Expert Insights
The following articles are transcripts of explanations given by professional guides and scholars during my visit to the Dunhuang Caves. These speakers provided many historical, cultural, and artistic insights into the cave art and Buddhist iconography which were drawn from years of academic study and fieldwork.
Please note that because these transcripts were translated from live recordings, they may contain occasional transcription and translation errors due to background noise, local dialects, or unclear audio. Every effort has been made to preserve the original meaning and intent of the speakers.
Cave 45
We just bought this seal. We can just walk past this part with everyone—we don’t need to film it.
This section is more for students and teachers, so we aim for a more academic atmosphere. The No. 45 Cave is like a calling card for us. So, as you saw before, our entry standards are high. When we take things abroad for exhibitions, we’re not just taking a large number of items—we’re bringing some of the finest works from the Sheng Tang period (High Tang Dynasty). People often feel a spiritual connection with pieces from that era, as if it’s a kind of spiritual homeland.
Following a peak in economics, military, politics, and culture, and under this foundation, the construction of Cave 45 emerged. It represents the most exquisite creation among all the restored mural caves we have.
We’re fortunate to still have the entire set of statues preserved here in their original Sheng Tang period state.
Wow!
Oh!
So what you see here hasn’t undergone any post-production or restoration. For example, this depiction of the Buddha transmitting the Dharma to thirty tribes—only fifteen remained, and now just one sentient being is left. So when you look at this area, it has the highest number of Buddha statues.
Today, people often mythologize the Buddha, treating him as an omnipotent god. But in fact, according to Buddhist principles, he is a wise one, an awakened one—a teacher of sentient beings, not a god.
So if you look at how this Buddha statue is shaped, aside from the six top knots on his head, he’s almost like an ordinary person. His right shoulder’s posture, long face, short hair—it’s all deliberately designed to emphasize a more humanized image of the Buddha, challenging people's preconceived notions and real-life impressions.
For example, he’s portrayed as a 45-year-old man wearing white monastic robes. His left and right hips and legs are clearly sculpted—his appearance aligns with what commoners of that time would have looked like. This approach demonstrates that as a walking monk, he maintained inner peace despite eating only what he could get, exposed to the elements, living a life of hardship.
Now look at the young Anand beside him. He has a full build and a well-defined nose—matching the ideal standards of Chinese aesthetic preferences for such figures: full and rounded is seen as adorable. His posture, with hands gently crossed over the lower abdomen and eyes half-closed, shows the attitude of a 16-year-old boy completely passively receiving knowledge. At that age, whatever the teacher says is accepted as truth—no questions, just full acceptance.
In contrast, a 40-something-year-old adult male monk, having walked so far and seen so many different things, would naturally have his own insights. So, when the teacher says something, he might go: “Hmm, wait a moment, I think I have a different perspective on that.”
Through these fine details, the artist clearly expressed the age and character differences between the two figures.
Further ahead are two Bodhisattva statues gazing slightly sideways. These two statues vividly capture feminine contours—the hair is styled in a high bun, the face slightly smiling, eyes half-closed, with a straight nose and defined lips. The lines connecting the head, shoulders, and wrists form a subtle, radiating S-shaped curve.
