After returning from the Mogao Grottoes, I am more and more eager to explore the artistic charm of Dunhuang grottoes. I always want to see more and understand the mystery! When you arrive in Dunhuang, you will find that the Dunhuang Grottoes are not only in the Mogao Grottoes, but also in the Yulin Grottoes, a relic of the sea of art! It is always ignored by us, in fact, the artistic charm is comparable to the Mogao Grottoes.
since I'm here, there should be no regrets. On the third day, we chartered a local car and set out from Dunhuang all the way west to Yulin Cave. The Mogao Grottoes and the Yulin Grottoes are separated by a desert of more than 111 kilometers. For many years, the two Dunhuang pearls have been facing each other in this desert ... The Yulin Grottoes belong to Guguazhou, and because of its remote location, it is unknown compared with the Mogao Grottoes, which also makes it full of mysterious temptations.
as we approach it, we can strongly feel this mysterious attraction. Yulin Cave is located in a river valley. I am surprised that there is such an oasis in this desert and the flowing spring water is so clear! All the caves in Yulin Cave were dug in the cliffs on both sides of the valley. In ancient times, it was also called: Ten Thousand Buddha Gorge. Because elm trees become forests and are lush, it is named Yulin Cave.
Imagine that when Buddhism spread to the east at that time, Buddhists trudged slowly in the yellow sand, but they saw this land of hope in despair. They must be happy and grateful for the mercy of the Buddha. I think this is the land of Buddha's fate, and I sincerely put the Buddha in their hearts here.
So far, we have no way to verify when the Yulin Cave was dug. Only from the existing 42 caves, we can know that the earliest caves were built in the Tang Dynasty more than 1111 years ago. It was also the heyday of Mogao Grottoes, so Yulin Grottoes, on the other hand, also reflected the essence of Dunhuang Grottoes art!
Yulin Grottoes are not as famous as Mogao Grottoes, so there are fewer tourists coming and going. But it is precisely because of this that the murals in Yulin Grottoes are better preserved than those in Mogao Grottoes! The color of murals in some caves has not been oxidized, and we can still see the bright colors at that time, so that we can witness them with our own eyes, which is also a great honor!
Because there were many caves in the Tang Dynasty, the changed paintings in Yulin Cave are one of its major features! What is a classic painting? In fact, the changed painting is the original creation of China people. Through grand scenes, rich details, fascinating stories, beautiful images, and China's favorite forms, it vividly and clearly conveys the difficult Buddhist classics to the public, thus popularizing and promoting Buddhism. Some of them are similar to our popular visual guidance maps and mind maps! It can be seen that the wisdom of ancient people is immeasurable, and they know how to concretize abstract thinking and theory. It's a great achievement to make ordinary people who don't know the scriptures understand Buddhism and leave such a wonderful artistic legacy for our later generations by using vivid paintings of classics!
The most famous classics paintings are "Maitreya Classics" and "Watching the Endless Life of Buddhism Classics". They depict the bliss of Buddhism. "Maitreya Sutra" shows the process of Maitreya becoming a Buddha, so it describes the life of the Buddhist country in great detail. Of course, it is also the time to give full play to the painter's imagination, and the painter can focus on rendering the world we are looking forward to.
In the era of agricultural civilization, what people long for is not only the bumper harvest of crops, but also people's happiness. Therefore, the Buddha country does its best to make crops harvest seven times a year and all trees can grow clothes! In this way, we can keep our doors open at night, and Confucius' Datong world is very similar.
The descriptions in Buddhist scriptures come from empty imagination, but the painters' descriptions come from reality. In order to make the pictures credible, painters will naturally use their familiar images to create. So the empty imagination in Buddhist scriptures becomes flesh and blood, and can even be touched.
Looking at the Buddhist Sutra of Infinite Life, although it is a paradise of Buddhism, look carefully at the dancing pavilions and singing platforms in the painting, where there are beautiful buildings, auspicious clouds flying, lotus flowers shining on the water, the Buddha sitting in the middle, the band playing French music together, and the birds dancing with it ...
Isn't there a familiar feeling in this? Those eight geisha are flying in the sky, playing sheng, pipa, clarinet, flute and clapper … Although the musical instruments are different, they are playing the same tune. There is also a maiko in the middle, with a strong body and a sense of music; While beating the drum, she whirled and danced the ribbon up and down. Isn't this similar to Hu Ji dancing Hu Xuan in Chang 'an? Look at her hands stretching as hard as she can, her waist twisting wildly, and her toes tiptoeing with excitement from dancing. Isn't this the moving dance image at that time in the prosperous Tang Dynasty?
