Buddhist architecture

Buddhism was first practiced along ancient times Silk Road The Silk Road is not only an ancient trade channel, but also a way of cultural exchange, so the early Chinese Stone Cave Temple It also appeared along this ancient road with the spread of Buddhism. Grotto It is a stone cave cut into the cliff wall and is a form of early Buddhist architecture. The Buddhist grotto temples distributed in the vast areas of China from north to south not only record the development history of Chinese Buddhism, but also a large number of these grottoes mural Sculptures and other cultural relics also reflect ancient Chinese art and culture.

Buddhist architecture is mainly Buddhist Temple pagoda . Ancient India has many famous temples and towers, such as the famous Bodh Gaya The ruins of Nalanda are extremely large in scale.

There are similar buildings in all Southeast Asian countries. Cambodia the Angkor Wat Caves. Burmese The Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon , Indonesian Borobudur , Afghanistan the Bamiyan The large Buddha statues on the cliff are world-famous Buddhist buildings.

Chinese Buddhist architecture developed with the introduction of Buddhism. The oldest Buddhist building is the Grotto Temple, which is based on ancient Indian Buddhist plastic arts combined with traditional Chinese forms. There are many Buddhist grottoes in China, among which Dunhuang, Yungang and Longmen are particularly famous. Chinese pagoda architecture, the origin is very early, the existing Shanghai Longhua Temple pagoda and Suzhou Baoen Temple pagoda, according to legend, were created in The Three Kingdoms period and rebuilt by later generations.

Originally, the stupa in India is a round grave covered with a bowl, decorated with a pole and an umbrella, and later developed into a phase wheel (a metal brake is erected on the top of the tower, and seven or nine heavy iron rings are placed on the brake body). After it was introduced into China, combined with the national form of China, most of them were built for people to look at Loft style Buildings. There are two types of existing tacos: one is Indian, but also with Chinese characteristics; The second is to take the form of the original Chinese pavilion, flat square and octagonal, generally seven to nine layers. The structure has wooden tower, brick tower, brick tower, stone tower, copper tower, iron tower and glass brick tower. The architecture of Buddhist temples in Tibet is slightly different from that in Han areas. In general, there are huge buildings, all of which embody the distinctive characteristics of ancient Tibetan architecture and the style of Sino-Tibetan cultural fusion. Pekinese Yonghe Lama Temple Lhasa Potala Palace , Chengde the Outer eight temples Etc is typical of this kind of building. Japonic East Benwish Temple The Buddhist Temple in North Korea adopts the form of a wooden structure temple, which is magnificent and world-renowned.

Hebei (Province) Longxing Temple of Zhengding It is an important example of the overall layout of the existing Buddhist temple in the Song Dynasty, with a rectangular courtyard inside the gate, a bell tower, drum-tower Separated by the left and right, the middle of the six master hall has been destroyed, but still remains. northing Mani hall There are left and right side halls, forming another longitudinal courtyard, and then entering the north into the second gate, is the main building Pavilion of Buddha Incense And its west side of the wheel hall and Cishi Pavilion, and other secondary buildings, pavilions, halls, pavilions and other forms of magnificent spatial combination, is also the climax of the entire Buddhist temple complex. There is also a temple located behind the temple. Both Foxiang Pavilion and Mituo Hall adopt the system of three parallel halls. The whole temple building is arranged in depth according to the central axis, from the outside to the inside, the temple overlaps, the courtyard changes to each other, the height is scattered, and the main and secondary are distinct. The pavilion is about 33 meters high and has three floors. sump , the upper two floors are double eaves, and have a flat seat. It was rebuilt around 1940. The 40 second-hand Guanyin statues in the pavilion, 24 meters high, were cast when the pavilion was built in the fourth year of Kaibao (971) in the Northern Song Dynasty, and are the largest bronze statues preserved in China today. The Wheel Hall and the Cithi Pavilion are both on the second floor. Reeave the top of the mountain . Same size, but different structure. The rest of the temple is single-storey. This layout method with high pavilion as the center of the whole temple reflects the characteristics of the worship of tall Buddha statues after the middle of the Tang Dynasty, so that the main building had to be developed to multiple layers, and the secondary buildings were also raised. The hall of Mani was built in the fourth year of Emperor You of the Northern Song Dynasty (1052), the base of the hall is nearly square, and the middle of the four sides are each out of the building. The hall is surrounded by thick walls, and only the doors and Windows are opened on the front of the building. This hall has a unique appearance, heavy eaves resting on the top of the mountain, holding the building to rest on the top of the mountain and facing the front, which is very similar to the handed down Song Dynasty paintings. Tianjin Ji county Dule Temple Rebuilt in the second year of the Liao Dynasty (984), the existing mountain gate and Guanyinge Temple Both are original objects of the Liao Dynasty, and there were cloisters between the two, which do not exist now. The mountain facade is three rooms wide, Single eaves hipped roof . The base is low, dougong is large, the eaves are far-reaching, the interior does not use ceiling, Dougong, beam, purlin and other components are visible, and the decorative effect is remarkable. Guanyin Pavilion, three floors, but the appearance is only two layers, the middle is the dark layer, the pavilion placed a 16 meters high Liao plastic eleven side Guanyin image, is the largest statue in ancient China, the image straight through the three floors, the pavilion has an empty well to accommodate the image body. The dark layer between the upper and lower floors of the pavilion is the space occupied by the horizontal structure and the lower eaves. The upper and lower columns are not directly connected, but the upper column is inserted in the lower column head dougong on the "fork column construction". The shape of the upper and lower empty Wells is different, which helps to prevent the deformation of the frame of the empty Wells and strengthen the rigidity of the entire cabinet structure, and the empty Wells contain the Buddha statues Space To achieve the unity of structure and function. In addition, the use of lower Anghe Hua Kung The features of projecting equal and different heights adjust the roof slope, which is the first since the Tang dynasty Multi-storey building Common methods. The pavilion has the characteristics of both the Tang Dynasty and the Song Dynasty, and is an important example of Liao Dynasty architecture.

