Chinese Folklore Tour - A Cultural Journey

Author: Cheng Youzi, Ah Hong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-07-01
Features: A Brief Introduction to the Leifeng Pagoda – A Scenic Spot of the Legend of the White Snake
The story of Leifeng Pagoda and the White Snake is widely known. In the legend, Leifeng Pagoda is located on Leifeng Mountain by West Lake, hence its name. Leifeng Mountain is a spur of Nanping Mountain extending northward and rising abruptly near the lake, covered in lush greenery. Though small and delicate, its fame on the lake is second to none, as it once housed Leifeng Pagoda, built during the Wuyue Dynasty, which was the most picturesque and charming tower among the numerous ancient towers on West Lake. Unfortunately, it collapsed over seventy years ago. With the tower gone, the mountain faded into oblivion, and even its name was changed to Xizhao Mountain. Today, Leifeng Pagoda has been rebuilt, restoring an important scenic view of West Lake.
This mountain on the southern shore of West Lake, surrounded by water on three sides and resembling a peninsula, was once occupied by the Southern Song Dynasty imperial garden. After 1949, numerous ornamental trees such as camphor trees, liquidambar trees, and elms were planted on the mountain, creating a magnificent sight with rustling forests at sunset. Regrettably, the ancient tower has vanished, and "Leifeng at Sunset" has become a "missing" scenic spot among the Ten Views of West Lake.
Leifeng Pagoda has endured too many hardships. Originally named Xiguan Brick Tower or Huangfei Tower, it was first built in the eighth year of Kaibao in the Northern Song Dynasty. In the late Northern Song Dynasty, the tower was struck by lightning and later repaired in the early Southern Song Dynasty, reduced to a five-story pagoda with two fewer levels than the original. It is an octagonal brick-and-wood structure, with a brick core and wooden eaves, galleries, and railings. The inner walls of each side are embedded with carved stones of the "Huayan Sutra," and a subterranean repository was built beneath the tower to house the Golden Cave Arhat. After the Southern Song Dynasty, the wooden eaves and galleries of Leifeng Pagoda were repeatedly destroyed and rebuilt. During that time, painters such as Chen Qingbo painted "Leifeng at Sunset."
In the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty, Japanese pirates invaded Hangzhou, suspecting the pagoda of hiding troops, and set fire to the wooden eaves and galleries, leaving only the brick body and a damaged top. With only its core remaining, Leifeng Pagoda stood defiantly for over four hundred years in its broken beauty.
Around 1:40 PM on September 25, 1924, a loud crash echoed across the southern shore of West Lake. "The old monk" suddenly collapsed, dust filling the air as birds scattered. Broken bricks littered the top of Leifeng, numbering tens of thousands. The entire city of Hangzhou emptied its streets to witness the spectacle. It turned out that before its collapse, the tower had already been severely damaged by brick thieves, who, driven by rumors that the bricks possessed "divine power" to ward off misfortune, had dug into it relentlessly, ultimately causing this disaster.
Today, Leifeng Pagoda has been rebuilt, restoring one of West Lake's scenic wonders.
The Legend of the White Snake and Xu Xian
In the early Southern Song Dynasty, a young shop assistant named Xu Xian lived in Pearl Lane near Gu Lou in Guojun Bridge, Hangzhou. One Qingming Festival, while visiting graves near Lingyin, he encountered sudden rain and hired a boat from Duanqiao to return home. There, the white snake, now named Baizhu, and the young green snake, Xiaojing, transformed into a mistress and maid, coincidentally meeting Xu Xian. Baizhu fell for Xu Xian and asked him to take her home. Xu Xian agreed. By the time they reached Yongjin Gate, the rain still fell, so he lent them an umbrella and returned to the shop in the rain. The next day, Xu Xian visited Baizhu's home to retrieve the umbrella and was warmly hosted by her. With Xiaojing's matchmaking, the two married.
after their marriage, they moved to Zhenjiang, opening an apothecary shop, and lived a blissful life. However, the abbot of Jinshan Temple in Zhenjiang learned of Baizhu's origins and, believing that the sacred land of Jiangnan could not harbor demons, used the guise of collecting alms to sow discord between Xu Xian and Baizhu. Under his influence, Xu Xian made Baizhu drink malevolent wine on the Dragon Boat Festival, and when she collapsed in drunkenness, Xu Xian was shocked to see her true white snake form. He fainted in terror. Upon waking, Baizhu braved countless dangers to steal immortal herbs from the heavens to save Xu Xian. But once recovered, Xu Xian, again manipulated by the abbot, went to Jinshan Temple to repay his vow. The abbot forced him to become a monk and held him captive.
Baizhu went to rescue him, pleading desperately, but was instead cursed. With no choice, she summoned the dragon and crab troops to flood Jinshan Temple with the Yangtze River, while the abbot prayed for heavenly forces to defend it. After a fierce battle, Baizhu retreated to Hangzhou. Meanwhile, Xu Xian escaped the chaos and reunited with Baizhu and Xiaojing on Duanqiao. Soon after, Baizhu gave birth to a son named Xu Shilin. On his full moon day, the abbot arrived, raised his golden bowl, and imprisoned Baizhu beneath Leifeng Pagoda, declaring she would only be freed when the tower collapsed.
Xiaojing, who had escaped during the "unification of the bowl," practiced in the mountains for years, mastering powerful magic, and finally toppled Leifeng Pagoda to free the white snake, who then ascended to heaven together with her. The defeated abbot, unable to hide, eventually hid in a crab shell. To this day, when people eat crabs, they say there's a "crab monk" inside—the abbot himself.
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