Yungang Grottoes Guide Words

Words have always been the best witness to history. Likewise, it also records the growth of countless students today. Today let’s take a look at the Yungang Grottoes guidebook. The following is the content of the Yungang Grottoes guide, I hope it can help you.

[Part 1]

Dear classmates:

Hello!

Welcome to the world-famous treasure house of Buddhist art - Yungang Grottoes. The Yungang Grottoes are located about 16 kilometers west of Datong City, Shanxi Province, known as the "Coal Capital". They are the largest group of grottoes in China and were listed as a World Cultural Heritage by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in 2001.

The Yungang Grottoes are a treasure of ancient Chinese carving art and one of the world-famous large-scale grottoes. They were excavated during the Northern Wei Dynasty and have a history of more than 1,500 years. It is said that it took the skilled craftsmen of that era nearly 30 years to complete. The entire grotto is excavated on the mountain and stretches for 1 kilometer from east to west. There are 53 main caves and more than 51,000 large and small statues. The contents carved in the grottoes are basically Buddha statues and Buddhist stories. Among them are various lifelike figures with different expressions, such as Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, disciples, and protectors; there are imitation wooden buildings with simple styles and various shapes; there are Buddhist reliefs with prominent themes and skillful knife skills; there are rich compositions, beautiful and exquisite decorative patterns, it is really colorful and dazzling!

Students, since there are many caves in the Yungang Grottoes, 53 in total, I will introduce to you the largest and most representative grotto. Do you know which cave it is? Let me tell you, it is the third Buddha statue in the fifth cave. The seated statue in the middle is 17 meters high. The legs of the Buddha are 15.5 meters long. It can accommodate 120 people on its knees and 12 people can stand on one foot. How about it, it’s big enough!

[Part 2]

Hello, tourists!

Our bus is about to arrive at the destination of our trip - Yungang Grottoes. We all know that Yungang Grottoes are a world cultural heritage. Can anyone tell me in which year Yungang was rated as a world cultural heritage? By the way, at 18:25 on December 13, 2001, and at 0:25 on December 14, Beijing time, at the Finland International Conference Center, 108 state parties unanimously approved the inclusion of China's Yungang Grottoes in the World Heritage List. World Heritage is defined as having "outstanding worldwide value".

Today, let us savor the world cultural heritage, the world-famous museum of religious art, the treasure house of oriental stone carving art, and the national key cultural relics protection unit-Yungang Grottoes.

The world-famous Yungang Grottoes are 16 kilometers away from Datong City and located at the southern foot of Wuzhou Mountain. The caves were dug into the mountain and stretch about 1 kilometer from east to west. They were excavated during the Northern Wei Dynasty before 460 AD. There are currently 254 numbered caves and more than 51,000 Buddhist statues. The largest one is 17 meters high and the smallest one is only 2 centimeters. It is a treasure of oriental art that is universally recognized as famous as the Gandhara Buddhist art of India and the Bamiyan Buddhist art of Afghanistan. It is also one of the three major grottoes in China: the Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang, Gansu Province, and the Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang.

The Yungang Grottoes are divided into three parts: east, middle, and west. Today we focus on visiting Cave 5 and Cave 6 in the middle zone, and Cave 20 among the five Tan Yao Grottoes in the west zone.

Caves 5 and 6 are a group of two adjacent caves. They are the most exciting, spectacular and representative caves in Yungang Grottoes.

First, what we saw was Cave 5. The beginning of the cave in Cave 5 is an oval thatched cottage style, divided into two rooms, front and back. Entering the back room, the first thing you feel is that this cave is very tall. The Buddha with its legs crossed in the center is 17 meters high and its legs are 15.5 meters long. It can accommodate 120 people on its knees and 12 people can stand on one foot. It is the largest Buddha in Yungang Grottoes. The Buddha wears robes and belts, shoulder-length cassocks, and a blue bun on the top of his head. The Buddha's face has clear outlines, white spots of vermilion, thin eyebrows and long eyes, a straight nose, and ears hanging down the shoulders, giving people a sense of dignity, solemnity, and kindness.

Cave 6 is known as the "first great cave" of the Yungang Grottoes. The cave is square in plan, and the back chamber is in the shape of a zigzag. A square tower is cut in the center of the cave. The tower is about 15 meters high and divided into two floors. We don’t know why Cave 6 is called the “Great Cave”. It is famous for its exquisiteness. There is almost no unsculpted space in the entire grotto. Various techniques are used together, such as low relief, high relief, and hollow relief, to make the shapes on the upper and lower walls of the square cave and the square tower in the center of the back room, as well as the picture of Sakyamuni Buddha telling a story, full of strong artistic appeal. Artistically, it has reached the highest level of the Northern Wei Dynasty Grottoes.

