Journey to the Lands of the Ancestors
Page 3 of 3
of a travel blog by Dhammadipa
Image: Dhammadipa
Trip to China from Monday, May 6 through Wednesday, May 15, 2024
Day 7: May 12 - Dunhuang
In the morning, we board a plane to the city of Dunhuang and I feel the anticipation of a pilgrim. Dunhuang is an ancient city, founded as a military outpost in 111 BCE. These days it still feels remote. We have flown many hours to the west of Beijing and have entered a much more arid climate zone where nothing but sand dunes can been seen for miles. I am looking forward to visiting the caves of Mogao, which lie 24 km outside the city, at the edge of the Gobi desert. Coming to this place, which I had heard of even before beginning my formal studies in Buddhist art history, I am excited that I will get to see the paintings and statues that are the expressions of my monastic ancestors. These are the images and spaces created by the people who passed on Buddhist teachings and enabled China to keep Buddhism alive even after its decline and eventual extinguishment in India.
After a quick stop at the hotel, we head over to the visitor center where we will watch the two introductory films that set the stage for folks to see the caves. The first film places the Mogao caves in the context of Chinese history. According to their understanding, the Chinese initiated the Silk Road by sending out an envoy. These days most scholars believe that the Silk Road was created by folks traveling from India and Italy through Central Asia to China, as well as folks traveling from China to those areas. In this film we are told that the Dharma, or teachings of Buddhism, offered solace from the difficulties of life and that Mogao became a “location of spiritual power due to belief.” To see the second film, we move into a room that creates a circular, immersive experience of some of the most beautiful and meaningful caves. It expresses the effort and devotion that went into the creation of the caves. Visitors learn that while more than 1,000 caves were carved here, only 735 have survived and only 492 contain wall paintings and sculpture. It highlights caves that have undergone significant conservation projects such as Cave 285 with its large central pillar, and cave 130 with its 26-meter Maitreya Buddha (the Buddha of the future when humans will flourish) carved in the Tang Dynasty period of 618 - 906 CE.
Then we take a van along the same route that other visitors take, from the visitor center to the caves. The Dunhuang Academy no longer allows visitors to drive their own cars to the cave site. Everyone rides a bus to and from the site, and this reduces the traffic and air pollution.
We meet our guide and he begins by telling us that no photos are allowed in the caves at Dunhuang. Then he leads us to what he calls “the public caves.” Our first stop is with the Library Cave, cave 17. Here, in the year 1900, a monk discovered a hidden room filled floor to ceiling with scrolls. 90% were sutras, the teachings of Buddhism, and the other 10% were on topics such as medicine, history, and literature. It was a find like no other, one that many scholars have explored and one that is still revealing new information about the practice of Buddhism in China centuries ago, across many languages and scripts. Unfortunately, the monk did not realize the value of what he had found and sold some 16,000 documents to a number of Westerners including archaeologist Aurel Stein of Britain and Orientalist Paul Pelliot of France. 383 documents remain in the Dunhuang Academy collection and the rest have been disseminated to other Chinese cultural heritage organizations. Unfortunately, the museum at Mogao is closed for renovations. We will have to come back another time if we want to see those ancient texts.
Adjacent to the Library cave is cave 16 which has a U-shaped altar, characteristic of the Tang Dynasty period, and a canopy of “1,000 Buddhas” above that is decorated in gold. Our guide tells us that this skill was orginally developed for 6th century BCE tombs in China, using egg white (a technique later called “tempera”) and animal skin glues. Back in London, in preparation for our trip, we made small replicas of the walls and paintings at Mogao - shaping the clay and sand into plaster by hand, coating it with the white underpainting, and then making pigments with minerals and animal glues to create a finished painting. The replica I made was of an image from cave 231.
As we move through many different caves, we find a wide variety of themes. The sculpture of the reclining Buddha is in cave 148. It is over 14 meters long, and depicts him on his right side with feet together, as described in Mahaparinibbana Sutta DN 16. This scene represents his death and attainment of absolute peace. I am deeply moved by the site of the reclining Buddha. I start to cry and I move to the back of the cave, by his feet, and do three prostrations, chanting the refuges as I go. I feel joy at the sight of such a devotional offering that depicts the culmination of the Buddha’s teaching, sadness at how misunderstood this place is, and gratitude that I can be here and follow in the footsteps of my Dharma ancestors. Again I leave a small paper offering, though it is clear that this type of activity is much less common here than at Maijishan.