Also surviving today Shanxi Datong the Huayan Temple and Shanhua Temple They are also important works of Liao and Jin architecture. Huayan Temple is divided into upper and lower temples, of which the main hall of the upper temple was rebuilt in Jin Tian In 1140, it is the largest of the ancient single-eaves wooden buildings that have been discovered so far. The Bhaga Hall of the Lower Temple was built in the seventh year of the Reign of Emperor Zhongxi in the Liao Dynasty (1038). There are 38 closets for the collection of sutras arranged along the wall inside, which are divided into upper and lower floors, imitating the style of the reign building, and are cut off at the rear window to form five Tiangong pavilions. It faithfully reflects the architectural style of Liao Dynasty and is also an important relic of small wood work of Liao Dynasty. The pillar net plane of the main hall is similar to the form of "golden chamber bucket bottom trough", the inner and outer columns are the same height, and two sets of roof truss are used on it Main hall of Foguang Temple on Wutai Mountain Similarly, it can be proved that Liao Dynasty architecture inherited directly Tang dynasty architecture The style of... The Great Xiong Hall of Shanhua Temple was built in the Liao Dynasty, while the Puxian Pavilion, the Three Temples and the mountain Gate are relics of the Jin Dynasty. The temple is tall, the courtyard is open, for the existing Liao Jin Buddhist temple At the same time, the plane, structure and shape of these buildings have their own characteristics, which is an important data for the study of the evolution of Liao and Jin architecture.

The general layout of the Song Dynasty architecture is different from that of the Tang Dynasty, it is along axis Arrange in Quadrangle courtyard The layout of the group has strengthened the development of depth, such as Zhengding Longxing Temple. The main buildings of some other groups are no longer composed of two or three palaces in depth, but surrounded by lower buildings and clustered around the towering temples in the center, becoming a whole, such as the Song Dynasty painting "Ming Emperor Summer Summer", "Tengwang Pavilion" and "Yellow Crane Tower". At this time, the corridor of the courtyard is no longer built in the corner of the pavilion, and a number of high and low pavilions and pavilions are built on the left and right of the central axis, so that the image of the whole group is not Mired in monotonousness. In addition, combined with the layout of depth, the main hall is often left and right with the room and the side hall to highlight the importance of the central main building. From these data, it can also be seen that the position, size, height and level of each building in the group, the profile of the combination of waist eaves and roofs, and the mutual relationship of each part have been carefully handled, and good use of terrain, full of garden interest.

