Bai Lu Dong Academy

Bai Lu Dong Academy is located southeast of the Wulaofeng Peak, originally founded in 940 AD, covering an area of 3000 acres of mountain land and 3800 square meters of building area. The academy is surrounded by mountains and waters, creating a tranquil and serene environment, and is a key cultural relics protection unit in China.

During the Tang Dynasty’s Zhenyuan period, Li Bo, the governor of Jiangzhou, sequestered himself here for study and kept a white deer for entertainment, hence the nickname ‘Mr. White Deer’. He constructed pavilions and planted flowers and trees. The Southern Tang court established the Lushan National School here, and the academy has experienced many vicissitudes, rising and falling through the ages. It was not until the Southern Song Dynasty, under the governance of Zhu Xi in Nankang, that the academy flourished.

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The existing architectural complex of Bai Lu Dong Academy stretches along the Guandao Stream from west to east, consisting of the academy’s gate tower, Ziyang Academy, Bai Lu Academy, and Yanbin Hall, among other architectural clusters. All buildings face north to south, with stone, wood, or brick-wood structures, and feature gable roofs with a human-like hard mountain shape, exuding an elegant and restrained atmosphere. Bai Lu Dong Academy is one of the Four Great Academies of China. Zhu Xi, a Neo-Confucian scholar of the Song Dynasty, reconstructed the academy and personally lectured here.

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The Four Great Academies of China include: Bai Lu Dong Academy on Lushan Mountain in Jiangxi, Yue Lu Academy in Changsha, Hunan, Shigu Academy in Hengyang, Hunan (destroyed during the Anti-Japanese War and replaced in 1998 by the Song Yang Academy in Dengfeng, Henan), and Yingtian Academy in Shangqiu, Henan.

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The academy is open all year round from 08:00 to 17:00. Preferential policies include: Children: Free for those aged 6 and under or with a height of 1.2 meters and under; half-price for those with a height between 1.2 meters and 1.4 meters. Students: Half-price for all primary, middle, and high school students nationwide with a student ID. Elderly: Free for those aged 65 and over with an ID or senior citizen card. Military personnel: Free for active-duty soldiers with valid ID. Journalists: Free for those with a provincial-level or above press card. Retired military personnel: Free for those with valid ID. Disabled persons: Free for those with valid ID. Youth: Half-price for minors aged between 6 and 18 with valid ID.

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