Guanyin Cave

This cave on Mount Wutai is also called the Xixian Temple because of its location at the mouth of Xixian Valley, about 5 kilometer) from the town of Taihuai. It was named one of the key Buddhist temples in Han areas, in 1983 and was first developed in the Kangxi reign period of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912). The wall behind the Guanyin Cave Hall has another small cave on either side, with the entrance to the one on the left small, but the inside large. There are water deposits on the ground which are thought by some to be sacred water, and Buddhists believe that drinking it can help them avoid disaster. The cave holds three temples, with the third one, Wuye, being the most famous. It has a one-meter-tall clay figure of Wuye, which is said to be a god that responds to every plea, and who, after becoming a Bodhisattva, came to this cave to meditate and practice Zen Buddhism and became a major assistant to the Guanyin Bodhisattva.