Buddhism originated in ancient India, the Eastern Han Dynasty Vinh Binh It was introduced into China. At the beginning of its introduction, the temple building followed the Indian Buddhist temple model, with the tower as the center and the temple built around it. After the Jin and Tang Dynasties, the temple gradually became the main building, and the pagoda was moved outside the temple. The main halls of the temple are more standardized, in order, the mountain gate, the Heavenly King Hall, the Great Hero Hall, the Dharma Hall, the Bilu Hall or the Sutras Hall, abbot Room, etc. On the east side, there are monk's room, Xiang Ji kitchen, Zhai Hall, ministry room, tea hall, life extension hall, etc. The west side is mostly for the reception of Buddhist monks, such as Zen hall. Some big monasteries have free life ponds in front of them. As the saying goes: "the world's famous mountain monks account for more." Many temples are in deep mountains and forests, so the first gate is called "mountain gate", and the third, mountain-sound Near, therefore, the general mountain gate is composed of three gates, symbolizing the Buddhist empty gate, no phase gate, no action gate. Three gates of liberation ". Inside the Heavenly King Hall, on both sides The four Heavenly Kings In the middle is the pot-bellied Maitreya Buddha, Temple of pool and tree A couplet reads: big belly can accommodate, accommodate the world difficult things; Open your mouth and laugh, laugh at the ridiculous people in the world. Behind Maitreya Buddha is General Wei Tuo. Wei Tuo is the head of the thirty-two generals under the throne of the Four Heavenly Kings, and is also a well-known Buddhist protector god. Wei Tuo turned his back to Maitreya Buddha and faced the Mahavira Hall, subduing demons and protecting the Dharma. Generally, there are two kinds of statues: one is the two feet standing flat, the ten fingers together, and the horizontal stick between the two wrists, indicating that the temple does not receive foreign wandering monks; Second, the left hand holds the pestle on the ground, the right hand inserts the waist, and the left foot stands slightly forward, indicating that the reception of foreign monks is welcome (there are also contrary to this). Generally speaking, look at Vaido Bodhisattva Wato pestle Direction: If the Wetuo pestle is carried on the shoulder, it means that this temple is a large temple, which can entertain the monks who swim to this free food and accommodation for three days; If Wei Tuo Shu flat end in hand, it means that this temple is a medium-sized temple, can entertain the monks who swim to this free food and accommodation for a day; If Wetuo stands on the ground, it means that this temple is a small temple and cannot entertain monks who travel here for free. According to legend, a long time ago, Maitreya Buddha and Veda were not in the same temple, but were in charge of different temples and enjoyed the worship of people all over the world. Maitreya Buddha is warm and easy-going, smiling, so there are a lot of people, incense is also very strong, but he does not care about anything by nature, can not properly manage the financial affairs, so still can not make ends meet. While Veto was a good accountant, he kept a straight face and was too serious all day long, so that fewer and fewer people came to worship, until finally the incense ceased. Buddha found this problem when inspecting the world incense, and gave birth to a plan, the two of them in the same temple, by the Maitreya Buddha is responsible for public relations reception, smiling to welcome eight guests, and Wetuo is as the temple protection law, unselfish, to measure beads will be more, responsible for finance, strict control. After the division of labor and cooperation between the two people, the temple showed a thriving scene of Daxiongbao Hall, offering Buddha Sakyamuni There are one, three, five, seven differences. Usually there are three zonings, called "three Buddhas", which are divided into "horizontal three" and "vertical three". In addition, there are bodhisattvas often worshipped in the temple. Dule Temple in Tianjin The offering of Guanyin reaches 16 meters. So tall Clay sculpture The statue is rare in the country. Among the Bodhisattvas, Manjusri, Puxian, Guanyin and Dizang are the most famous, and their ashram is located in Wutai Mountain in Shanxi Province, Emei Mountain in Sichuan Province, Putuo Mountain, Zhejiang Province , Jiuhua Mountain in Anhui Province These four mountains are called China Four famous Buddhist mountains . Henan (Province) White Horse Temple in Luoyang It is the "source" and "ancestral court" of Chinese Buddhism. The architectural beauty of Chinese temples is reflected in the mountains, Pine and cypress Between the mutual echo of the flowing water, the temple and the pavilion corridor, the implicit warm Yun shows the harmony, tranquility and charm given by the combination of changes.

