Where Exactly Is the Most "Chinese" China?

Whenever these two words are heard from the mouths of fellow Henan natives, an inexplicable sense of reassurance is felt. The Central Plains, which nurtured Chinese civilization, have endowed Henan people with boundless pride in the concept of "zhong" (center). Here, it is not merely a geographical center but also a cultural one—the "center of heaven and earth" in ancient cognition.

Figure 1, Songyue Temple Pagoda, the oldest surviving Buddhist pagoda in China;

Figure 2, the millennia-old Shaolin Temple;

Figure 3, Zhongyue Temple, the largest architectural complex among the Five Sacred Mountains;

Figure 4, Huishan Temple, a relic from the Yuan Dynasty.

Figures 1-3 / Visual China Group; Figure 4 / Jiao Xiaoxiang.

Where is the most "central" place in China?

The answer lies in a small county town southwest of Zhengzhou. Nestled beside the "central" Mount Song of the Five Sacred Mountains, it earned its name—unchanged for over 1,300 years—after Empress Wu Zetian "ascended" Mount Song and "conferred" titles upon Zhongyue.

An aerial view of the Zhongyue Temple complex, backed by Mount Song.

As a long-overlooked treasure of a county, Dengfeng boasts 24 national key cultural relics protection units (26 sites, data as of the 8th batch in 2019), ranking first among all counties (cities) in China, surpassing even the cultural powerhouse of Shanxi. Yet Dengfeng's heritage extends far beyond its "elite squad" of protected sites—Mount Song, the earliest "Chinese New Year," Shaolin Kung Fu... Dengfeng holds too many of China's treasures.

Dengfeng: Defining the Original "China"

Tracing back to the earliest history of Dengfeng, it is no exaggeration to say that the history carried by this land is almost synonymous with that of China itself.

First came Mount Song, then Dengfeng. Around 3.6 billion years ago, when most of Earth was still submerged in vast oceans, one of China's oldest mountain ranges—the Mount Song range—slowly emerged between heaven and earth. Standing like a celestial pillar west of the boundless Central Plains, it was crowned "Chongshan" (Lofty Mountain) in the "Classic of Mountains and Seas," symbolizing the supreme peak.

The Mount Song range embraces the city of Dengfeng.

As the watershed between the Yellow River and the Huai River, Mount Song witnessed the collision and fusion of prehistoric civilizations nurtured by these great rivers. The "Records of the Grand Historian: Fengshan Book" notes: "In ancient times, the capitals of the Three Dynasties all lay between the Yellow and Luo Rivers, hence Mount Song was revered as the Central Sacred Mountain, while the other four sacred mountains stood as guardians of their respective regions." Mount Song drew people from all directions to converge here, and the Longshan culture, born in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, transitioned into the Erlitou culture in its vicinity.

If the Yin Ruins of the Central Plains are likened to the "kindergarten" where Chinese civilization gradually awakened from infancy, then Dengfeng at the foot of Mount Song resembles the "delivery room" of its birth. It witnessed Chinese civilization evolving from the scattered stars of the Neolithic Age into the embryo of a primitive state, advancing with mature writing, vast territories, and a brilliant bronze civilization toward the new chapter of a mighty nation.

Graphics / Two Dark Circles, One Fish.

The inscription "China" first appeared on the He Zun, a Western Zhou bronze vessel dating back about 3,000 years. However, the term "China" then did not refer to the country as we know it today but to the "center of heaven and earth" in the ancient perception of the Central Plains.

After King Wu conquered the Shang Dynasty, the Zhou people moved eastward from their western "frontier" into the Central Plains to build a new capital. This city embodied the Zhou people's ideals and political aspirations—it would serve as the earthly projection of the celestial North Star, standing at the center of the world, symbolizing the supreme authority of the Zhou Son of Heaven to "rule China and pacify the four barbarians." Thus, the Duke of Zhou, the "chief architect of the Zhou Dynasty," used a gnomon to measure the sun's shadow and determine方位, ultimately identifying Yangcheng (present-day Gaocheng Town, Dengfeng) as the "center of heaven and earth." This led to the construction of the new capital, Luoyi, now known as Luoyang. Moreover, during the same period, the observation of sun shadows also determined the spring equinox, autumn equinox, winter solstice, and summer solstice, contributing to the creation of the "24 Solar Terms."

The Duke of Zhou's Sundial Platform and the Dengfeng Observatory.

