On the origin and presentation of images of traveling Buddhist monks on pilgrimage for sutras with tame tigers in the Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes

• Published in: Chinese studies in history Vol. 53; no. 3; pp. 261 - 280
• Main Author: Xiaoping, Zhou
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Routledge 02.07.2020
• Subjects: Images of Buddhist monks in Central Asia; images of tame tigers; Ratnasambhava tathāgata; social beliefs; traveling Buddhist monks
• ISSN: 0009-4633; 1558-0407
• DOI: 10.1080/00094633.2020.1783960

The creation of the "images of traveling Buddhist monks on pilgrimage for sutras with tame tigers" preserved in the Mogao Grottoes resulted from a syncretic cultural and religious development in the Tang and Song dynasties. It was not drawn on the events of the pilgrimage of Xuanzang 玄奘, as is generally believed in academic circles. The intrinsic principles contained within the images transcend their external features: the development of Esoteric Buddhism and the phenomenon of traveling monks in the periods and their fusion with Central Plains folk culture imbued the images with the influence of both exoteric and esoteric schools of Buddhism, together with folk beliefs; on the other hand, the creation of the "images of traveling Buddhist monks on pilgrimage for sutras with tame tigers" reflected "Ratnasambhava tathāgata beliefs," which were prevalent in the Dunhuang region in the Tang and Song dynasties. Via metaphorical presentations of iconized monks, these images provided the expression of multiple religious beliefs.