Pagoda temple, the tower as the center, built around the temple, Monks' abode . The tower is the central building of the temple, where Buddhist relics and Buddha statues are enshrined. After the Tang Dynasty, the pagoda was built in front of the temple, behind the temple or another pagoda courtyard, forming a Buddhist temple structure centered on the Maxiongbao Hall. The temple is located in the north facing south, and the main halls are successively distributed on the central axis, with distinct levels and rigorous layout. In the Song Dynasty, Zen Buddhism flourished and formed the" The Seven Halls of the Blue The seven halls refer to the Buddha Hall, the Dharma Hall, the monk hall, the warehouse, the mountain gate, the west net, and the bathroom. The larger temple also has lecture hall, Zen hall, sutra hall, tower, bell tower and so on. The Buddhist temple built on the hill was also built on it. Since Ming and Qing Dynasties, the architectural pattern of Buddhist temples has been set, generally distributed from south to north on the central axis, the mountain gate Hall, the King's Hall, the Great Hero Hall, the Dharma Hall, the Sutras Hall, Bilu Pavilion, Hall of Avalokitesvara Guanyin . Daxiong Treasure Hall is the main building of the temple, with the bell tower and drum Tower on the east and west sides, the Jialan Hall and the ancestral Teacher Hall, and the Guan Yin Hall and the Medicine Teacher Hall corresponding to each other. Large monasteries have Hall of Five hundred Arhats Pagoda and other buildings. On the east side of the central axis, monk rooms, incense kitchen, Buddhist hall, and ministry hall are distributed, which are the living and living areas of monks in the temple. Nowadays, after the temple is opened to the public, the living areas are generally moved back or rebuilt at the back of the temple. The west side of the central axis is mainly for the Zen hall, reception room, etc., which is a place for the practice of single monks, and now it is basically open to the outside world, and some are turned into cultural relics exhibition rooms and Buddhist scriptures circulation places.

Buddhist architecture includes Buddhist temples, pagodas and Grotto . While Buddhist architecture was initially influenced by India, it soon began the process of Sinicization. The layout of Buddhist temples in Ming and Qing dynasties is generally a strict symmetrical multi-courtyard form composed of the main room and the auxiliary room. At the very front of the main axis is the mountain gate - the entrance to the whole temple. There are clocks and drum towers on the left and right sides of the mountain gate. Facing the mountain gate in the center is the Hall of Heavenly Kings, often made of three halls. Through the Hall of Heavenly Kings, enter the second courtyard, located in the middle of the main axis is the main Hall, often called "Hall of Great Heroes." The main hall is the central building for the whole Buddhist temple building group, which is above other single buildings in terms of building volume and quality. The main hall can be divided into two floors or two floors. After entering the courtyard, the second floor of the main hall is often built. In addition, on both sides of the main shaft courtyard, monks' rooms, Zen halls, and other houses for monks to live in. Large Buddhist temples in Beijing, such as The West Fourth Archway the Guangji Temple And so on all fall into this category. Small temples, generally only one into the courtyard - into the entrance of the mountain is the main hall, two chambers for monks. A series of ancillary buildings are often arranged in the building group of Buddhist temples, such as the archway in front of the mountain gate, the lion carving, the tower, the building, the tablet and so on. The existing pagodas in Beijing are all made of brick and stone. Be famous for Quang Yen Liao Dynasty built outside the gate Tianning Temple Pagoda (Dougong dense eaves type); Fuchengmen Built during the Neyuan Dynasty Miao Ying Temple white pagoda (Turk type); Fuchengmen was built in Ming Dynasty Cishou Temple Pagoda (Dougong dense eaves type); Taishengjue Temple Vajra throne tower (Hindu Vajra throne style); Wat Pho In the remnant of the west mountain Baoshan Mountain (Shouan Mountain) at the southern foot, the temple was first established in the Tang Zhenguan period (627-649 years), formerly known as the Dourate Temple, or name Shou 'an Temple . Qing Yongzheng twelve years (1734) renamed Ten Fang Pujue Temple . Because the temple has a bronze statue of Shakyamuni Nirvana cast from the first year of Yuan to Shun in two years (1330-1331), it is generally called Wat Pho Temple.