Even after hundreds or thousands of years, people still remember Dengfeng as the "Center of Heaven and Earth." During the Tang Dynasty, the earthen platform left by the Duke of Zhou was rebuilt in stone, taking the form we see today. By the Yuan Dynasty, astronomer Guo Shoujing constructed a towering observatory behind the sundial platform, which stands as China's earliest surviving astronomical observation structure. In 1281, Guo Shoujing measured the length of a year to be 365.2425 days—a figure with an error of just over 20 seconds compared to modern measurements, surpassing the Western Gregorian calendar in precision by more than 300 years.

By then, over 2,000 years had passed since the Duke of Zhou's sundial measurements, yet Dengfeng remained at the forefront of its time, representing the pinnacle of scientific advancement in Yuan Dynasty China.

How many "Chinese symbols" does Dengfeng hold?

There are many historic cities like Dengfeng in China, but few have consistently created symbols representing Chinese culture across different eras, from ancient times to the present.

The main hall of Zhongyue Temple, rebuilt during the Qing Qianlong era in the style of the Forbidden City.

In August 2010, the "Historic Monuments of Dengfeng in the Center of Heaven and Earth" became China's 39th UNESCO World Heritage Site. These eight structures, spanning from the Eastern Han through the Northern Wei, Tang, Song, and up to the Republican era, form the core of Dengfeng's ancient architecture. They are not only a living history of Central Plains architecture but also interpretations of the concept of "China" by people of different periods.

The location and distribution of the "Center of Heaven and Earth" historic monuments in China.

What ancient building best represents China? The answer is certainly not singular: it could be the East Main Hall of Foguang Temple, hailed by Liang Sicheng as "China's first national treasure," emerging from the splendor of the Tang Dynasty; or Beijing's Tiananmen, witnessing a century of upheaval and revival for the Chinese nation. But according to the definition in the National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units list, the answer is the Taishi Que at the foot of Mount Song, near Zhongyue Temple.

Built in 118 AD, the Taishi Que has stood steadfast for millennia at the southern end of Zhongyue Temple's central axis. Even as the original temple underwent repeated reconstructions (the current main structure dates to the Qing Qianlong era), it still exudes the grandeur of the largest among the Five Sacred Mountains' temples. As China's oldest surviving state ritual architecture, it holds the No. 001 position among the 2,160 nationally protected ancient buildings (as of the 2019 eighth batch).

Aerial view of the central axis of Zhongyue Temple's architectural complex.

Image credit/VCG

The same era in Mount Song also produced other structures: the Shaoshi Que, dedicated to Mount Shaoshi, and the Qimu Que, marking the birthplace of Yu the Great's wife (mother of Qi, the second ruler of the Xia Dynasty), ranking second and third on the national protection list for ancient buildings.

Fragile wooden structures succumb to time, but these stone-carved chronicles endure. The three stone que bear over 200 vivid reliefs depicting hunting, feasting, acrobatics, processions, and more, capturing the elegance of the Han Dynasty 2,000 years ago. Notably, the Shaoshi Que features a "cuju" (ancient football) scene: a woman with a high bun leaps toward a ball mid-air, flanked by drumming cheerleaders—arguably the earliest "Chinese women's football, steel roses."

Taishi Que; Qimu Que; Shaoshi Que.

Wandering through Mount Song, you'll find landmarks like Songyang Academy, Shaolin Temple, Huishan Temple, and Chongfu Palace coexisting. Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism, though seemingly separate, intertwine here, reflecting their historical dialogue and convergence in China.

Huishan Temple at the foot of Jicui Peak on Mount Song's southern slope.

Photo/Qiu Feier

Songyang Academy, Dengfeng's most renowned historical "institution of higher learning," chronicles this interplay. During the Northern Wei, it was "Songyang Temple"; by the Sui Dynasty, it transformed into "Songyang Taoist Temple." After the Northern Song unified the Central Plains, it became an academy, attracting scholars nationwide. Post-Wang Anshi's reforms, marginalized figures like Sima Guang and the Cheng brothers gathered here, producing works like *Comprehensive Mirror to Aid in Governance*, Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, and the famed "standing in snow at Cheng's door" anecdote—making Dengfeng the intellectual and ideological hub of the Northern Song.

Intriguingly, Songyang Academy's most significant protected relic is the *Stele of Sacred Virtue Response at Songyang Taoist Temple*, inscribed by Li Linfu, documenting how Taoist priest Sun Taichong refined elixirs for Emperor Xuanzong. The Confucian scholars studying the classics here showed no aversion to this history.

*Stele of Sacred Virtue Response at Songyang Taoist Temple of the Tang Dynasty*.

Photo/VCG

Such integration also appeared in Shaolin Temple. One of its "treasured relics" is the "Diagram of the Unity of Three Teachings and Nine Schools," depicting the harmony of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism. Buddhism, originating from distant South Asia, underwent "local transformation" at Shaolin Temple and became known to the world in the form of Zen. The legend of Bodhidharma, the First Patriarch, "facing the wall and leaving his shadow," and the verse of the Sixth Patriarch Huineng, "Originally there is nothing, where could dust alight?" have long been integrated into China's traditional philosophical system.