We continue to explore Mogao. In cave 259, for example, a depiction of a scene from the Lotus Sutra shows Shakyamuni Buddha seated next to Prabhutaratana Buddha. This is a popular motif in Chinese Buddhism, one that appears in wall paintings, bronzes, and stone sculpture, because it symbolizes the presence of many Buddhas in all places. In cave 257, we discover the image of a lovely deer from a famous jataka tale, a story of one of the Buddha’s past lives. This scene sits in the same cave with an image of a Daoist goddess and a fantastical creature with 13 or 11 or 9 heads that has yet to be identified. Even after decades of study and research, Mogao has kept its secrets.
Before returning to the hotel, we have one more person to see. We pay a visit the main administrative building of the Dunhuang Academy, a research and conservation organization that was established in 1944 and has worked with a variety of international conservation teams of the years, including teams from the Getty Conservation Institute. Director Bomin Su visited The Courtauld last autumn and gave a talk on the detailed pigment analysis that they are conducting. Now we meet with him here in Dunhuang. He welcomes us warmly and says that he is very interested in having many more scholars travel to and from The Courtauld to learn from each other.
Stupa in honor of Venerable Wang Yuanlu who was a caretaker monk at Mogao at the turn of the 20th century.
Person standing at the entrance to cave 231, in the upper right.
Unfinished plaster replica of a wall painting from cave 231 by Dhammadipa.
The original wall painting from cave 231.
The nine story pagoda at cave 96 which contains the largest Buddha statue at Mogao.
Our guide is the one with the blue lanyard, in the center.
Day 8: May 13 - Dunhuang
This morning we have the opportunity to meet with more conservation scientists at the Multi-field Coupling Environmental Laboratory of Immoveable Heritage. This state-of-the-art building was created so that Dunhuang Academy conservation scientists could conduct studies related to the care and maintenance of the six cave sites that they oversee, which include Mogao and Yulin. Here there is equipment for simulating desert weather conditions such as wind, extreme heat, snow, and heavy but brief rain. In the simulation rooms, scientists can study the process of deterioration in a foreshortened timeframe and can study various treatments for the care of rammed earth sites. They also maintain many pieces of costly and sophisticated equipment that are operated by specialists who have trained here and abroad. These scientists can identify both organic and inorganic pigments down to the individual grains, test the porosity of a substance by passing nitrogen through it, and measure various salts present in a sample. When salts that are present in the walls are activated by moisture from flooding or humidity, they expand and damage the wall paintings. So it is important to be able to measure them and to minimize fluctuations in the environment inside the cave, as much as possible.
One very interesting development is the testing of organic materials to protect rammed earth surfaces. To test this, scientists apply moss to various samples and measure the effects against a sample without the moss. This is being studied as an alternative to chemical methods of preservation, and I am enthusiastic about the idea. In fact, this application of moss to all sorts of surfaces is traditional in Japanese culture. I am curious to learn more about the results of these tests.
Another area of the compound is the monitoring division. The main room is quite impressive. A massive screen hangs on the wall at one end of the room and it displays various forms of monitoring that are happening at any given moment. There is one view which shows hundreds of caves being simultaneously monitored for temperature, humidity, and carbon dioxide. The team can drill down to see graphs of the measurements over time or tell the security staff to close a cave that has exceeded its limits. This is for the safety and comfort of visitors as much as for the preservation of the paintings and statues. At this moment, we can see that three caves have exceeded their limits. The area above the caves is also monitored, as sand tends to blow over the cliff face and down into the caves, if it is not prevented from doing so.
Afterward, we move back to the caves and each student has their opportunity to present their research in one of the caves. I appreciate hearing about the iconography that they have identified and about the history of patronage. One theme that stands out is the political alliances that were made by inter-marriage and the sponsorship of caves by those powerful families. Professor Lori Wong gives a presentation in cave 85, a project on which she worked when she was with the Getty Conservation Institute. This is a cave originally from the late Tang Dynasty but with later influences from the Five Dynasties period and the Yuan Dynasty. Particularly noticeable is the degradation of the pigments on the west wall. It is much lighter and more fragile than the east wall due to the presence of salts in wall. There were large surface losses and collapses of the walls in this cave. In the 1970s, large bolts in the shape of an “X” were used to stabilize certain parts but that is now seen as too invasive. So a new technique was developed in which adhesives are applied behind the portion of the wall that is falling. This is then pressed to remove the moisture and aid the adhesion.