Temple of Azure Clouds At the eastern foot of the west mountain, each temple rises layer by layer in the shape of a ladder; Built in the Yuan Dynasty to Shun years, the first name Biyun Nunnery The Ming Dynasty Zhengde period (early 16th century) expansion; In the thirteenth year of Qianlong in Qing Dynasty (1748), it was expanded on a large scale on the original basis. Tianning Temple Pagoda outside Guang 'anmen is a typical one among the existing dense eaves brick pagodas in China. This tower existed in the Sui Dynasty, and the existing tower was built in the Liao Dynasty. Lamaseries: Lamaseries in China are two fraternal ethnic groups, Mongolian and Tibetan, so the architecture of lamaseries is also different from that of Buddhist temples due to the characteristics of religious content and ethnic characteristics. Lamaism architecture in Beijing began to appear in the Yuan Dynasty. Lamaism architecture generally has two forms, one of which is similar to Buddhist temples palace type Wooden buildings; The other is the anvil stone building of the diaofang type. Lama Temple in Beijing Xihuang Temple All belong to the former, only The Summer Palace A group of lamaseries on the back mountain has a diaofang style. The wooden lama Temple still adopts the Siheyuan style layout, and the mountain gate, Tianwang Hall and main hall in the first half of the temple are similar to the Buddhist temple. However, the part after the main hall is often tall and majestic, and the layout has also changed; For example, the rear of the Yonghe Temple adopts the system of three parallel halls, using multiple paths to connect the tall Wanfu Pavilion with the two sides Yongkang Pavilion and Yanning Pavilion are connected, and the momentum is very magnificent. Lamaism pagodas are different from Buddhist pagodas. It evolved from the slaughter of hills in India. Chinese lamas are also used as tombs for monks, but lamas built in temples serve the same function as pagodas.

Jialan Seven Temple: From the Northern Wei Dynasty, temple architecture flourished in China, but the Indian temple and Buddhist temple building model was not accepted. Temple, in China is the original name of the Han Dynasty government office. Legend has it that the first ancient temple in China was built during the Yongping decade of the Eastern Han Dynasty White Horse Temple It is the official date used to receive foreign guests Honglu Temple Remodeled. From the very beginning, the Chinese people have confused Buddhist temples with government offices, mansions and ancestral temples. This is because in the architectural pattern, the Chinese people are dominated by the deep-rooted yin-yang cosmology and the aesthetic psychology of upholding symmetry, order and stability. Under the guidance of this culture-psychology, an architectural pattern is bound to emerge, and the pattern is of universal significance, not only for palaces and mansions, Ci halls and residences, but also for temples and Taoist temples. Therefore, from the very beginning, Chinese Buddhist temples have integrated the inherent Ke temple of worship to ancestors and heaven and earth, which is still flat and square, symmetrical and stable. North and south The central axis layout constitutes an orderly and imposing building group.

The Buddhist temples before the Sui and Tang dynasties generally built towers in front of the temple or in the center of the house. At that time, the temple was called "Butu temple", and the sacrifice in the worship tower was the main content of the believers' tour at that time. There are veranda in front of the temple, and there are halls before and after the courtyard, and the courtyard is a monk's room. After Sui and Tang dynasties, the creation of giant statues became a trend, Buddhist halls generally replaced pagodas, pagodas were gradually squeezed out of temples, or another pagoda courtyard, or placed in front of or on both sides of the temple. After the rise of Zen Buddhism, the system of "seven temples of Jialan" was advocated. The seven halls are the Buddha Hall, the Dharma Hall, the monk hall, the storehouse, the mountain gate, the west purification, and the bathroom. The larger temple also has lecture hall, scripture hall, Zen hall, tower, bell tower, drum tower and other buildings. After the Ming Dynasty, the gamma system has been established, and the temple statues are generally consistent. The configuration of the Buddhist temple hall is roughly, with the north and south as the central axis, from the south to the north, in order: the mountain gate, the Hall of Heaven, the Hall of the Buddha, the Hall of Dharma, and then the Hall of the Collection of Sutras. East and west rooms There are Gamma Blue Hall, Ancestral hall Hall of Mercy, Hall of Medicine and so on. The east side of the temple is the monks' living area, including the monk's room, Xiang Ji kitchen, Zhai hall, teahouse Service hall (warehouse), etc. On the west side is mainly the Cloud Hall (Zen hall), which is famous for accommodating wandering monks from all over the world. There are generally three mountain gates, which symbolize the "three liberation gates", namely empty gate, no phase gate and no action gate. The mountain gate is often built into a temple style, and the temple is divided into two diamond warriors, protecting the Dharma. Behind the gate of the mountain is the Temple of the Heavenly King, for the belly Maitreya Maitreya is the successor of Shakya and is called the "future Buddha". The left and right sides of Maitreya are divided into four heavenly Kings, which are in charge of the mountains and rivers of the four continents, also known as the "Four Great Vajra". Behind the statue of Maitreya is the guardian god Wei Tuo Tianzun. The Hall of Nobita is dedicated to the Lord Statue of Sakyamuni . For one Buddha, or Shakya Buddha, or Pilu Buddha, or the next Buddha, some for three Buddhas, or three Buddhas (Middle Shakya Buddha, left East Medicine Master Liuli light Tathagata , right Western bliss Amitabha) or three-body Buddha ( Dharma-body The body, the avatar). On both sides of the Lord, there are often left and right side attendants, that is, the old "Kasye", the less "Ananda", or the two Bodhisattvas of Manjusri and Puyin. The east and west sides of the temple, more than 18 statues or arhats The twenty heavens . The Buddha goes and creates a hall behind it." Island Guanyin ". The Dharma Hall is the place where the Dharma is preached and the conversion precepts are gathered, and it is the main building in the temple after the main hall. Finally, there is the Sutra House, where the Buddhist scriptures are kept. Daxiongbao Hall on both sides of the east and west side of the hall, for the gamma blue Hall, for the three statues, in King of Persia Prince Zuo Tuo, right to the lonely elderly. There are 18 Galais on either side. East for the ancestral hall, more worship Dharma or when the temple Kaishan patriarch. There are other warehouses, guest rooms, kitchens, bathrooms, etc., distributed around. In addition, the garden architecture pattern of Buddhist temples is also more common. The temple is the main one, or the garden is included, or the garden is attached, or the garden is interspersed. Contrary to the balanced, symmetrical and closed temple, the configuration of the garden follows the nature and is flexible and changeable. The water and streams in the garden seem to have endless sources. Winding path through you, willow dark flowers bright, like boundless realm. These two opposite artistic patterns constitute the Chinese temple not only elegant and solemn temple atmosphere, but also a deep appreciation of natural taste and artistic conception. suzhoulike Divine Rock Temple , Hangzhou's Lingyin Temple , Tiantai Mountain Guoqing Temple , Guangdong Shaoguan Nanhua Temple , Hunan Hengshan Mountain Temple of benediction , Hubei Dangyang Jade Spring Temple , Chengdu Wenshu Hospital And so on, they all fall into this pattern.

