We took a 2-hour bus trip northwest of Chongqing to a
Unesco World Heritage Site
to see thousands of
cliff carvings and rock statues
created
between the 9th and 13th centuries (AD).
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| The first site that we visited had these three Buddhas, carved from stone. |
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| The temple on the site had prayer flags similar to those of Tibet. |
There were lots of smaller statues (to pray to) within each temple building.
We were led around through a maze of "incense-enhanced" buildings, but declined the opportunity to have our fortunes told by a Buddhist Monk.....(for a price.)
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| We learned that the swastika was used in Asian art long before the Nazis adopted it. |
Some of the art-work was obviously new, replicas of the original.
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| Some of the carvings were inside caves, and decorated colorfully. |
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| We are thankful that the original Dazu Rock carvings were not destroyed during the Cultural Revolution, because they were fairly un-known at that time. |
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| The big Dragon/Lion guards the door to the cave. |
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| Some sculptures tell stories. |
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| These were certainly my favorite Buddhas, located on Treasured Summit Hill. |
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| The Rock and Cliff Carvings are influenced by Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism. |
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| Some were enormous! |
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| Very intricate stone-work produced thousands of carvings! |
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| The biggest Buddha on the site is depicted entering Nirvana, with the torso sunk into the cliff face. |
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| Keep in mind that these carvings are up to 1200 years old! |
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| It was a COLD day, involving a long bus ride, but well worth the trip! |
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| There were some amazing, natural, polished rocks in the gift shop. |
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| There were also ancient tombs on the site. |
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| Chinese people are very much into rating everything! |
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| This pile of newly-made bricks reminded us of those we used to help build a school in Malawi, AFRICA. |
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| A rural house, probably for multiple families |
We just walked, but some tourists take a taxi like this one out to the sites.
(Notice the "garage doors" on the building in the background. This is extremely common in China: space is leased for shops and eateries in the lower level of buildings, with residences up above.)
We boarded the mini-bus, and looked forward to our final site on the Rock and Cliff-Carvings Tour. But, instead, we were taken to a commercial building and escorted into this little room for a knife-and-potato-peeler demonstration, ...... the kind we would see at our state or county fairs! We were "sold out" by the tour company! (Disappointing ending for a great day.)