Though we were given a list of caves that would be accessible, the cave I chose is undergoing some unexpected reconstruction. We were not able to enter cave 231 at all, but I was able to make my presentation to the group after lunch. You can find the presentation slides here. The cave was sponsored by a member of the Yin family, a wealthy and politically connected group of merchants. They sponsored several caves, and cave 231 is a tribute by a son, Jiazheng Yin, to his parents. Six sutras are illustrated on the walls, as well as the Mahabodhi temple of Bodh Gaya, India on the ceiling, and Jiazheng’s parents, who are given an elevated position above the entrance to the cave. It is a relatively well preserved example of the cave art from the period of Tibetan occupation of Dunhuang, in the middle to late Tang Dynasty period. The afternoon continues with more cave visits, and we again find the Buddhas of the three times such as in cave 420, the debate between Vimalakirti and Manjushri as in cave 220, and the jataka tales such as in cave 254.
Testing deterioration of packed earthen material.
Equipment for testing pigments.
Testing of organic materials such as moss for the protection of rammed earth.
Scientists monitor hundred of caves simultaneously at the Dunhuang Academy.
Monitoring the area of the Mogao caves at the Dunhuang Academy.
Pressing wall painting repairs helps to remove moisture at Mogao cave 85.
West wall niche and a portion of the north wall of cave 231 at the Mogao Cave Grottoes.
Samantabadhra Bodhisattva is depicted at the Yulin cave grottoes.
The Yulin caves are remote.
Day 9: May 14 - Yulin
On the road to the Yulin cave grottoes, the Yulin River can be seen in the background.
We are headed to the caves at Yulin but there is construction on a road that was already quite dangerous. The security officer stops our driver, boards the van, and hands out a fine because one person did not have their seatbelt on. They want us to take this road seriously.
This will be a journey with a three hour drive out to Yulin and a three hour ride back. The long, winding, and perilous road stretches out ahead of us. I can feel the van sliding on the gravel as the driver tries to get us there as quickly as possible. We see wild camels standing in groups and observing the cars that pass. In the past, travelers on the Silk Road rode camels because of their natural resilience in the harsh climate. I chant the refuges and the time passes. Eventually we encounter a river, its blue water a soothing sight after so much dust and dirt. This means we are close.
When we arrive at Yulin, I notice the light breeze and the sounds of water and rustling leaves. The caves are carved into the cliffs on both sides of the Yulin river. It feels even more remote here because there are so few caves and so few visitors. Our guide shows us how spacious the interiors are. They share many motifs with Mogao - dragons or phoenixes on the ceilings, Quan Yin in her pose of ease, flying apsaras or heavenly beings, and scenes of daily life such as farming. However, there are unique images painted on the walls here as well. One lovely example is Samantabadhra Bodhisattva seated on an elephant. The graceful curves of this image are emblematic of the style of painting during the Western Xia Dynasty (1038 - 1278 CE), a period when this area was ruled by the Tangut ethnic group.
As we begin the trip home, we find ourselves in the midst of a sandstorm. The sky is certainly darker and murkier but we can still see the road. Nonetheless, the highway is closed and the driver is told to take a longer, narrower road with a lower speed limit. At some point, he stops the van and gets out, shaking his head. He has driven faster than the speed limit, and is now near an automated check point that will issue a fine if he reaches it too quickly. So we sit, along with a half dozen other cars, by the side of the road waiting for the time to pass. This, it seems to me, is a classic example of unintended consequences. The Chinese government has not achieved its goal of getting the drivers to go more slowly and now it has created the added hazard at the side of the road near each checkpoint.
We arrive back at the Dunhuang Academy a bit late, but joyful nonetheless, because we are here to witness the signing of a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Academy and The Courtauld Institute of Art. This will facilitate even more scholarly exchange and scientific collaboration between the two organizations. The Director, Deputy Director, and Department Heads are present as well as Professor Austin Nevin, Head of the Department of Conservation at The Courtauld. Everyone seems pleased and we celebrate with a big meal afterward.
This seated Maitreya Buddha is carved into the cliff face at the Mogao Cave Grottoes in China.
Firefighters are on standby due to the burning of incense offerings in celebration of Buddhas birthday.
Celebrating the Buddha’s birthday, we offer incense in front of Mogao cave 96 which contains a colossal seated Maitreya Buddha.
We walked along the northern section of the Mogao grottoes to see a unique cave.
Day 10: May 15 - Dunhuang
Today is a very special day because the community of Dunhuang will celebrate the Buddha’s birthday! Various Buddhist traditions and countries have placed the historical Buddha’s birthday on the calendar at different times of year, but it is described in the commentaries to the sutras as the 8th day of the fourth lunar month. Each year the Dunhuang Academy offers a special ticket for folks who live nearby - only 5 Yuan (about US $0.70) to visit three of the most significant caves and to spend the day on the grounds. This year those caves are the colossal seated Buddha in cave 96, the colossal seated Buddha in cave 130, and the reclining Buddha in cave 148.