When it comes to Xinjiang, people think of Uyghur girls who are good at singing and dancing, sweet cantaloupe and the vast expanse of land Gobi Desert Anyone who has been to Xinjiang knows that it is the region with the largest concentration of Muslims in China and has lived here for generations Uighur Kazakhs are devout Mohammedans, and mosques everywhere make people feel like they are in the Arab world in the Middle East. But do you know that as early as more than a thousand years ago, the residents here were all Buddhists, and created the world's attention to the Buddhist grotto art, only after the 11th and 2nd centuries AD, with the gradual infiltration of Islamic forces, Buddhism gradually declined in the local until finally withdrew from the stage of history. Grottoes refer to the Buddhist temples dug on the cliffs of the river, whose nature is like that of temples built on the ground. At present, there are many views in the academic circle on why the grottoes should be dug in the wild mountains, and the common understanding is that the grottoes can be preserved for a long time, just as the Tang Dynasty monk Daoxuan wrote in his book: "To the Guocheng Temple tower is not permanent, the ancient emperor palace will eventually simmer embers, if it is established, like you and..." Is 顾眄 mountains, can die..." So in the south of the state hundred mile cliff to create a large image. Thousands of years of ups and downs also confirmed this fact, once brilliant Qin palace Han palace, temple temple left to future generations is only archaeologists from the ruins of the excavation of bricks and tiles, only those away from the bustling city and the war of the grottoes to be preserved as a pure land, spectacular sculptures and exquisite murals for us to show the original appearance of history Dunhuang As the representative of the cave art is praised by the world Buddhist culture The treasure house is well deserved! As one of the cultural expressions of Buddhism, grotto art originated Ancient India With the spread of Buddhism in the third century through Central Asia into China's Xinjiang region, and as a stronghold gradually spread east, in the fifth to eighth centuries Central Plains Everywhere prospered. It can be said that Xinjiang is the first station of Buddhism systematically introduced into China, and has the earliest, largest and westernmost large-scale grottoes group in China, which is famous in the world The Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang , Yungang Grottoes The early grottoes were strongly influenced by the Buddhist art of the Xinjiang grottoes, therefore, explored Chinese grottoes The origin and artistic inheritance of Xinjiang grottoes must be deeply understood. The grottoes in Xinjiang are mainly distributed in the autonomous region Kashgar easterly Tarim basin Along the northern route, there are currently four areas where the remains of grottoes have been found, which are ancient from west to east Shule District (present-day Kashgar), ancient Qiuci (a county in ancient China) district Kuqa , Bai City ), The ancient Yanqi District (modern Yanqi) and ancient Gao Chang district Turpan ). From the perspective of architectural form, Xinjiang grottoes are mostly found with central pillar pagoda temple grottoes, large statue grottoes with large Buddha statues, monk chambers for monks' daily living, zen grottoes for monks to practice meditation, cave combinations of caves with different shapes, and a small number of zen grottoes group. After the 5th century, the number of square Buddhist temples increased, and there were Buddhist temples with central altars and statues. The caves in Yanqi and Turpan are often lined with adobe front outline or completely made of adobe masonry. These caves of different shapes are often painted with murals, and most of them originally had statues (most of which are now destroyed). Before the 6th century, the painting contents mainly reflected the themes of Theravada Buddhism, Shakyamuni and Maitreya Bodhisattva, and expressed Shakya's jataka, Buddha's biography, and karma stories. In the 6th century, thousands of Buddhas with Mahayana nature appeared. After the 8th century, the Pure land longitude and some esoteric images spread to the northern region of the Central Plains, and the layout and painting techniques of the murals were also significantly influenced by the Central Plains.

