Figuring the preeminence of Mount Tai in Chinese culture and analyzing royal, religious and folk influences on its configuration

Yang, Yingqi

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/127422 Copy

Description

Title

Figuring the preeminence of Mount Tai in Chinese culture and analyzing royal, religious and folk influences on its configuration

Author(s)

Yang, Yingqi

Issue Date

2024-12-11

Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)

Sears, Stephen Michael

Committee Member(s)

• Sullivan, William C
• Stewart, William

Department of Study

Landscape Architecture

Discipline

Landscape Architecture

Degree Granting Institution

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Degree Name

M.L.A.

Degree Level

Thesis

Keyword(s)

• Mount Tai Cultural Landscape
• Mount Tai Religious Landscape
• Central Route

Abstract

Mount Tai, heralded as the premier of China's "Five Sacred Mountains," is a World Heritage Site recognized for both its natural and cultural significance. Its grand natural landscapes, enriched by thousands of years of historical and cultural essence, epitomize the cultural pinnacle of Chinese mountainous regions. This thesis answers the question of what factors led to the significance of Mount Tai in Chinses culture and how royal, religious and folk influences shape of the Mount Tai central climbing route. This thesis uses methods of Spatial Mapping, Research of Ancient Documents, and Interpretation to examine the origins of the cultural landscape of Mount Tai. Spatial Mapping involves the study and analysis of Mount Tai's current natural landscape. Given the scarcity of ancient texts describing the landscape of Mount Tai and a lack of visual representation, this thesis clarifies the historical context of Mount Tai’s cultural landscape by mapping it out based on the investigation, analysis, and synthesis of various documents. By arguing the significance of Mount Tai's natural and cultural landscapes, this thesis reveals the Central Route as the most representative, cohesive, and complete scenic area. Through a chronological organization of the development of the Central Route, this research demonstrates the evolution of the route and introduces the "4D Cultural Landscape Model," using Minkowski's spatiotemporal framework to analyze how imperial power, religion, and folk culture interact over time to influence the formation and development of the Central Route's landscape. The study finds that the Central Route, as a comprehensive reflection of Mount Tai's cultural landscape, is deeply influenced by imperial ceremonies, Confucian, Buddhist, and Taoist traditions, as well as folk practices. These factors directly shape the design elements along the Central Route, such as temple sequences, pathway layouts, stone inscriptions, and ancient trees, blending and evolving over time. Key findings include: 1. The "Three Gate Theory" represents the most profound and comprehensive impact on the Central Route sequence. The historical cultural axis of Mount Tai and the "Triple Space" theory under this theory show the relationship between Mount Tai and urban areas, revealing the folk foundations in the cultural construction of the Central Route. 2. The configuration of the Central Route has been shaped by imperial power, religious dogma, and folk culture, all of which contribute to Mount Tai's cultural landscape. By comparing and translating a wealth of classical and modern Chinese documents, this thesis fills a gap in the English-language literature on Mount Tai as a cultural landscape.

Graduation Semester

2024-12

Type of Resource

Thesis

Handle URL

https://hdl.handle.net/2142/127422

Copyright and License Information

Copyright 2024 Yingqi Yang

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