James Baquet

    jamesbaquet@gmail.com

    USING Nanchang as a base, I took a train to rural Yongxiu, and a long bus from there to the base of Yunju (Cloud Residence) Mountain. A pricey local driver took me another 10 or 15 kilometers up a windy mountain road to Zhenru (True Suchness) Temple.

    He dropped me all alone under the enormous new gateway. In fact, that was the general tenor of the place: big, new, and deserted. I did not see another person on the main temple grounds.

    After touring the main temple area on my own, I hiked out to a small monastic cemetery I had seen. Then, making my way around the huge “free life pond” and out the front gate, I turned right to a very special place.

    Zhenru Temple is the place where the great monk Xuyun passed away in 1959. I have since heard that there is a fine museum in the temple, containing personal items that once belonged to the master, and telling the story of his life.

    Although I missed that, I was able to visit his memorial pagoda. And it was in the compound surrounding it that I met some delightful old monks, and some little black and white puppies.

    Finishing my visit, I faced a problem. There was simply no transportation back to the bottom of the mountain where I trusted that a bus would pass. So I started walking down, and hoped for the best.

    When I reached the gate to the Yunju Mountain Scenic Area, my luck took a turn for the better. Some other temple visitors kindly took me not merely to the bottom of the mountain, but all the way back to the train station, where they purchased my ticket back to Nanchang!