Generally speaking, Xinjiang grottoes can be divided into three artistic styles: one is" Qiuci wind , in order to Kizil Grottoes As a typical representative, mainly seen in ancient Qiuci State In China, the specific characteristics of the pagoda temple grottoes, large statue grottoes and sideway-style monk room grottoes are more common, and the theme of the mural is mostly to reflect the nature of Theravada "Waili Shakya", the Buddha's legend and the story of causes and causes. The layout of the top mural is often in the form of ring-lattice composition, and the painting method is a large number of "Western region style". This kind of grottoes is the earliest age, the product of the integration of Buddhism in China and the local national culture, in fact, it is the beginning of Chinese Buddhist grottoes art, and has a direct impact on the emergence of cave statues in Hexi and the Central Plains, and has a pivotal significance for the study of the spread of Buddhism from west to east and the flow of cave statues. The second is" Han style ”，顾名思义为中国内地的艺术形式，具有代表性的是 Kumutula Grottoes And new discoveries The Ai Grottoes This group of caves is later than the "Qiuzi wind" grottoes, which is the maturity of Buddhism in the Central Plains, with the strengthening of the Tang Dynasty's rule over the Western regions Great protector Stationed in Qiuzi, a large number of Han people and Han monks into the Western regions brought the mainland Buddhist art form, the theme of the murals are popular in Dunhuang and other places to reflect the content of the Mahayana pure land thought, decorative patterns are also seen in the Tang Dynasty of various flowers, rolling grass and cloud patterns. The "Han Wind" grottoes are an important example of the return of Buddhism from east to west.

Chinese monasteries, similar in architectural style to palaces, are more integrated Chinese palace The aesthetic features of the building, in Time process The form of the roof and the space have the same characteristics: the shape and decoration of the roof play an important role, and the curve of the roof and the slightly warped cornice show an upward and outward tension. With a broad body and a large platform, the main and secondary are clear, and the rise and fall are uniform. Coupled with a rigorous symmetrical structural layout, the whole building complex appears solemn and thick. During the walking, it is not difficult to experience a strong sense of rhythm and a clear flow of beauty. The base is divided into ordinary base and advanced base; To show the grade and style of the building temple. The ordinary base is generally used in the Tianwang Hall, and the base gradually rises as the courtyard deepens. The base of the Mahavira Hall, as it is often called Xumizuo Xumi is "the highest mountain in the center of the world" in Buddhism, and the Great male treasure Hall is placed on the Xumi Seat with the help of a pedestal Galong The terrain of the surrounding building groups is set off to show the grandeur of the Buddha hall. Most of the opening rooms in the plane combination of Buddhist temples are singular, which is also the ancient Chinese to the singular as auspicious. The more rooms, the higher the level, such as the hall with nine, five rooms, to symbolize" regal ". The other main halls are generally three. The depth of the room is deep, and the opening space forms a certain proportional relationship with the depth, so that the whole building achieves a harmonious and unified effect. The roof, the body part of the temple building, the body shape is huge and clumsy, but on the roof, the characteristics of the wooden structure are used to make the roof into a curved shape. The roof of the temple has the bottom of the roof, the top of the hill, the top of the hill, the hard peak, the top of the roof, etc., and the roof of the hip temple, the roof of the hill have two kinds of documents and double eaves. Eaves, and make the roof unique charm, the curved roof, outward and upward protruding warped corners, so that the very large and towering roof is particularly vivid and lightweight, in addition to the roof is concave, eaves, Corner of a roof The flying ridges of the roof and the roof are curved and complement each other, forming a unique roof shape in classical China. Glazed tile decoration, building roof of the positive ridge, vertical ridge, eaves corner has a variety of glazed tile decoration, such as the positive ridge and vertical ridge intersection of the big kiss, because it has the potential to swallow the positive ridge, it is also known as "swallow ridge beast". The large kiss originated in the Han Dynasty and was called the Vulture. The earliest of the birds was fishtail shape, owl is a whale in the sea, Buddhist sutras said that it is the seat of the rain god, can put out fire, so the fish shape to hate victory. The cornices are often lined up with a group of interesting small beasts, the size of the small beasts depends on the level of the temple palace. There are ten highest ranks, which are in the order of: led by a fairy who rides the phoenix, followed by the dragon and phoenix, lion, heavenly horse, seahorse, crafty lion, fish, small insects, bullfighting, and action. These arranged small beasts, or a symbol of good luck and stability, can extinguish fires and eliminate disasters, or the embodiment of justice and justice, can eliminate evil. These exquisitely shaped, variously shaped beasts are highly decorative, "making the actual part of an otherwise extremely dull and awkward; Become a beautiful crown for the whole building "( Liang Sicheng Words).

