Maoshan Mountain is located at Jurong County, Jiangsu Province. It is a famous Taoist mountain in China, and was once known as the First Happy Land and Eighth Fascinating Place in the history. As it is the cradle of Shangqing Sect, Lingbao Sect and Maoshan Sect, it has a very high status in the Taoist history in China. It was listed as one of the key national Taoist temples by the State Council in 1983.
Maoshan Mountain became a famous mountain of Taoism as early as in 153BC. The three brothers whose surname was Mao cultivated themselves here at that time, and they used the bills of immortality to treat diseases for nearby people, and were thus respected by common people. The original name of the mountain was Juqu Mountain. Because of the three brothers, the mountain was renamed Maoshan Mountain. After that, many Taoist masters carried out religious activities here, and the mountain therefore became more and more famous. Maoshan Mountain entered its most prosperous stage during the Song Dynasty (960-1279). A lot of Taoist temples were built with governmental support and the mountain gradually became the religious place for Zhengyi Sect to perform Taoist rites. There were about 700 small and large rooms in the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). The main buildings include the Taiyuanbao Hall and the Jiuxiao Wanfu Palace, etc. There are many precious cultural relics, including the four most precious treasures used to subdue the mountain, and canons stored in the temple. In addition, the religious rituals and music of the Maoshan Taoist Temple have distinctive features, and they are the important reference materials for research on the Taoist culture.
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