Buddhism is a foreign religion in China that came from India. The amalgamation of Taoism, Confucism and Buddhism happened during the Southern Liang dynasty (502–557) under the influence of Emperor Wu Xiao Yan 梁武帝 蕭衍 (r. 502-549.
Rise of Buddhism in China
It was brought to China by Buddhist monks from India during the latter part of the Han dynasty (ca. 150 CE) and took over a century to become assimilated into Chinese culture. One of the key forces of Buddhism’s success was Taoism. To help the Chinese comprehend Buddhist concepts, Buddhists borrowed ideas from Taoism via the Chinese language. This exchange became intertwined with Confucism, which was mainstay form of governance, during the Southern Liang dynasty.
Role of Southern Liang in Rise of Buddhism in China
Back Screen Images (531 AD) 背屏式造像 梁 中大通三年
The Southern and Northern Dynasties were the first apex of Buddhism in China. Because of support from the emperors, Buddhism flourished. In the Northern Wei Dynasty 北魏 (386-535), the monk Tanyao 昙曜 built Yungang Grottoes 云冈石窟 with the support of Emperor Wencheng 文成帝. The famous “Tanyao Five Grottoes” 昙曜五窟symbolised the accomplishment of the Northern Wei emperors.
Back Screen Images (532 AD)背屏式造像 梁 中大通四年
Buddhism in the Southern Dynasty did not fall far behind; the emperor/empress of four Southern dynasties of Song, Qi, Liang and Chen Dynasties of the Southern Dynasty all did their part in building temples and sponsoring monks. Emperor Wu of Southern Liang 梁武帝 萧衍 was the most ridiculous; he actually abdicate from the throne and went to the temple as a servant. The ministers spent 100 million qian (copper coin) to redeem him.1
“千里莺啼绿映红，水村山郭酒旗风。南朝四百八十寺，多少楼台烟雨中”
唐 杜牧《江南春》
Maitreya Statues in the Southern Dynasties
In the 5th and 6th centuries, the belief of the descent of Maitreya 弥勒菩萨 (the future state of the Buddha) was very popular in the Jiangnan area. The Maitreya figures of the Southern Dynasties in the Jiangnan area are seen in the cliff niches at Baoxiang Monastery in Xinchang County, Zhejiang and the Mount Qixia Grottoes in Nanjing, Jiangsu.
In Sichuan area, the Maitreya figures of the Southern Dynasties are seen on the votive stele made by Monk Xuansong in Maoxian County and the Maitreya statue made by Monk Fahai found at Xi’an Road in Chengdu.2
Thousand Buddha Fragments 千佛残碑 (Sui dynasty)
Sandstone | Sui Dynasty (581-618) | Sichuan Museum Collection, Collected from Yaoguang Temple of Chengdu, 1951. 砂石 | 隋代（581-618年） | 四川博物馆藏,1951年成都市尧光寺征案
By the second and third quarters of the sixth century, the monumental, complex type of Buddhist stele came into vogue. The principal niche now consisted of a Buddha’s assembly of five, seven, nine, or more figures – a Buddha, two bodhisattvas, two disciples, two lokapalas, and in addition, pairs of apsarases (effeminate spirit of the clouds and waters in Hindu and Buddhist mythology) and lions.
Emergence of the Sichuan Style of Buddhist Sculptures
Sichuan craftsmen were conversant with all of the Indian styles – Gandharan, Gupta from Mathura, and Southern Gupta styles – and employed them according to their patrons’ demands.
Back Screen Images (548 AD) 梁 中大同三年 背屏式造像
The style of all these artefacts is exclusively found Sichuan – note the sensuous, realistic modelling of the grace-fully swaying bodies, the naturalism of their relaxed yet elegant poses, and the landscape setting chosen for the deities.
Back Screen Images (523 AD) 背屏式造像 梁 普通四年
Furthermore, Sichuan style is reflected in the friendly and vivacious expressions of the protagonists, the warm emotionalism permeating the entire group, and the inclusion of exotic components such as the band of foreign-looking musicians and elephants with their keepers.
About Wanfo Temple 万佛寺
Wanfo Temple ruins 万佛寺遗址 is located in Tongjin Bridge outside Ximen, Chengdu. It was purportedly built in the Eastern Han Dynasty during the reign of Yanxi 延熹 (r. 158-167 AD). From Southern Dynasties (420-589) to the Ming Dynasty, the temple was very popular among believers, and incense was continuous over the centuries. 3
According to the literature and the unearthed inscriptions, the Wanfo Temple, or “Temple of Ten Thousand Buddhas”, was originally called Anpu Temple 安浦寺 in the Southern Dynasties. It was renamed multiple times – from Jingzhong Temple 净众寺 (Tang dynasty), to Jingyin Temple 净因寺 (Song dynasty), to Wanfo Temple 万佛寺 (Ming dynasty). It was destroyed by fire by the invading Qing army.
