The carved statues at Baodingshan reflect the 3 religiou

1
Baodingshan Grotto

• Dazu, China

2
The carved statues at Baodingshan reflect the 3
religious traditions found in China at the time
they were created Daoism, Confucianism, and
Buddhism. The statues survived the Cultural
Revolution because of isolation and the
involvement of Chou Enlai,a native of the area.
3
The images carved in stone across the Dazu area
amount to 60,000 different statues. Most were
started in the Song dynasty and it took over 70
years to complete them. Their remote locations
protected them from Red Guards during the
Cultural Revolution. A road in was not completed
until the 1990s.
4
Countryside
5
(No Transcript)
6
Road to Baodingshan

• What did you notice about the road you just saw
  that struck you as unusual ?
• Notice the fire works for sale at the roadside
  stands in the next slide. You can also buy your
  incense there before you enter the Grotto.

7
Stands near the grotto
8
Baoding, China
9
Three religions

• To make things clearer for viewers, I will color
  code images.
• Buddhist will have yellow borders
• Daoism will have green borders
• Confucian images will have blue borders
• Some images have more than one so they will be
  left white.

10
(No Transcript)
11
(No Transcript)
12
(No Transcript)
13
World Heritage Site
14
(No Transcript)
15
(No Transcript)
16
(No Transcript)
17
(No Transcript)
18
(No Transcript)
19
Buddhism

• In China the guides referred to Sakymuni instead
  of to Buddha. We had to ask him who he talking
  about since none of us were familiar with this
  Chinese name for the Buddha.

20
Showing a son carrying his parents.
21
Confucian ideas

• Baodingshan reflects all three religious
  traditions favored in China. The son carrying his
  parents is an excellent example of the Confucian
  ideal of
• Filial Piety.
• Elderly parents are carried once they can no
  longer walk by themselves.

22
Confucius ( on the right )
23
(No Transcript)
24
Daoist/ Taoist

• The interaction between the natural world and the
  world of man is shown by these figures.
• People should be able to simply go with the
  natural flow around them, never fight against
  events . Accept life and what comes your way.

25
Our guide Jeff explaining .
26
(No Transcript)
27
(No Transcript)
28
(No Transcript)
29
(No Transcript)
30
(No Transcript)
31
(No Transcript)
32
Portrayal of Buddha

• Please notice the very Chinese looking mother and
  sisters who are watching the
• Buddha reach enlightenment.

33
(No Transcript)
34
Bodhisattva

• This beautiful figure represents the traditional
  Chinese goddess of mercy, Guan Yin. The face is
  so serene and the carving is so skilled that her
  face almost looks soft even though it is carved
  out of stone.

35
(No Transcript)
36
(No Transcript)
37
Buddhism

• Here the demon, Annica is trying to stop the
  wheel of life from moving by holding on to it.
  Inside are all kinds of people. Anica is unable
  to stop life no matter what he does.

38
(No Transcript)
39
(No Transcript)
40
(No Transcript)
41
(No Transcript)
42
(No Transcript)
43
This scene shows Buddhist and Confucian images
together. In China, you do not practice one
religion but can practice all 3 of the main ones
simultaneously. This idea was and is very hard
for westerners to understand.
44
(No Transcript)
45
(No Transcript)
46
(No Transcript)
47
(No Transcript)
48
(No Transcript)
49
(No Transcript)
50
(No Transcript)
51
(No Transcript)
52
(No Transcript)
53
Prayer Wheels
54
(No Transcript)
55
(No Transcript)
56
(No Transcript)
57
(No Transcript)
58
A Scholar-official
59
(No Transcript)
60
(No Transcript)
61
(No Transcript)
62
(No Transcript)
63
(No Transcript)
64
(No Transcript)
65
Three demons
66
Demons from Hell
67
(No Transcript)
68
More STEPS in China
69
(No Transcript)
70
(No Transcript)
71
An interesting animal
72
(No Transcript)
73
(No Transcript)
74
(No Transcript)
75
(No Transcript)
76
Baodingshan Grotto contained dynamic art from the
Tang dynasty. Our guide Jeff, explained that for
the artists creating these statues was an act of
worship. Chinese religious practice is very
different from western tradition but the beauty
of the images crosses cultural lines. These
statues are priceless partly because so much of
Chinas history was destroyed in the Cultural
Revolution. They value what is left and work to
protect it.