Cave 25 of the Yulin Cave in Anxi was excavated in the Middle Tang period. The content of the murals in the cave reflects the exchange of Han and Tibetan cultures in the early days of Dunhuang rule and the integration of exoteric and esoteric Buddhism. Only the right half of the wall remains in the Lushana Buddha , the four Bodhisattvas and the Medicine Buddha, but they have special significance in image development and grotto research.
The Lushana Buddha in the center of the main wall of Cave 25 Yulin and the Eight Bodhisattvas are the first combination in the Dunhuang Grottoes and presented in the form of a mandala. The relationship between the standing statue of the Medicine Buddha holding a bowl and a tin staff on one side and the Lushana Buddha or the Eight Bodhisattva mandala is the focus of this article.
The image of the Medicine Buddha in Cave 25 of Yulin
The Medicine Buddha in Cave 25 of Yulin is located on the north side of the main wall. He holds a bowl in his left hand, holds a tin staff in his right hand, and steps on the lotus, with his body slightly facing towards the Lusana Buddha and the Eight Bodhisattva Mandalas to the left.
The classics about the belief in medicine masters were translated at Eastern Jin , but the image of medicine master Buddha was not discussed in all the books " Medicine Master Sutra ". The "Recitation of Medicine Master Tathagata" translated by in the Tang Dynasty Bukong records that medicine master Buddha held "medicine instruments". The images of the "medicine instrument" I see today are mostly in the shape of a round bowl, and are also the most common and representative objects of the Medicine Buddha, which means to eliminate the three poisons and diseases of sentient beings.
Regarding another tin stick, the Japanese monk Jue Chan's "Jue Chan Copy" records the statue of the Medicine Master "Tang's Body Holding Bowl and Tin Staff" and contains the "Tang's Body's Body's Body". The Medicine Buddha holding a bowl and Tin Staff are also seen in the murals of the early Tang Dynasty grottoes in Dunhuang. After the prosperous Tang Dynasty, in addition to Medicine Buddha, there was also an Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva holding a tin staff. The difference in image is that Medicine Buddha is a Buddha statue with a flesh bun on the top, and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva is a dome-topped monk. In terms of holding objects, the Medicine Buddha often holds a bowl, and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva mostly holds beads. The common holding objects of the two is a tin staff, but the images of the Medicine Buddha and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva holding a tin staff are not shown in the scriptures or rituals.
Tin rod is an important stick held by Buddha and his disciples. According to the "Tin Staff Sutra", tin rod is a symbol of wisdom and virtue, and has the meaning of lightness, clarity, non-reversal, slowness, recklessness, adoption, and accomplishment. The "Ksitigarbha Praise" that is circulated today, "Golden and tin open the gate of hell" is extended to Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva's compassionate wish to save sentient beings in hell.
Pharmacist and Dixin are isomorphic in faith. Data of existing grotto statues show that the positions of the two have corresponding or combined relationships, and the image representation also has the same situation. Although Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, which corresponds to Medicine Buddha on the south side of the main wall of Cave 25 in Yulin, does not exist, its meaning of saving sentient beings echoes the image of Medicine Buddha holding a medicine bowl and holding a tin staff on the north side.
The corresponding relationship between the statue of Medicine Buddha and the statue of Lushena Buddha
The standing statue of Medicine Buddha is only seen in the middle Tang Dynasty in Yulin Cave . However, in the Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang, the standing statue of Medicine Buddha holding a bowl and a tin staff appeared in the early Tang Dynasty (such as Cave 322), and the corresponding relationship with Lushena Buddha and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva (such as Cave 332 and Cave 372). The correspondence with Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva continued until the middle Tang Dynasty, which can prove the academic community’s inference that the main wall of Cave 25 Yulin and the corresponding Medicine Buddha may be Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva.
There are many images of Lushena Buddha. In terms of the Dunhuang Grottoes, the earliest ones that can be confirmed as Lushena Buddha are the images of the people in the Dharma Realm. Three cases of Medicine Buddha before the Middle Tang Dynasty appeared in the grottoes at the same time as Lushena Dharma Realm, namely Cave 332, Cave 446 and Cave 449. Among them, Cave 332 is the center column cave. The wall facing the south of the center column is painted by Lushana Buddha, and the wall facing the west is painted by Medicine Buddha. Cave 446 of the prosperous Tang Dynasty and Cave 449 of the middle Tang Dynasty placed these two statues on both sides of the main niche.
The relationship between Dunhuang Medicine Buddha and Lushana Buddha changed in Cave 25 of Yulin. Lushana Buddha was promoted to the main lord of the three Buddha structures in the cave, and also the main lord of the eight Bodhisattvas on the main wall. Medicine Buddha was listed on one side to correspond to Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. This change shows that the original correspondence between Medicine Buddha and Lushana Buddha, and Medicine Buddha and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva was integrated into one in Cave 25 of Yulin. In addition to being promoted to the Lord, the image of Lusha Buddha also changed from the image of the Dharma Realm in the Huayan system to the image of the Great Sun Tathagata in the Tibetan Realm of the Tantric Teachings.
It is worth noting that in the Dunhuang Grottoes, the relationship between Lushana Buddha and Tantric Bodhisattva had an intersection in the early Tang Dynasty. Although Lushana Buddha in Cave 25 of Yulin matches the image of the Great Sun Tathagata of the Tantric Buddhism with the eight Bodhisattvas of the Tantric Buddhism, the title "Pure Dharma Body Lushana Buddha" points out the Dharma body characteristics of Lushana Buddha. In the murals, the Medicine Buddha plays an important role in the development of Lushana Buddha and the eight Bodhisattvas of the Tantric Buddhism.
