Day 6: Sat 29 Sep - Chongqing (Dazu Rock Carvings) to Hong Kong to Amsterdam
It was an earlier than usual
start this morning; we were off to the Dazu Rock Carvings made up of five clusters
of carvings dating from the ninth to the 13th centuries. We visited
the Baodingshan Rock Carving situated 15 km east of Dazu, which is 127km west
of Chongqing (about 2 hrs of driving). We were so early in fact, that we had to
miss the usual breakfast. Never fear
though, our trusty leader had arranged for the hotel to package a breakfast for
us which we ate not long after we left Chongqing. The Carvings are on a grand
scale, have a notable aesthetic quality, are very diverse in both secular and
religious subject matter and provide evidence of the amicable combination of
Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. On the 4th December 1999, the
Dazu Rock Carvings were declared UNESCO World Cultural and Heritage. The
inscription on the List confirms the “exceptional and universal value of a
cultural or natural site which requires protection for the benefit of all
humanity”. These Carvings retain the
original characteristics and values of the period when the carvings were
created as they have not suffered any disasters. Daily maintenance and care
have been strictly adhered to under the principle of retaining historic
conditions. In devotion to conservation and protection of the carvings, their
surroundings have also been preserved (natural and cultural). Therefore, the
Carvings as a whole retain their functions of providing secular belief,
cultural transmission and social education.
We had a personalized guide
who spoke very good English and she explained the meaning of each set of carvings. On the following pages are only a few of the
Carvings and descriptions, however, if you want more, visit this website: http://www.art-and-archaeology.com/china/baoding/ba01.html.
Daoist Figures - male and female deity
Daoist Figures - a fierce multi-armed god rides
a tiger (right), and on the left a bearded, bald figure rides a different kind
of animal.
Sylvain, Jane, Danica, me, Xheng-yu
The Great Wheel of
Rebirth summarizes the Buddhist doctrine of karma: an endless cycle of
reincarnation into higher or lower forms of life according to one's past deeds.
In this sculpture the demon Mara, personifying existence, holds the wheel in
his jaws and arms. The wheel is supported from below by personifications (left
to right) of greed (an official), evil (a soldier), foolishness (a monkey), and
lust (a woman). Six Buddha-rays emanate from the wheel, signifying that
enlightenment, the goal of all Buddhist practice, enables the seeker to escape
from the eternal cycle of birth and death. The innermost ring of the wheel
illustrates the traditional six realms of reincarnation (gods, men, hungry
ghosts, hell, animals, and demigods (asuras)).
The middle ring illustrates the chain of causes, technically called
"links of dependent origination," in Buddhist philosophy: ignorance,
sickness, death, old age, desire, etc. The outer ring illustrates various
reincarnations of men and animals.
The 31m (102') long
reclining statue occupies the east end of the Baodingshan; it illustrates the
death of Shakyamuni, attended by Bodhisattvas and other attendants. The
Buddha's lower body and legs were omitted from the statue, so as to create a
larger bust than would otherwise have fit into the available space. An offering
table is positioned towards the bottom of the sculpture. Above this, a platform
supports effigies of the Buddha's relatives (concealed by the overhang in this
photo). The emphasis on Buddha's family, here and elsewhere at Baodingshan,
reflects the Chinese "family values" which had been adopted by
Buddhism in order to thrive there.
Liu
Benzun created these grottoes. His deliberate damaging of his own body is shown
in this relief. Liu is the large central figure in the photo, and his
austerities (acts of harming himself) are shown to either side upon the upper
ledge. Asceticism,
also known as penance, austerity, and "mortification of the flesh,"
has deep roots in India, Christianity, and many Native religions. The practice aims to achieve a
spiritual state by sacrificing one's physical being; physical and sensory
deprivation or pain can, under favorable circumstances, lead the prepared mind
to a realm of religious and visionary experiences that seem compelling to the
practitioner. Although rejected by the historical Buddha (who advocated a Middle
Way after earlier austerities), asceticism was incorporated into early Chan
(Zen). Liu's Ten Austerities are: Burning the Index
Finger, Burning the Ankle, Cutting the Ear, Burning the Top of the Head,
Burning the Genitalia, Burning the Knees, Cutting the Arm, Burning the Chest,
Gouging the Eye, and Meditating in the Snow.
Burning the genitalia
Cutting the ear
Zheng-yu, me and Sylvain in front of "Hell of Breaking of the Knees".
The evils of
drunkenness are illustrated, in a very Confucian way, by their awful effects on
the family. In the scene, a drunken son seduces his own mother, and in turn is
speared by his mother’s lover. The punishment of everyone involved is
illustrated. The seated figure at bottom is wearing a cangue around his neck,
while awaiting his turn to have his knees broken by the hell warden at left.
The cangue, a kind of yoke around the neck upon which a person’s transgression
was inscribed, was a common punishment in China
During the walk back from the
Carvings to the bus, we passed this tree – it seems that even the trees in
China are worthy of Total Parenteral Nutrition – they need a boost!!
We found the bus, hopped on board, and headed for the local Ramada hotel where we had another sumptuous lunch.
It was then, with full bellies, back on the bus for a frantic 2 hr bus ride to the airport to make the flight from Chongqing to Hong Kong for the onward flight to Amsterdam.
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