The upper body wears a celestial robe draped across the chest. Luckily, the lower inner garment is slit open—
这件像我们一个名片一样的存在。是。我们刚买这个盖章。 我们就，这块可以跟大家走过，我们就不用拍了。这一块我们就是学生老师，就我们就学术氛围更好一点。 呃，我们四十五窟 就是一张名片一样的存在。 所以像您之前一看我们入门就这么高，或是我们去国外做展的时候带去的东西，不只是品很多。 圣堂时期的作品，大家对这个圣堂时期呢，总是起码有种精神家园一样的这种感觉。 那么在经济、军事、政治、文化达到鼎峰之后，在这样的支撑之下，我们产的四十五窟的修建，它是我们光复所有透图当中最精妙的作之处。 那么幸运的就是我们看到整体的造像，保留的全部都是圣堂时期的原作。 哇！ 哦！ 所以您看到它这个内容的没有经过任何后期加工的部分，卜尊释迦牟尼一举传给三十个部落，当中我留下来的是五十，只剩余一名众生。 所以你一定要看这一造像最多的地方就是今天我们把佛陀神话，认为他是一个无所不能的神，但实际上呢，按照佛教原则里面它是一个智慧者，觉悟者，类似于众生导师一样的智慧者。 所以您看它塑造这身佛像的时候，除了头顶六根之外，近乎就是一个普通常人。 它右肩这个形态，长脸短头发，它极力在通过这种佛陀的人性化形象来碰撞网友们的预期答案和现实印象。 比方说年龄是四十五岁男性，他穿着白色服装行僧，他的左股和右股跟根清晰可数，体貌符合束服民群的状态，以这种方法来表明他作为步行僧，一日三餐，食不果腹，风餐露宿都心平气和。 然后这个小阿难，身形饱满，鼻骨丰盈，它符合中国人对于此类最好的要求，这个一定要饱满、圆润才显得可爱。 而且呢，它的这个形态，您就看双手环抱于下腹处，双眼微闭，它符合一个十六岁青年男性完全被动接受知识的状态。 这个年龄段，老师讲什么他都觉得是对的，没有问题，我就照单全收即可。 但相对的您看假设，一个四十多岁的成年男性又是苦行僧，自己走了那么多的路，看了那么多不同的风景，他肯定对于这些老师讲的那种自己的见解，所以细节是他这个物质文化。 就好像我在跟老师交流的时候，他说，诶，稍等一下，这个部分我好像有点不同的观点。 所以他通过这些细节的部分去把这两身人物形象一展以后的年龄特质表现得非常清楚。 再往前呢，是两身的斜视菩萨像，这两身菩萨像完全就把女性的轮廓表现得淋漓尽致，头顶发髻高耸，面目常微露，双眼微闭，鼻干体直，嘴唇清明。 借助她头、肩、腕这三处，这后头大形成了微放射样S型的曲线。 上身呢，本为是胁披天衣，那么幸运的是，下面这件内衣是开叉的。 哦！ 对。
Cave 158
This is a work from the mid-Tang Dynasty.
Mm.
What we see now is a large-robed Nirvana statue—representing the Great Nirvana. When Shakyamuni Buddha was 80 years old, he went with his monastic community to Kusinagara (俱舍那加城).
In that city, there was a craftsman disciple named Chengfo (成佛), who offered food to the Buddha.
Mm.
However, the food he offered possibly had some issues—maybe some kind of fungus or ingredients like wood ear mushrooms or lotus leaves. Anyway, the record says that after eating this offering at the age of 80, Shakyamuni bled continuously for seven days. Normally, even a healthy adult male couldn’t survive seven days of continuous bleeding, let alone an 80-year-old elder.
At this time, Shakyamuni said he was about to enter Nirvana. So he led the monks to the sala grove outside Kusinagara city. Under the twin sala trees, he began his final teachings to his disciples.
At that time, there was a centenarian practitioner in the city named Subhadda (须跋陀罗).
Mm.
Excuse me, please. This Subhadda, upon hearing that Shakyamuni was there preaching, wanted to see the Buddha. But outside the grove, his disciples stopped him.
Shakyamuni said this was his last disciple in this life, whom we Chinese call a “Guanyin disciple.” After letting him in, Shakyamuni first taught him the Mahaparinirvana Sutra.
After listening, Subhadda instantly awakened, sensing the Buddha’s impending Nirvana, unable to bear to see the Buddha’s passing, and so entered Nirvana himself before the Buddha. You see the fierce flames painted beside him—
Yes.
He entered Nirvana before the Buddha. Then Shakyamuni attained Nirvana, but he needed to be guarded. He had a Vajra protector called Mikijin (密极金刚).
You can clearly see this person’s face. His hand, and his feet look like they are wildly waving about. He threw aside the vajra scepter he held to protect the Buddha and cried loudly, saying, “From now on, I have no one to rely on, no one to depend on, no protector.”
What does this mean? That no one like Shakyamuni can be depended on anymore, no one cares for or protects me like he did. From now on, life has lost all hope.
Shakyamuni entered Nirvana on this side, head to the south, feet to the north, reclining with head slightly tilted and legs crossed.
In Cave 45, the Arhats Ananda and Kassapa were not beside him—especially Kassapa, who was leading the monks outside preaching.