Even more famous than Buddhist teachings is the millennia-old Shaolin Kung Fu. From the legendary tale of "Thirteen Stick Monks Rescuing the Tang Emperor" to the Ming Dynasty, when Shaolin monks traveled to the southeastern coast to assist Qi Jiguang and Yu Dayou in resisting Japanese pirates—so much so that "monks from this temple were repeatedly dispatched, fighting bravely and achieving many feats at the cost of their lives." Today, Shaolin Kung Fu has gained global fame through modern films, becoming a shining emblem of Chinese cultural export.

Dengfeng Hides a "Chinese Pagoda Museum"

The most popular tourist attraction in Songshan is undoubtedly Shaolin Temple. Since its founding by Bodhidharma during the reign of Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty, this ancient temple has been known as the "Birthplace of Zen." The ravages of successive wars have also left indelible marks on it.

During the warlord conflicts of 1928, Shi Yousan, a subordinate of warlord Feng Yuxiang, set fire to Shaolin Temple. The flames lasted over forty days and nights, nearly destroying all buildings, scriptures, and ritual objects—yet they could not erase the temple’s millennia-old heritage. In the rarely visited northwestern mountains, the Main Hall of the First Patriarch’s Hermitage, built two years before the fall of the Northern Song Dynasty (1125), retains its original structure and is one of the earliest wooden buildings in Henan.

Figure 1: Shaolin Temple’s Scripture Depository; Photo/VCG

Figure 2: Autumn Ginkgo Scenery at Shaolin Temple’s Heavenly King Hall; Photo/Jiao Xiaoxiang

Figure 3: Footprints and the Large Mural "Five Hundred Arhats Paying Homage to Vairocana" in Shaolin Temple’s Western Sage Hall. Photo/Jiao Xiaoxiang

Also surviving the devastation is the Pagoda Forest to the southwest. Here lie not only the tombs of eminent patriarchs and abbots but also two "Ordinary Pagodas" from the Tang and Song Dynasties, providing a resting place for countless ordinary monks in the afterlife. From the seventh year of the Zhenyuan era in the Tang Dynasty (791) to the eighth year of the Jiaqing era in the Qing Dynasty (1803), monks built 241 brick and stone pagodas across different dynasties. Within the confines of a single temple, this accounts for nearly half of Henan’s surviving ancient pagodas (over 530) and about one-twelfth of the national total.

Beyond Shaolin Temple, Songshan is home to 17 pagodas built from the Northern Wei to the Ming and Qing Dynasties. Among them, the Songyue Temple Pagoda, constructed during the Zhengguang era of the Northern Wei (520–525), is the oldest surviving pagoda in China. Just a few years before its completion, the Yongning Temple Pagoda—"exhausting the limits of craftsmanship and nature"—soared 49 zhang (about 136 meters) as a wooden structure, dominating Luoyang’s skyline. In contrast, the Songyue Temple Pagoda adopted a humble brick-and-stone design, quietly nestled deep in Songshan.

The Yongning Temple Pagoda burned to ashes in a lightning fire just fifteen years after its completion, yet Songshan has sheltered the Songyue Temple Pagoda, allowing it to stand firm for 1,500 years. This sole surviving large pagoda from the Northern Wei era is regarded by architect Liu Dunzhen (a peer of Liang Sicheng) as the origin of a series of Tang pagodas, including the Big and Small Wild Goose Pagodas. Even today, its influence endures: the design inspiration for Zhengzhou’s CBD landmark, the "Big Corn" (Greenland Center Qianxi Plaza), still traces back to this ancient "ancestor of all pagodas."

The Songyue Temple Pagoda is the oldest surviving pagoda in China.

From the dawn of ancient civilization to the formation of early states, from the harmonious coexistence of diverse religions to the myriad forms of ancient architectural treasures, Dengfeng at the foot of Songshan—a small Henan town that witnessed the birth of the earliest "China"—embraces visitors from all directions with its broad-mindedness. It best represents the Chinese spirit of inclusiveness and, across all eras, continues to inscribe cultural symbols uniquely belonging to China.

Graphics | Yu Yitiao, Jiuyang

From Longshan to Erlitou: Centered on the North and South of Songshan by Zhang Li

A Study on the Evolution of Ancient Pagoda Forms in the Songshan Region by Wu Zhiwen

The Battle for Songshan Belief by Lü Hongjun and Bai Renyan

This article is original content from [Didao Fengwu]