The lodge door awaits visitors of Hermit Ming on Zhongnan Mountain. Photo: Yue Hongyan/GT

by Yue Hongyan

Taking along three white paper lanterns, wearing my only formally-tailored coat, sitting on the noisy tractor on the narrow and rugged mountain road with two buckets of diesel oil under my feet and huge bales of quilts behind my back, I dared not look into the deep and treacherous valley below. I was on the way to find the hermits of Zhongnan Mountain in central China, as portrayed in the notable book Road to Heaven: Encounters with Chinese Hermits by American writer Bill Porter. For me, however, it felt less like a road to heaven and more a spiritual quest for inner peace.

Located south of Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, Zhongnan Mountain, also known as Taiyi Mountain, is part of the section of the Qingling mountain range known as "fairyland" for its reputation as one of the birthplaces of Taoism and home to generations of hermits since the time of the Yellow Emperor some 5,000 years ago. According to legend, Laozi, an ancient Chinese philosopher and the godfather of Taoism, preached the scriptures and composed his classic work Tao Te Ching here. Throughout Chinese history, various notable hermits and recluses, including renowned Tang Dynasty (618-907) poet Wang Wei, have found sanctuary in the scattered retreats dotting the mountain and its surroundings.

Lecture hall of Wendao Magazine. Photos: Yue hongyan/GT

My personal journey to Zhongnan was something of a last-minute decision that came about after I'd had enough of the crowds at the Xi'an International Horticulture Exposition. A city creature by nature, I nevertheless grew sick of the hustle-bustle and needed to get away. Picking up a copy of Wendao (Seeking the Way), a magazine dedicated to promoting traditional Chinese culture, I found a notice for a "one-week ascetic trip to Zhongnan Mountain," organized by the publication.

Contacting the editor, Li Hongzhao, I learned that the mountain lodgings they were planning on using weren't complete but that I could earn a free trip if I helped them cart some of their supplies. Their car would drive me to the foot of the mountain and then I would have to climb myself or ride a tractor to the summit. Practically without thinking, I chose the tractor – not expecting to find myself scared to death whilst traversing this "road to heaven."

Passing a number of cottages on the way, I was greeted by a few mountain families – all of whom were no doubt wildly amused at my distress. Even if I wanted to quit and hike down, there wasn't even any space on the road to step down from the tractor.

The wind whipping my hair, my shoes immersed in oil, my heart stuffing my constricted throat, we finally disembarked in a tiny shack, where I met up with Li, who had followed us on his motorcycle and told me we still had another few minutes' climb to go.

The lodge door awaits visitors of Hermit Ming on Zhongnan Mountain. Photo: Yue Hongyan/GT

Ideal way of life

"Being a hermit was considered the ideal way of life in ancient China," Li  told me on the way up. "In those times it was more about how you lived rather than where you lived – you could just as easily be a hermit in the cities or imperial court as you could in the mountains."

After traversing the bumpy path, we came upon a tiny lodge surrounded by stately green trees, lush flowers in bloom and a peacefully flowing brook. This was the residence of modern-day hermits, people who eschew the rat race in exchange for a truly poetic life. After ducking inside to meet them, they greeted me: three people surnamed Li, Wu and Kuanhong, who told me that the fourth member of their brigade, a man surnamed Ming, had gone deeper into the mountain, to return – or not – at his fancy.

"We've just returned from a 15-day trek into the mountain," said Kuanhong, a female hermit in her 30s whose friendly smile indicated she had no trouble welcoming visitors like me. "Our diet consisted solely of pine leaves and dew – when you trek as much as we do, it's not difficult to get used to it.

"We always welcome visitors, as long as you bring whatever you need yourself, including food," she continued. "If you're interested in learning how to live an ascetic life, growing your own vegetables and following the Taoist ways, then we welcome you. But it's up to you to truly adopt a hermetic mindset."

Photo: Yue Hongyan/GT

Though she refused to speak too much about her background, she didn't hesitate to invite me inside her lodge for a cup of tea. The residence consisted of three small, simple rooms, mostly packed with esoteric texts about Buddhism and Hinduism.

"We're not some kind of special people," Li told me. "We're just simple folk who aren't terribly concerned with what everyone else is concerned with."

Li arrived at Zhongnan Mountain last winter after traveling around China for many years. Ever since, his routine has been utterly fixed: wake early for chores, including hoeing weeds, tilling land and picking herbs; enjoy a snack and tea at lunchtime, dinner at four and then a peaceful walk before settling down to read sutras or do a few other chores. He's usually in bed by sunset, lulled to sleep by the sounds of the brook, the winds and the birds.

"It's ironic – I feel far more lonely around people than I do here," he explained. "You have so many things to communicate with here – the animals, the forests, the mountain. If you listen hard enough you can hear them talking back to you as well."

Trying to experience a tiny sliver of what he described, I put away my camera – usually my constant companion on such travels – and just tried to clear my mind amidst the mountain's tranquil bounty.

As for the future, Li leaves it up to destiny to decide whether he continues along this life path, retreats even further into the mountains or abandons his ascetic lifestyle for good. "Whatever happens, happens," he said.

Photo: Yue Hongyan/GT

Avenues for communication

Just behind the lodge, there rested a much larger and fresher-looking structure made of bamboo: the Wendao meeting house, which the editors told me they will use for various meetings and lectures and was now nearly finished after two years of construction.

Fulfilling my side of the bargain, I delivered the paper lanterns and helped the staff do some tidying-up, taking my time to enjoy the stunning views from the wide windows. "I do worry about disturbing these hermits, but I think if we open a few reasonable avenues for communication, then people can learn from them and they can learn from others," said Zhang Jianfeng, the Wendao editor-in-chief.

According to Zhang, there are about 3,000 to 5,000 hermits scattered throughout Zhongnan Mountain, although it's impossible to determine an exact figure.

"They're maintaining a tradition which has been upheld since ancient times, despite all the changes going on in the outside world," he said.

"These days everyone is after more and more money and more and more stuff, and yet we're not happy. These people provide us a new way of thinking and living, going back to true fundamentals of existence."

But Zhang warned the simple life is not always easy: "Before anyone comes to visit I hope they think long and hard about what they want to get out of the experience," he said.

How to get there

Fly to Xi'an by air, and then take bus No. 923 at Xi'an West Station. At the bus terminus, you can rent car for 30 yuan ($4.6) to get to the foot of mountain, and from there you have to climb up yourself. Please be attentive of noise, litter and your overall footprint: make sure you take out whatever you bring in.