You may have heard of a small island in Zhoushan, Zhejiang.

It sits alone on the blue waves,

yet has carried a thousand years of incense and reverence.

This is Mount Putuo.

It isn't a hidden paradise,

but it's known as a Buddhist Kingdom of Sea and Sky.

Its winds and waves never rest,

yet they always soothe the most restless hearts.

When we step onto this land,

the first bell we hear

seems to ask:

when did these chants over the sea begin?

The origin of Mount Putuo

starts with a legend about someone who refused to leave.

The eminent Japanese monk Egaku

obtained a solemn statue of Guanyin from Mount Wutai

and prepared to sail east to Japan.

But when his ship reached

Lotus Sea (Lianhuayang) near Mount Putuo,

the calm sea

suddenly turned violent,

with gales and towering waves

making it impossible to move forward.

Egaku suddenly realized:

perhaps the Bodhisattva refused to go east.

He immediately knelt before the statue and prayed.

Egaku built a simple thatched hut

in the Purple Bamboo Grove by the shore

and enshrined the Guanyin statue there.

This became Mount Putuo's first temple,

Bukenqu Guanyin Temple.

From then on, the "Guanyin Who Refused to Leave"

became the spiritual symbol of Mount Putuo.

By the Ming and Qing dynasties,

Mount Putuo had reached its peak,

forming the grand layout of its three great temples.

Emperors Kangxi and Yongzheng

not only funded extensive renovations

but also bestowed imperial jade steles,

pushing this island Buddhist kingdom

to the height of devotion.

Inside Fayu Temple's Nine Dragon Hall,

the exquisitely crafted nine-dragon caisson ceiling

is a national-level cultural relic.

Nine dragons coil around it,

their heads hanging low with piercing eyes

and lifelike forms,

as if forever guarding this pure land.

This caisson ceiling

originally came from the Ming Dynasty Imperial Palace in Nanjing,

and was later moved here by Emperor Kangxi's decree,

becoming one of Mount Putuo's most precious architectural relics.

Yet

perhaps Mount Putuo's greatest architect

is nature itself.

The name Chaoyin Cave

is full of poetry and Zen wisdom.

Located on the coast below Bukenqu Guanyin Temple,

it's a huge natural sea cave.

Waves surge into the deep cavern day and night,

crashing violently against the rock walls

with thunderous roars

that sound like giant bells,

shaking the soul.

At Fanyin Cave on the eastern end of Mount Putuo,

another miracle unfolds.

Here, sheer cliffs rise dozens of meters high

with an unfathomable depth between them.

Under certain light conditions,

mist fills the cave,

and as sunlight refracts,

mysterious visions of

"Guanyin appearing" often emerge.

Mount Putuo is more than a point on a map;

it's a guiding light

in the Chinese spiritual world.

Whatever you're going through right now,

take a walk on Mount Putuo.

Listen to the tidal sounds,

visit the ancient sites,

and feel the sea breeze that has blown for a thousand years.