As we travel north and south of China, looking at these magnificent and magnificent buildings of various shapes and forms, we will have some insights:

The first is the beauty of nature. Buddhist temples are mostly built in beautiful places, near the mountains and rivers, lush forests and grass, birds and flowers, winding paths and quiet, so that the movement of nature here harmonious coexistence. Here we can enjoy the beauty of nature and inspire us to our motherland Beautiful rivers and mountains The overwhelming love. The second is the beauty of the cultural landscape. The temples among the famous mountains and beautiful scenery are humanistic classics created by people's wisdom and labor. The unique lines and colors of Buddhist buildings are full of formal beauty, such as temples and pagodas hidden in the mountains. In the lines, they often break the rhythm of the rolling mountains and the extending green waves. From a distance, a temple often becomes a pause point of the extension of the lines, and the towering pagodas suddenly break the blue sky and the green mountains Demarcation line So that the picture has a change, full of rhythm and rhythm beauty. In the color, the temple roof, eaves are often inset with warm glazed tiles, and then with the earth red door bars and Windows, the pagoda or with green bricks, or red bricks, or wood and painted with red, and the whole forest harmony, complement each other, is really: "moving spring do not need more, a little red in the green." Whether it is carefully laid out or cleverly conceived; Whether building buildings, building pavilions, or building Buddha statues; Whether it is morning bell and evening drum, or scripture, calligraphy and painting, everything combines humanistic care and humanistic elements naturally and smoothly, and is full of historical and cultural beauty. In addition, these cultural landscapes and natural landscapes complement each other, giving people a happy feeling of heaven and earth.

The third is the beauty of spiritual enjoyment. Buddhism propagates the theory of good and evil cause and effect of reincarnation, and its purpose is to "establish religion by Shinto, stop evil and promote good", and arouse the conscience of fairness, justice and harmonious coexistence with people's epiphanies and practices. It is of great beauty in spirit. For example, it goes beyond the earthly world and looks at the human world from the perspective of the universe Panorama Although a little mysterious, but its mind is broad. For example, it believes that the highest spiritual realm is "all four empty", there is no self, selfish desire, the bitter struggle for fame and profit, although there are disadvantages far from reality, but its spirit is noble. Buddhism is more about philosophy of life, morality, emotion and other pantheistic things, spiritual enlightenment, purification of the heart, cultivation of morality, happy to do good deeds, and is relatively close to reality, and the outstanding performance is tolerance, benevolence, rationality, understanding, peace, and faith. This kind of traditional spiritual beauty is of positive significance for cultivating people's temperament and strengthening self-cultivation.

In short, people have religious feelings, Religious tourism Become their emotional sustenance, more and more popular. Most of the Buddhist buildings in China are combined with beautiful mountains and rivers, and many Buddhist temples and temples are AAA tourist attractions with beautiful natural scenery, diverse architectural styles and profound cultural heritage, which is an important tourism resource attracting thousands of tourists. We should look at religion and religious cultural places historically and dialectically, and appreciate the charm and style of religious buildings and figures with respect for history and culture. Full excavation Tourism cultural resources Vigorously develop cultural tourism, and guide people to correctly understand and appreciate Buddhist architecture, and guide religious culture to play a positive role in society and the masses through tourism.