Stone sculptures and statue of Buddha were excavated five times in the historical site of the Wanfo temple in Chengdu between 1882-1954. Most of artefacts were collected at the Sichuan Museum, amounting to 63 pieces, in which 41 pieces of statue of Buddha in the Southern Dynasty, and 22 pieces in the Tang Dynasty.4
Significance of the Findings
In the endless passage of time and the change of dynasties, the Northern and Southern Dynasties eventually became history. There are many Buddhist relics of the Northern Dynasty in China – Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes 敦煌莫高窟, Yungang Grottoes 云冈石窟, Tianlongshan Grottoes 天龙山石窟, Kizil Grottoes 克孜尔石窟, Bingling Temple Grottoes 炳灵寺石窟 and Maijishan Grottoes 麦积山石窟 all have a large number of Northern Dynasty statues and murals.
On the contrary, only a small number of shrines in Qixia Mountain in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province 江苏南京栖霞山 and Baoxiang Temple in Xinchang, Zhejiang Province 浙江新昌宝相寺 where the stone carvings of the Southern Dynasty have been located. Wanfo Temple ruins filled this gap, especially for the short-lived Liang dynasty (502–557). It also implies that Chengdu in the Southern Dynasty, like Jiankang (modern day Nanjing), was an ancient capital with many Brahma temples and pagodas. .5
About Chinese National Treasure Series
中華國寶系列 Chinese National Treasure series feature specific artefacts and relics from museums all around the world that are historically significant to be considered a National Treasure. The series covers the 5,000 years of Chinese civilisation from Neolithic periods before the Xia dynasty (c. 2070-1600 BC) to modern day.
Footnotes:
- 南北朝是佛教在中国的第一个高潮，由于依附王权，佛教兴盛一时。在北魏，僧人昙曜在文成帝支持下兴建云冈石窟，著名的“昙曜五窟”更是象征着道武帝、太武帝、文成帝等北魏历史上功勋卓著的帝王；而南朝佛教之盛一点也不落下风，南朝宋、齐、梁、陈四朝，宋文帝、宋孝武帝、宋明帝，齐高帝、齐武帝，梁武帝、简文帝，陈后主无不大兴寺庙、供养佛像，又以梁武帝最甚，竟放下皇帝不当，舍身到寺庙中当杂役了，群臣花了一亿万钱才把他赎回来。http://www.silkroads.org.cn/portal.php?mod=view&aid=48202 ↩︎
- Li, Yuqun. “Maitreya statues in the Southern Dynasties and the incarnation of Fu Dashi as Maitreya” Chinese Archaeology, vol. 18, no. 1, 2018, pp. 155-163. https://doi.org/10.1515/char-2018-0015 ↩︎
- 中大通是梁武帝萧衍年号，这座湮没在地下的寺庙，南朝叫“安浦寺”，唐代称为“净众寺”。根据《四川通志》《益州名画录》的记载，我们最终串联起了这座寺庙的历史：古寺相传汉延熹年间就已立寺，梁时为安浦寺，唐名净众寺。唐末“会昌法难”中，净众寺被毁，时至唐宣宗年间才再次复兴。宋代更名为净因寺，明代又称竹林寺、万佛寺、万福寺，最终在明末清初毁于战火，此后再不复见于史料记载。万福桥出土佛像，后来定名为万佛寺石刻造像。http://www.silkroads.org.cn/portal.php?mod=view&aid=48202 ↩︎
- 何先紅 He, Xian-hong; 董華鋒 Dong, Hua-feng, “成都萬佛寺石刻佛教造像的源流=Stone Sculptures and Statue of Buddha of the Wanfo Temple in Chengdu, Sichuan Province.” https://buddhism.lib.ntu.edu.tw/en/search/search_detail.jsp?seq=570821 ↩︎
- 在无止境的王朝更迭与岁月流逝中，南北朝最终成为历史。北朝佛教遗迹在中国存世颇多，敦煌莫高窟、云冈石窟、天龙山石窟、克孜尔石窟、炳灵寺石窟、麦积山石窟都留存着为数众多的北朝造像与壁画；相反，南朝石刻除了江苏南京栖霞山、浙江新昌宝相寺有少量龛窟外，在中国已不多见，而万佛寺石刻诸如梁普通四年、梁普通六年、梁大通五年、梁大同三年、梁中大通元年、中大通三年等题记，填补了中国南朝造像的空白，也暗示着南朝时的成都与建康一样，是一个梵宫琳宇鳞次栉比、塔刹庄严的古都。http://www.silkroads.org.cn/portal.php?mod=view&aid=48202 ↩︎
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