The Sacred Mountains in China are divided into two groups, one associated with Taoism, and the other associated with Buddhism.
The group associated with Taoism is known as the Five Great Mountains, whereas the group associated with Buddhism is referred to as the Four Sacred Mountains.
Both groups have been important destinations for pilgrimage. The Chinese expression for pilgrimage (cháoshèng) is a shortened version of a phrase means literary “paying respect to a holy mountain” (cháobài shèng shān).
The Taoist Five Great Mountains are arranged according to the five cardinal directions of Chinese geomancy, which includes the center as a direction.