Comparison between Cave 25 of Anxi Yulin and Cave 1 of Ai, Xinjiang
Ai Grottoes are located in the Tianshan Grand Canyon in the northern part of Kuqa, Xinjiang. They were discovered in 1999. From the text style of the murals and inscriptions in Cave 1, it can be inferred that it was dug by a group of Han people living in Kucha during the prosperous Tang Dynasty. Most of the paintings on the inner wall of the cave have been peeled off. The image structure in the cave is divided into: the main Buddha Amitabha Buddha who is transformed from the Amitabha Sutra on the main wall and the Buddha on both sides form the layout of the three Buddhas; the statues on both sides are listed. Comparing the statues of the deity with the 25th Cave of Yulin, you will find that the two have subtle relationships between the statues of the deity.
There is also a square altar in the center of the main chamber of Cave 25 in Yulin. The main wall (after restoration) is a central wall of Lushana and the eight Bodhisattva mandalas. There is a standing statue on both sides, which are Medicine Buddha and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. The two sides are the transformation of Amitabha Sutra and the transformation of Maitreya Sutra. There is also a square altar in the center (as shown in the picture).
Comparison of the image structure of Cave 25 of Yulin and Cave 1 of Ai
First, the main lords of both caves form a basic three Buddha layout with the side walls, but the Ai Grottoes take the Western Pure Land of the Amitabha Sutra as the center of the mind, and Cave 25 of Yulin takes the Buddha Lushanna as the main lord of the main wall, and the Pure Land is located on both sides.
2. There are Lushana Buddhas in both caves. Lushana Buddhas in Ai Grottoes are on the side wall, which is an image of people in the Dharma Realm; Lushana Buddhas in Yulin 25 are the main wall, which is the image of the Tathagata of the Great Sun of the Tantric Buddhism.
Ai Grottoes Medicine Buddha statue
Third, both caves have statues of Medicine Buddha and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, and are located on the same wall as Lusanna Buddha, and their configuration is also related: Ai Grottoes has two Medicine Buddhas, which are on both sides of Lusanna Buddha, one is paired with Manjushri Bodhisattva , and the other is parallel with Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva; the Medicine Buddha in Cave 25 Yulin is listed on both sides of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. In other words, the Medicine Buddha, who is parallel to the Buddha of Lushana on the side of Aai Grottoes, and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva are transferred to a corresponding relationship on both sides in Cave 25 of Yulin.
Buddha statue of Lushana, Ai Grottoes
4 The Manjushri Bodhisattva in Ai Grottoes, which is a tantric image. The sitting posture is different from other standing postures in the cave. There is no mandala form formed among the Bodhisattvas, while the eight Bodhisattvas in Yulin Cave 25 form a mandala form with Lushana.
It can be found through comparison: first, there are two Medicine Buddhas in the Aai Grottoes, one is paired with Lushena Buddha and the other is paired with Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, which is consistent with the corresponding situations of the aforementioned Chinese Medicine Buddha, Lushena Buddha and Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva; second, the relationship between the Aai Grottoes Manjushri and the Medicine Buddha, developed into the relationship between the Eight Bodhisattvas in the Tantric Buddhism and Lushena Buddha in Cave 25 of Yulin.
The significance of Medicine Buddha for the combination of Lushana Buddha and the eight bodhisattvas
Medicine Buddha has special significance for the combination of Lushana Buddha and the eight bodhisattvas of Tantric Buddhism, that is, the change of the eight bodhisattvas with the Buddha.
Eight Bodhisattvas were first seen in the translation of the "Pan Zhou Samadhi Sutra" by Lou Jiachen of the Later Han Dynasty. They did not involve tantra, but the development of this sutra on the view of Buddhas in the ten directions became an opportunity for the subsequent eight Bodhisattvas to combine Buddhas in the ten directions to serve as the master of tantra. The main masters of the early mantras and scriptures were either Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, or God Kings. The Buddhas were mainly Buddhas in the ten directions or Buddhas in the three realms, and the combination of the eight bodhisattvas was not finalized. Volume 12 of the Eastern Jin Dynasty's "Initiation Mantra" contains the "Sutra for the Rescue of Life and Death in Eliminating Sins". This sutra is determined by the Eastern Buddha - Medicine Buddha. The name of the sutra reveals the belief that Medicine Buddha "Sutra for the Rescue of Life and Death in Eliminating Sins". Through the eight Bodhisattvas, you can also enter the Western Pure Land and even the Ten Directions Pure Land.
With the maturity of the thoughts of Buddhas in the ten directions and three times of Avatamsaka, Buddha Lushana became the supreme of the Dharma Realm of the Ten Directions and Three Times with his Prajna nature that surrounds the Ten Directions and Three Times of the Three Times of the Dharma Realm. Buddha Lushana Cave 25 in Yulin uses this Dharma Realm to represent the ten directions (Amitabha) Pure Land and the Three Times (Maitreya) Pure Land on both sides of the walls, and became the master of the eight Bodhisattvas on the main wall. Under the structure of the Dharma Realm of the Ten Directions and Three Realms of Huayan, the Medicine Buddha, who originally belonged to the early tantra, retreated to the side wall and corresponded to Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva. Through the belief connotation of the two, the two are to eliminate diseases, resolve disasters, and break the sufferings of the three evil paths, emphasizing the compassion of Buddha Lusher to sentient beings in the Dharma Realm, which is also in line with the meaning of the image of the Medicine Buddha holding a medicine bowl and holding a tin staff discussed in the previous article.
Medicine Buddha's Dharma was one of the popular tantras in the early Han areas. The characteristics of Medicine Buddha's nature played an important role in the development of the combination of Lushena Buddha and the Eight Bodhisattvas.
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