In 3 17 AD, when Si Marui, the emperor of the Jin Dynasty, crossed the river for the first time to establish the Eastern Jin Dynasty, his capital was Jiankang (now Nanjing). During the Daxing period, Yuan Di wanted to build a double gate outside Yang Xuanmen, the south gate of the capital, to show the supremacy of imperial power. At that time, many officials talked about it, saying that Erque in front of Yu Hsu's tomb in Yixing in Han Dynasty could be moved here. Wang Dao, the prime minister, disagreed. He clearly knew that the Eastern Jin regime was primitive and lacked financial resources. Even the fence has been replaced by a bamboo fence, so it is impossible to build a pavilion. Wang Dao pondered for several days. One day, he accompanied Emperor Jin Yuan out of Yang Xuanmen and looked south. He saw the confrontation between the two peaks of Niushou Mountain, which was very spectacular. He pointed to the peak and said, "This day is gone, so why change it!" Yuan Di understood Wang Dao's painstaking efforts, so he listened to his advice, canceled the plan to build Shuangque, and named Niushou Mountain Tianque Mountain. In Selected Works of Zhaoming, there is a record that "it's a false sky on the cow's head" in Lushu's Shiqueming. At the beginning of Tianbao in the Tang Dynasty, Niushou Mountain was officially renamed "Tianque Mountain".

In the 5th year of Liu Song Xiaowu in the Southern Dynasty (4,665,438+0), there once lived a monk named Bizhi in a cave on the south slope of the west peak of Niushou Mountain. It was in this cave that he became a Buddha, so the cave where he lived is called Bizhi Buddha Cave, also called Buddha Cave. Niushou Mountain was once called Xianku Mountain.

Buddhism prevailed in the Liang Dynasty in the Southern Dynasty. A Buddhist cave temple (now Hongjue Temple) was built at the southern foot of Niushou Mountain, and the Hongjue Temple Tower was added in the Tang Dynasty. In the sixth year of Emperor Taizong's Zhenguan (632), Niushou Mountain became the birthplace of Buddhism "Tautou Religion" (a kind of "Tautou Zen"). Buddhists call it a "river-surface bull's head", which is what it means. There is a monument on the tower, and the inscription "New Tower of Master Rong, the ancestor of Niushou Mountain" was written by the famous poet Liu Yuxi. For more than 1000 years from Liang Dynasty to Ming Dynasty, Niushou Mountain has always been a place where there are not enough people and talented people come forth in large numbers. Yu Binshuo described it as: "Beautiful scenery is bright, the pine ridge is cloudy, the pavilion embroidery is scattered, and it is ethereal and exquisite." There is a poem (1455) carved on the cliff of Fengsheshe, Shandong Province, by Niu Shou. In addition to Sanskrit and poetry carvings, there are four carved Buddha statues in the phoenix-shaped stone wall, with a maximum of 75 and a maximum of nearly 2 meters. It shows a bright spot of Buddhism in Ming Dynasty.

1937 After the fall of Nanjing in 26 years of the Republic of China, the Japanese invaders cut down the whole mountain and all the buildings were set on fire.

1957, Xifeng was razed due to iron ore mining. There are few cultural relics left. It was not until 1986 that the protection and management of Niushou Mountain were strengthened. Spring flowers such as pine, cypress, peach, plum, orchid, azalea and winter jasmine were planted all over the mountain, and the Hongjue Temple Tower was restored.

1995, listed as a provincial forest park in Jiangsu province, was officially put into operation in April 2002.

From June 20 1 1, Jiangning District started the creative planning of Niushou Scenic Area, and determined the overall layout of "Tianque Tibetan Palace, Five Zen Twin Towers" and "One Flower and Five Leaves". The planning center area of Niushou Mountain Scenic Area has a total area of about 9.5 1 km2, and consists of five major areas: cultural Zen, natural Zen, life Zen, ecological Zen and artistic Zen. The goal of the whole Niushou Mountain Scenic Area is to turn it into a Zen culture leisure resort.

In the first half of 20 12, the regulatory detailed planning of the core area of Niushou Mountain Cultural Tourism Zone (Niushou Scenic Area) has passed the expert review, the first phase of the project has been approved, and it is being submitted for approval for environmental assessment, fire protection and other related procedures. The Great Baoen Temple Pagoda will also be rebuilt in Niushou Mountain. According to the plan, it will be completed and opened to tourists before the 20 14 Youth Olympic Games.