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Lijiang Dongba Myriad Gods Garden
Lijiang, Yunnan, China
At the southern foothills of Jade Dragon Snow Mountain, where the cold shadow of Shanzidou peak cuts across the high-altitude meadows of Yuhu Village, stands the Lijiang Dongba Myriad Gods Garden. This site, adjacent to Yufeng Temple, historically served as a repository for Naxi stone and wood totems. Following the devastating 1996 Lijiang earthquake, Dr. Bai Gengsheng envisioned this park to preserve the ancient Dongba culture, opening its gates on July 10, 2000.
The garden's layout reflects the Naxi philosophy of duality: light and dark, god and ghost. At the entrance, two giant totem poles align with the mountain's highest peak. The male pole rises nine segments to represent the brothers who opened heaven; the female pole has seven segments for the sisters who cleared the earth. Between them lies the "Divine Path Painting," a 240-meter-long, 6-meter-wide stone path. Its relief slabs depict three worlds: the Divine, the Human, and the Ghost.
Flanking this axis are approximately 1,000 wood and stone sculptures. To protect these figures from the mountain's harsh weather, Naxi carvers charred the durable cuckoo wood with fire, leaving a rough, blackened texture that resists rot. On the left, white egg-shaped sculptures represent good spirits; on the right, black eggs represent malevolent forces. At the highest point, the Supreme Deities Area features massive carvings of three supreme gods, including Mili Dongapu. Nearby, the Genesis Scripture Relief Wall displays the epic "Chongban Tu" in ancient pictographic script, its deep ridges inviting visitors to trace the lines of the world's last surviving hieroglyphic system.
Human presence lingers in the quiet corners. In the damp, silent dark of the Dongba Spirit Cave, shamans once meditated and transcribed scriptures. Today, the scent of drying handmade paper and the sound of chisels on wood continue this heritage. Visitors can touch the stone reliefs, feel the charred wood, and watch modern students learn the ancient script, connecting directly with a living philosophy of harmony between humanity and nature.