Near Dazu, a city within the Chongqing municipality, lies the Baoding Shan complex of Buddhist sculptures set in a variety of niches and carved-out caves, somewhat reminiscent of
Ellora and
Ajanta Caves in India. Whereas the Indian caves were places of worship and residence, the carvings at Baoding Shan are mostly educational -- teaching the precepts of Buddhism to the local population in Sichuan, China.
A would-be monk, Zhao Zhifeng, coordinated the work over the years 1177 to 1249 CE. The area was so remote (there was no paved road in the area until the 1970s) that the sculptures survived the upheavals of World War II and the Cultural Revolution. Today they are preserved as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
An excellent on-line work on Baodingshan can be found
here.
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| The government has built a new entrance to the site. |
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| The second gate when entering the site. |
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| The modern world intrudes in other ways, too. Pillars with extensive surveillance equipment could be found throughout the site. |
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| We entered at the western end of the site along the northern wall. The sheer number of figures and stories was overwhelming. |
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| One of ten scenes depicting Hell. |
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| Another gruesome scene of Hell. |
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| Buddha Shakyamuni Repays His Parents' Kindness with Great Skillful Means. Parents' kindness to their offspring, and the reciprocal filial piety toward parents are important themes in the images. |
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| Parinirvana, the death of the Buddha, or the reclining Buddha, occupies the eastern end of the complex. |
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| 1,000-armed Guanyin. The arms seem to be flames surrounding the bodhisattva. |
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| A demon holds the Wheel of Reincarnation. |
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| It's not all doom-and-gloom (except, perhaps for the mouse). Tucked away at the right foot of the demon holding the Wheel of Reincarnation, a cat and mouse provoke each other. (This also reminds me of the cat performing penance at Mahabalipuram in India.) |
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| A roof-top dragon as we leave the sculptures. |
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| Also on the grounds is a small temple. |
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| Candles in front of the temple. |
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