One night while meditating, Kassapa dreamed that stars violently fell from the sky to the earth. He sensed something terrible was about to happen and set off to seek an interpretation from his teacher, Shakyamuni.
On the way, he met a non-Buddhist ascetic who said, “You came from here—”
所以，上来之后，音质是不是有点儿不错？ 这是一个中唐时期的作品。嗯。我们现在所看到的就是一身大衣涅槃像，涅槃是大涅槃。释迦牟尼弘扬佛法到了八十岁高龄的时候，他带着僧团到了俱舍那加城。那么这个城里面呢，有一个工匠弟子叫成佛，这个工匠弟子成佛呢就给佛去献食物。嗯。那么他献的这个食物呢，现场上来可能有点问题，有某种菌类构成，要么就是有木耳荷叶之类的。 反正这个释迦牟尼记载呢，在八十岁高龄吃完这个供品之后七日便血不止，一个正常的成年男性七天便血都不行，不要说一个八十岁的老者。 这个时候呢，释迦牟尼说我即将涅槃。 那么他就带领僧团到了俱舍那加城城外的娑罗树林当中，在娑罗双树之下开启临终遗教，教教诲弟子。 那么这个时候城里面有一个百岁高龄的修行者，这个人的名字呢叫须跋陀罗。 嗯。让一下，谢谢。 这个须跋陀罗呢，听到释迦牟尼来这儿讲法布道，就想来见佛陀一面，结果呢，就在这个树林外被他的弟子给拦住了。 释迦牟尼说这是我此生最后一名弟子，我们中国人叫观音弟子。 把他放进来之后，释迦牟尼先给他讲了一遍大菩提涅槃经。 讲完之后，须跋陀罗当场顿悟，预感佛要涅槃，不忍见佛涅槃，先佛入灭。 所以你看他旁边画了熊熊的火焰。 对。在佛之前已经入灭。 那么释迦牟尼呢？ 达到涅槃的境界，然后他得经常护持，他得有一位金刚叫密极金刚。 你看这个人的脸，还真能看得很清楚的。 他这个手，你看脚好像就在洒浪挥舞。 他把自己手里拿着护持金刚佛的这个护持佛的金刚杵就扔到一边，号啕大哭，说我自此以后无所依、无所附，无所持。 什么意思呢？ 没有人如同释迦牟尼一样，可以往往再去依靠，没有人如同释迦牟尼一样在那样关心护持我，我从此以后人生就失去了希望。 那么释迦牟尼在这一侧进入了涅槃的境界，头南脚北，又斜枕首，累足横卧。 我们四十五部看到的阿难和迦叶并不在他的身边，尤其是迦叶，他正领着僧团在外面讲经说法。 这个迦叶呢，有一天晚上做打坐的时候梦到了天空当中有星辰惨烈砸向大地，他预感有非常可怕的事情发生，就动身来找老师释迦牟尼解梦。 这个路上就碰到了一位外道修行者，他说你从这-
Cave 275
Let me briefly talk about the oldest surviving Buddha statue in front of the audience right now.
(Exhibition background sounds)
Looking at this image, the style is clearly influenced by Central Asian painting, but its style is also very... [the speaker hesitates].
As for the name of this Bodhisattva, after some time of research, at first glance, we thought it wore a "hua fo guan" (a jeweled Buddhist crown), so we assumed it should be Avalokiteshvara (Guanyin Bodhisattva). But later research showed that since the Sui and Tang dynasties, Chinese history started to associate the jeweled crown specifically with Guanyin Bodhisattva.
Before that, Manjushri, Samantabhadra, and Mahasthamaprapta also wore such jeweled crowns. After overturning this assumption, we kept searching.
Then Mr. Liu Yongzeng examined sixteen stone pagodas excavated from Dunhuang to Xinjiang, carefully studying the depictions and inscriptions, to reach a more accurate conclusion. This statue should represent Maitreya (the future Buddha).
Among these sixteen Northern Liang stone pagodas, some statues are missing parts, but their inscriptions are well-preserved and clearly call them “directly analogous to Maitreya,” coinciding with the belief in Maitreya’s coming incarnation.