From the changed paintings, we can not only see the classic stories of Buddhism and the wisdom of Buddhism, but also feel the ultimate beauty pursued by people's spirit and thoughts at that time through pictures. That kind of tireless exploration and pursuit of a better life is the soul of this exquisite mural!
In 1318 AD, the Daxia Kingdom established by the Tangut people rose, and the Yulin Cave showed the unique color of the Tangut people here. Xixia kingdom has always been a mysterious synonym in history! Because of its mysterious extinction, we can't find any trace of their culture until now. Only in the Yulin Cave, we can untie this veil a little here and get a glimpse of it.
Look for the patrons in the murals, who are different from other patrons. The waiters in Xixia are characterized by strong figure, long round face, long eyes and wide forehead. There are all kinds of animals flying in the air. In fact, they are very similar to real animals, but they have huge wings! In particular, the horses loved by Xixia people became flying horses in the murals! We can also see the freedom and romance in the hearts of this mysterious nation!
The most famous Xixia mural in Yulin Cave is Shui Yue Guan Yin. You can see the painter's exquisite meticulous and heavy-colored painting method, and the image of Guan Yin is dignified and elegant, with a long artistic conception. Moreover, the main color of the whole picture is mainly stone green, giving people a cold, empty and quiet feeling. At the same time, this color renders a mysterious atmosphere of esoteric religion. Just like the symbol of esoteric Buddhism, mandala, exquisite, has a strange and mysterious attraction to Central Plains culture.
This strong fashion of esoteric religion of Xixia people has lasted for nearly two centuries here, which gradually dissipated the luxurious and warm atmosphere of the Tang Dynasty ...
It is more interesting that Cave 16 shows me the role of the tunnel in Yulin Cave. One of the characteristics of Yulin Cave is the long and deep tunnel, and there are usually portraits of supporters on the side walls of the tunnel. The so-called provider is a devout believer who provides funds, goods and labor for the construction of caves! When building caves, their portraits will appear in places such as tunnels.
During the Five Dynasties, Guazhou was dominated by Cao Yijin, a local official. Especially in Yulin Grottoes, there are many portraits of Cao Shi's powerful supporters, which shows the power of Cao family at that time.
The most typical one is Cave 16. On both sides of the tunnel are portraits of Cao Yijin and his wife, Princess Uighur. Both portraits are about 1.67 meters, the same height as real people. This is also the characteristic of the portrait of the benefactor in the Five Dynasties, which is very realistic! In the portrait, Cao Yijin wore a crimson robe with wide sleeves and a censer in his hands, respectfully and devoutly worshiping the Buddha.
Look at Mrs. Uighur, who is opposite to him. She is wearing a robe, a peach-shaped rockhopper, a decorative step on the crown, and a cymbal on her face. She puts her hands together on her chest and holds a censer, offering reverence and devotion to the Buddha statue. Her dress was a typical Uighur women's dress at that time.
From the clothes of the two providers, we can see that the wealth of the Cao Shi family, especially the clothes and accessories of Mrs. Uighur, is beautiful and luxurious! The floral decorations on the face stickers are all made of pure gold. It's really called ancient Gao Fushuai and Bai Fumei! In that era when Buddhism prevailed, no matter who was the master of Guazhou, he would proudly and devoutly put his heart and faith in the Yulin Cave. This is the pride of supporting people, and it also shows their respect for faith.
This time, the Yulin Cave has brought me so many surprises! It has left a unique footprint of each era here. The Tang Dynasty was warm and grand, the Song Dynasty was elegant and quiet, the Xixia was magnificent and mysterious, and the Yuan Dynasty was hazy and far-reaching. History here depicts the cultural photos of various ethnic groups in the northwest!
Painters from all directions gather here with their own regional characteristics to tell their ideal world with their paintings. Although people have different images and artistic styles, they are sensible in the face of the ideal kingdom of heaven. It let me see the greatness of ancient Hexi culture: broad tolerance and integration!
Yulin Cave has experienced ups and downs for thousands of years, and the artistic light is faintly shining on the beach next door! Although it was left in the desert and ignored by people, it will eventually be discovered because people have a desire to explore the history and cultural spirit. The desert beads have begun to shine!
Please look forward to: My Silk Road (IV) The romantic city in the hearts of teenagers-Lanzhou, Lanzhou.