mountain in Shan Hai Jing: South of the West Sea, on the shore of quicksand, behind Chishui and before Heishui, there is a mountain called Kunlun Mountain. There is a god, a man with a tiger face, and a man with a tail. All white is everywhere. Below it, there is a deep circle of weak water, and outside it, it is a burning volcano, so it is useless to throw things. Some people, Dai Sheng, are called the Queen Mother of the West. This mountain has everything. (Wild West Classic) Kunlun in the sea is in the northwest, under the emperor. Kunlun Mountain is 800 li high, while Wan Ren is high. There are trees and grass on the ground, and it is five times long and five times big. And there are nine wells, with jade as the threshold. There are nine doors on the surface, guarded by enlightened beasts, and God is there. At the time of Bajiaoyan and Chishui, no one can climb Shanggang Rock except the benevolent. Huainanzi records that there is rice in the imaginary part of Kunlun Mountain, which is about forty or fifty feet thick. There are Pearl Tree, Yushu Tree, Noble Tree and Fairy Tree in the west, and Phoenix, Phoenix Bird (with snakes on its head, feet and chest), Begonia Tree and Ji Lang Tree in the east and south. People will not die if they eat the fruit from the fairy tree. Beautiful jade grows on the tree, which is the food of the phoenix and the phoenix bird. Kunlun Mountain is 1,114 feet and 6 inches high, with nine layers of mountains. According to myths and legends, Mount Everest and Mount Yuxu are both open peaks in Qinghai Province and holy places for pilgrimage and cultivation. 1990 launched the Kunlun Mountain Taoist ancestral tour route. After 1992, hundreds of root-seeking groups composed of descendants of the Chinese people from all over the world climbed the Kunlun Mountain to seek their roots and worship their ancestors, and some Taiwan Province compatriots practiced in Kunlun Mountain for several months every year. Later, he took his family to worship God in the mountains and invested in building an altar, which was very pious. 400 miles southwest of Jianghuai Mountain is Kunlun Mountain, which is the capital of the Yellow Emperor in the lower bound. Kunlun Mountain is led by Lu Wushen, who also manages nine fields in the sky. Roh Moo-hyun has a Zhang Hu face and Tiger Claw has Kyubi no Youko. Earthworms in the mountains like to eat people. The worm has four horns and looks like a big goat when it is quiet. There is also a big bird named Qinyuan growing in the mountain, which looks like a wasp and is similar in size to a mandarin duck. If Qinyuan stung other birds and animals, they would all die. If it stung trees, the trees would die and people would bump into it. There is also a quail bird, which manages all kinds of utensils and costumes of the Yellow Emperor. There is a tree on the mountain called Shatang, which is similar in shape to Tangshu. It has yellow flowers and red fruits. The fruit tastes like a plum, but it has no stone. Sand ponds can be used to defend against floods. If you eat its fruit, you won't drown. The grass in the mountains is shaped like a sunflower and tastes like an onion. Eating it can relieve fatigue. The river originates here, flows south, and then flows eastward into Wuda University. Chishui also originated here, flowing southeast into the water of the sky. Ocean water also originates from Kunlun Mountain and flows southwest into ugly water. Black water also flows out of Kunlun Mountain and into the southwest. Many strange birds and animals grow here. God Lu Wu, according to Guo Pu's annotation, is Shouwu. Zhuang Zhou once said: "Shouwu is my income, it is a mountain." Lu Wu, the tiger-shaped god, is said to be an enlightened beast in the western sea classics. Quail bird is a kind of bird belonging to the genus Phoenix. In the western classic "In the Sea", it is said that there is a phoenix in the northwest of Kunlun Mountain, which refers to this kind of quail bird. According to the Book of Birds, the red phoenix is called quail. The ancients of Kunlun Mountain regarded Kunlun Mountain as the ancestor of Wanshan, Long Mai, Longshan and Zulong, thus weaving many beautiful and touching myths and legends. The Goddess Chang'e flying to the moon, Journey to the West and Legend of the White Snake, which are well known to women and children, are all related to Kunlun Mountain and are the birthplace of China myths and legends. According to legend, the fairy of Kunlun Mountain is the Queen Mother of the West, which is recorded as "Yaochi" in many ancient books. The six major formations in the snow scene of Kunlun Mountain have a large and stable water volume. It is said that the spring water used by the Queen Mother of the West to brew nectar is high-quality mineral water. Originated in the middle reaches of Golmud River in Kunlun Mountain, it has eroded thousands of slates for a long time, forming a natural barrier spectacle with steep canyons and tens of meters deep. The Qifeng is slim and graceful, and the legend is the embodiment of the two sisters of the Jade Emperor. Kunlun Mountain has a prominent position as the "ancestor of Wanshan Mountain" in the cultural history of the Chinese nation. It is the location of the Dojo of Daoism Mixed Yuan School (Kunlun School) in the late Ming Dynasty. It is the first mountain in China. According to the Romance of Gods, the Dojo Yuxu Palace, one of the three Qing Dynasties, which explained the founder of Yuanshi Tianzun, is also located in Kunlun Mountain. Kunlun Mountain Kunlun Spring is located in the middle of Nachitai, a famous town on the north bank of Kunlun River, with an altitude of about 3,700 meters. It is an excellent natural mineral spring and is known as a must in Kunlun. The water temperature is constant at 20 degrees Celsius throughout