Others have damaged inscriptions, but the statue is exactly the same, and is placed right behind Shakyamuni Buddha, indicating it as the future Buddha, the successor to Shakyamuni.
Therefore, we can accurately give this statue another name: “Jiao Jiao Maitreya Bodhisattva.”
This sitting posture is unique to the Mo’ya Caves (cliff grottoes) in Baoding; no other Bodhisattva uses this posture.
Its Western origin is evident not only by the robust body and mature face but also by the two lions that form the throne.
In Chinese cultural classification, these would usually be called a dragon and a tiger—dragon and tiger intertwined symbolize constant vitality and energy.
Similar double-lion thrones for Buddha kings appear in Mesopotamian plains, Persian silver coins, and Byzantine gold coins.
So this main statue is communicating its identity to you—it is a visitor from faraway Western regions.
The entire grotto’s theme is set around Maitreya, the future Buddha.
It is deeply connected to the historical background of Dunhuang at the time.
Under the leadership of Li Hao of Western Liang, Dunhuang was like an impregnable fortress.
Northern Liang's Jü Qunlong tried to attack Dunhuang several times but failed.
Eventually, Jue Guiguan Cheng took the city. As a descendant of the Xiongnu, he inherited their brutal style of slaughtering cities.
After taking control of Dunhuang, he urgently needed a way to comfort the people remaining in the city.
At this time, Buddhism was favored by his faction.
The most important point was to use these stories to convey that.
Hmm.
For example, the relay king Shen ordered a thousand soldiers, and the front gambled on a tribute, the rear dispatched a thousand fingers southward.
This picture is a bit hard to understand, but look here—inside the lion’s palm is a circular shape—
Chinese（展览背景声） 简单说说观众现在面前这座传世最早的佛像。（展览背景声） 那么我们看这个图，那种中用画风格就是一种明显，但是它这种风格又很 ..............................。那么这菩萨的名呢？经过一段时间的考证，这个时候呢？ 我们第一眼看它是华佛冠，所以就认为它应该是观音菩萨。 但后期考证发现，中国历史上自从隋唐时期把华佛冠和观音菩萨绑定，那么在此之前，文殊、普贤、大势至他们都带过这个华佛冠，所以把这个推翻之后，我们就继续找。 然后刘永增先生从敦煌到新疆出土的十六件北凉石塔当中逐一去考证，通过高低善恶判读，那么就得出了一个比较准确的结论，这个造像应当指向是弥勒，因为在这个十六件北凉石塔当中有的虽然造型缺了，但是它旁边的题记呢，留得很完整，叫直喻弥勒，正好碰到弥勒下世转生。 但是有的呢，虽然那个题记残缺了，但它的造像和他一模一样，而且呢，就在释迦牟尼身后塑造他，那么表现他是未来佛，也就是释迦牟尼的接班人。 那么这样一来，我们就可以准确地给他一个别名，叫做教角弥勒菩萨。 这种坐姿呢，在摩崖窟基本上就是它是保定的，再没有其他菩萨会用到这种坐姿了。 那么我们说他西域的名正，除了您看到身体健硕、面目生长之外，他的这两只座，这两只狮子相交形成他的宝座。 在中国文化分类当中，我们一般看应该叫龙和虎，龙和虎交尾生恒而气。 那么在商世坐的这种形象呢？ 这次在美索不达米亚平原，在波斯发展潮的银币啊，东罗马的金币上呢，都出现这种佛王座双狮座的形象。 所以整个这个主尊造像就在向你讲到他的身份，也就是远道而来的西域的客人。 那么整个这个洞窟定的基调是弥勒，是未来。 他呢，和敦煌当时大的时代背景有很深的关系。 西凉李蒿统管之下，敦煌固若金汤。 北梁的举群龙去要打敦煌多次未果。 最后呢，绝使冠成，城破之后，作为匈奴后裔，他呢，承袭了匈奴的这种行为屠城。 所以入主敦煌之后，他迫切地需要一种方法安慰当时留存在敦煌的百姓。 这个时候佛教对他一派忌合。 其中最重要的一点就是通过这些本身故事去讲。 嗯。比如接力王申定千兵，前赌一贡，后申南千指。这个画面看不太明白，看这儿，这个狮子的掌心里有一个环形-