I have put on my formal Zen robes and am planning to offer a small ceremony in at least one of these locations. I have also invited everyone in our group to participate, if they like, though I am aware that there is only one other person who considers themself to be a practitioner. Nonetheless, we first pay another visit to cave 96. This cave is very large but it has been set up so that visitors enter and leave in a loop. The security guard allows us to stand next to the glass barrier at the Buddha’s feet. I have offered each person in our group a small piece of incense and instructed them in how to hold it. We do not light the incense because fire is prohibited in the caves. I begin to chant the “Loving Kindness Meditation” in English and the sound fills the chamber. I am impressed at the obvious consideration those who carved the caves had for the acoustics. Many people walk by and I continue chanting. Some stop to listen and pray. We close the ceremony with three standing bows to the Buddha, and I quickly and quietly break the stick of incense into tiny pieces and throw them at the Buddha’s feet. They will simply become part of the dust. We also revisit the cave of the reclining Buddha. I chant the “Jayanto Paritta,” a “victory chant” recalling the Buddha’s attainments, and we do three standing bows and make another offering.
Outside the caves there is a bigger celebration happening. The Dunhuang Academy has set up three large incense burners in front of the large pagoda so that folks can make offerings. There are two firemen stationed close to the burners to attend to them and ensure that there is no damage to the site from the flames or smoke. This is a form of preventative conservation - taking protective measures before losses or damage happens.
Here in the plaza, there are also people performing qi gong, dancing, singing, and picnicking with their children and dogs. The community seems to really enjoy their visit to the caves, though our guide seems concerned about the crowds. Some 20,000 local folks will visit today despite the ongoing “mild” sandstorm. This is an unusually large number, as the typical daily visitor limit is between 6,000 and 8,600. Yet this great gathering is a lovely gift to those who want to visit Mogao and recall the true reason for these wonderful works of art.
After lunch the last cave is presented by Sujatha. It is a cave in the northern part of Mogao, a section that is typically closed to all visitors because most of the caves here are not adorned. They were likely to have been the dwellings of the monastic, artists, and visitors who stayed here. We walk the entire length of the cliff wall to arrive at cave 465. Before we enter the cave, though, there is something that we must see. Here, beneath the steps to cave 465, there is a carved niche that contains human remains. The bones are white and dusty and, due to the dry climate and lack of predators, they may be many hundreds of years old. It is believed that the last cave was built here in about the year 1300 CE but people continued to live here off and on, including Russian soldiers seeking to escape the authorities in the 1920s. It was inscribed on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1987. Seeing the bones is a reminder of the living tradition that was here.
As we enter cave 465, it is immediately clear that this is a different type of iconography. The cave is hard to see because of the scaffolding that is inside but we can make out a cave covered floor to ceiling with tantric deities. They are dancing, coupling, snarling, and smiling. If these were painted during the Tibetan occupation of Dunhuang, during the middle Tang Dynasty, they would represent some of the earliest depictions of the teachings of the Kagyu school of Buddhism. There is also a very large platform at the center of the cave, one that rises up like a five-layer cake. There is no indication of how the platform may have been used. It may have been placed there to support a statue, as a place for rituals, or as a place for meditation. It is also curious that there were many sutras found in this cave. We will go home aware that there is still so much we do not know about Mogao.
However, what we do know about Chinese Buddhist culture is impressive. Over one thousand years of effort were invested to carve caves, plaster them, create wall paintings and sculptures, and care for them - here at Mogao, and at Yulin, Maijishan, Bingling, Longmen, and many other Buddhist sites. Great quantities of resources such as fine wood, copper, gold, limestone, and lapis lazuli were invested to make wall paintings and sculpture. Reliquaries and ritual implements were made of fine metals and precious jewels and transported, sometimes thousands of kilometers. All of this occurred because people from around the world and from all walks of life felt that it was beneficial to see the Dharma in their lives, literally. This is the real reason that Mogao and all the precious Buddhist sites and artifacts were created. Some would say that it was all done to create “merit,” beneficial karmic effects. To think so is to make a profoundly crass assessment of Buddhists. That is true in some cases, but it is not the whole story. Buddhist heritage is an expression of devotion, of hope, of gratitude, of aspiration, as well as of wealth, power, and desire. Ultimately, Buddhist heritage is one of the most complex forms of human expression made manifest in the material world.
Dunhuang and Yulin Highlights
Thank you to all who supported this wonderful journey which is part of my Master’s Degree in Buddhist Art History and the Preservation of Buddhist Heritage!
~ palms together ~ Dhammadipa