the year. Around the spring pool, there is a polygonal pattern made of granite slate. In the center, a clear spring suddenly gushed out of the pool, forming a crystal mushroom shape, throwing countless jasper-like petals around, like a blooming lotus, and like a silent broken jade falling into the clear pool, and then rushing to the turbulent Kunlun River. Kunlun Spring is the largest unfrozen spring in Kunlun Mountain. Spring water seeped into the ground and spewed out after the snow and ice melted in Kunlun Mountain. It is not only crystal clear, crystal clear, sweet and mellow, clean and hygienic, but also high in altitude and pollution-free, and is known as "iceberg dew". Spring water belongs to low salinity chlorinated bicarbonate and calcium magnesium mineral water. It has been submerged underground for more than 20 years before it was ejected from the stratum, and some chemical elements beneficial to human health, such as strontium, calcium, potassium and bicarbonate, were dissolved from the surrounding environment. Among them, the strontium content reaches 0.7 mg/L, which has a good effect on hypertension, heart disease, arteriosclerosis and other diseases, and is a high-quality natural drinking mineral water. Now there is the Kunlun Spring Pavilion, in which stands the Kunlun Spring Monument, which is the only place for the car exploration line on the roof of the world and one of the important scenic spots for ancestor worship in the Taoist holy land of Kunlun Mountain. Kunlun Mountain Pass is located in the middle of Kunlun Mountain, which is 160 km south of Golmud City, with an altitude of 4772 meters and a relative height of 80 ~ 100 meters. Also known as "Kunlun Mountain Pass", it is the only place that Qinghai and Gansu provinces pass to * * *, and it is also a major pass on the Qinghai-Tibet Highway. Kunlun Mountain Pass has high terrain, cold and humid climate, thin air, unique ecological environment and spectacular natural scenery. Here, the mountains are undulating, the snow peaks are abrupt and the grassland meadows are vast. On the east and west sides not far from the Kunlun Mountain Pass, Yu Xufeng and Yu Xianfeng, which are more than 6,000 meters above sea level, are slim and graceful, wrapped in silver all year round, and shrouded in clouds, forming the famous six wonders of Kunlun in the snow. Yu Xufeng is located in the east of Kunlun Mountain Pass. This is the snowy mountain ice peak at an altitude of more than 6500 meters. The peak is towering, the hillside is covered with snow and ice, and the mountainside is surrounded by white clouds. It looks like a slim woman wrapped in silver, towering above the mountains. Kunlun Bridge is also called Natural Barrier Bridge. Located at the foot of Kunlun Mountain in the south of Golmud, about 50 kilometers away from the urban area of Golmud, it is a great danger on the Qinghai-Tibet Highway. Kunlun Bridge is a reinforced concrete bridge, spanning natural hazards, with a total length of a little more than 4 meters. The grandeur of Kunlun Bridge lies not in the bridge itself, but in the stone cliffs and deep streams under it. Originated in Kunlun Mountain, the Golmud River, which is formed by the confluence of snow water and spring water, runs down from the alpine canyon at an altitude of more than 4,000 meters. The raging river has eroded thousands of stone slabs in the valley into a dangerous gorge with a depth of more than 40 meters and a width of several meters, of which the narrowest part is only about 4 meters. The cliffs on both sides of Kunlun Bridge are opposite, with rugged rocks, flat valley tops and deep valleys, and the situation is extremely steep. Standing on the bridge, I leaned over to have a bird's eye view, but I saw the rushing river roaring in the deep and steep valley, constantly stirring up layers of snow-white spray and making a thunderous roar. It's dazzling and frightening. The "Ghost Gate" and "Kunlun Mountain Range" on Kunlun Mountain are "the sky is grey and wild, and the wind blows grass and cattle and sheep are low". In the eyes of herders, the place with plenty of grass and water is their paradise for grazing. However, shepherds living in Kunlun Mountain would rather starve their cattle and sheep to death on the Gobi Desert because there is no fat grass to eat than dare to enter the ancient and silent valley of Kunlun Mountain. This valley is the valley of death, known as the "gate of hell" of Kunlun Mountain. The valley is covered with wolves' fur, bears' bones, hunters' steel guns and lonely graves, rendering a gloomy and horrible smell of death to the world. The following is a true story witnessed by a geological team of Xinjiang Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources: 1983, a group of horses in Alar Ranch of Qinghai Province strayed into Death Valley because they were greedy for fat grass in the valley. A shepherd ventured into the valley in search of horses. A few days later, no one appeared, but the horse appeared. His body was later found on a mountain. Clothes tattered, barefoot, eyes bulging, mouth wide open, shotgun in hand, a pair of die unsatisfied. Curiously, he found no scars or signs of being attacked. Shortly after this tragic accident, the geological team working nearby was also attacked by Death Valley. 1July, 983, it was extremely hot outside, and a snowstorm suddenly started near Death Valley. A thunder accompanied by a sudden snowstorm made the chef faint on the spot. According to the chef's memory, as soon as he heard the thunder, he suddenly felt numb, blacked out at the moment, and then lost consciousness. When the team members went out to work the next day, they were surprised to find that the original loess had turned into black soil. Like ashes, all animals and plants were "killed".