Meng Liang Stairway and Hanging Monk Rock

Meng Liang Stairway and Hanging Monk Rock (Daodiao Heshangshi)

On the remains of the Chalk Wall, are carved some square holes (each of one foot deep, 0.9 foot wide and 0.8 foot high). The holes are three feet in distance from each other, form a special 'Z' shape and reach to the mountainside. The holes are called Meng Liang Stairway by the local people. Close to the Meng Liang Stairway is a strange stone extending out of the precipice. As it resembles a monk hung upside down, the stone is called the Hanging Monk Rock (in Chinese Daodiao Heshangshi)

According to the legend, General Yang Jiye of the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) was killed by a treacherous court official. His corpse was buried on the Glance at Home Terrace on the top of Mt. Baiyan (Mountain White Salt). One of his henchmen called Meng Liang entered Qutang Gorge wanting to bring his skeleton back and bury it in his hometown. He cut holes and inserted wood every night and stopped his work before daybreak. However, his deed was discovered by a monk living in the Baidi Temple opposite to the precipice Meng Liang climbed. The monk crowed like a cockerel during the night causing all the cockerels in the Baidi City area to crow. Meng Liang mistakenly thought that daybreak was coming and stopped his work. Later, he discovered the monk's behavior and hung him upside down on the wall after killing him. For years, the monk became known as the Hanging Monk Rock.

As a matter of fact, the corpse of General Yang Jiye was not buried in Qutang Gorge Area; his legend only reflects the people's love for the general. The holes caved on the precipice were in fact the relics left by the ancient local people when they built the ancient plank road. And the Hanging Monk Rock is nothing more than a stalactite.