Dongtian

The image combines an earthly location with an immortal realm. A mountain cavern can be understood as containing a different world within it. This religious meaning explains why translating dongtian simply as cave leaves out an important part of the term.

Traditional accounts distinguish ten great grotto-heavens and thirty-six lesser grotto-heavens. These named groups belong to a religious classification of sacred places; the numbers do not describe all the physical caves in China.

Dongtian is often paired with fudi, the blessed grounds. Both concern places associated with immortals, but they are distinct categories within the wider expression dongtian fudi. The paired term provides the broader geographical framework, while dongtian emphasizes the cavern-world image.

Outside specifically Daoist usage, dongtian can describe captivating scenery or a secluded place that seems to open into another world. The dictionaries also record an older literary sense of vastness. These extended meanings should not be mistaken for formal inclusion in a list of Daoist sacred sites.