These 33 pictures of Sakyamuni Buddha and Buddha Telling Stories show the life examples of Sakyamuni Buddha to the world. Let’s look at the second picture, the birth under the armpit. In 454 BC, on the eighth day of the fourth month of the lunar calendar, Mrs. Maya was almost pregnant and took her attendants back to her parents’ home to give birth. They passed by Lumbini Park and saw the beautiful scenery in the park, so they went into the park to rest. At this time, Mrs. Maya climbed the Ashoka tree, and the prince was born from her armpit. The fourth picture is the Nine Dragons Initiation. After hearing the news, the Nine Dragons in the sky came and vomited holy water to bathe the prince. To this day, Chinese Buddhist temples hold a grand "Buddha Bathing Festival" on the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, and the Dai people's Water Splashing Festival celebrates the birth of the prince! In the fifth picture, the king learned about the birth of the prince and happily took the prince back to the palace. The elephant carrying King Suddhodana and the prince was beaming with joy. The elephant's front legs seemed to be slightly raised to the beat of the music. The carving was very expressive. Let's take a look at the 16th picture. The prince left the palace on horseback. After five years of searching and six years of hard training, one day, Prince Gautama Siddhartha sat quietly under the Bodhi tree and meditated. Seven days later, he finally became enlightened and became a Buddha. The design of Cave 6 is unified and harmonious in concept, with extremely high artistic charm and a strong combination of Chinese and Western art styles.

What we are admiring now is the Tanyao Five Grottoes. Cave Nos. 16 to 20 in the west are the Yungang Grottoes. They were the earliest grottoes excavated between 460 and 465 AD and were decorated with Daowu and Ming dynasties. The five emperors of Yuan, Taiwu, Jingmu, and Wencheng carved five giant Buddhas as models to commemorate the five founding emperors of the Northern Wei Dynasty. Let's focus on appreciating the Sakyamuni statue dug for the founding emperors and Emperor Daowu - Cave 20!

The vertical wall in front of Yungang Cave 20 collapsed not long after the cave was completed. The Buddha statue was exposed under the vast sky and was dubbed the "Open-air Buddha". Because the stone carved out of the open-air Buddha is slightly white, it is also commonly known as the "White Buddha".

The open-air Buddha was carved before 1542 and is 13.7 meters high. Her round bun, broad forehead, slender long eyebrows, square nose bridge, and drooping ears are all sculpted to be extremely natural, especially the thin lips with a slight smile, they are sculpted to be so charming! The eyes full of infinite wisdom are so peaceful and tranquil. Looking up from the front, the Buddha seems to be meditating. Looking from the right, the Buddha seems to be preaching. Looking from another angle, the Buddha seems to be smiling at you... This Buddha is handsome in its dignity, majestic in its kindness, and honest in its wisdom. In short, kindness, kindness, calmness, peace, generosity, benevolence, broadness, many beautiful human emotions are integrated into it.The facial expression of this Buddha statue can be called the Buddha of Wonderful Appearance. Therefore, Chinese and foreign experts and scholars agree that the beautiful carving art of this Buddha statue has a strong artistic appeal and has reached the pinnacle of world carving art. It is known as the diplomat of Yungang Grottoes, a masterpiece, and has a high rate of appearance!

Now is the free time. Everyone can try pea noodles, eat copper hot pot with Datong day lily, listen to Beilu Bangzi, and experience the high-pitched folk performing arts of northern Shanxi that are full of frontier charm.

Tourists, night is approaching and we are on the return bus. Today we walked into the Yungang Grottoes, a world cultural heritage, and experienced the magnificent and dazzling chapter in the history of world grotto art. We also appreciated stone carving, the most vital art. I wonder if you all enjoyed it?

[Part 3]

Hello everyone! Welcome everyone to Datong City. Datong is located at the northern end of Taiyuan Basin and is a national historical city. The Yungang Grottoes we are going to today are located at the southern foot of Wuzhou Mountain, 16 kilometers west of Datong City. They have a history of more than 1,500 years.

During the guided tour, you can ask questions at any time and I will definitely answer them for you. My surname is Li, just call me Tour Guide Li. Now I will take you to travel to Yungang Grottoes, one of the four major grottoes in China.

Visitors, please look, the Yungang Grottoes are ahead. Please follow me from this way.

The Yungang Grottoes are divided into three parts: east, middle and west. We are now in the middle of the grotto. The main Buddha is in the center, and the cave walls and ceiling are covered with reliefs, which is really beautiful. You see, right?

Ahead are the famous Five and Six Grottoes. Let's go quickly.

The fifth cave has arrived. The seated statue in the center of this grotto is the largest stone Buddha. It is seventeen meters high, and even if there are twelve or three adults standing on it, it will not be crowded. Please note that behind the Grotto Buddha is a long and narrow tunnel. What do you think this is for? By the way, this is the chanting path that Buddhist believers go around in worship.

Cave 6 is a cave known for its exquisiteness among the Yungang Grottoes, and is called the "First Great Grotto". Please take a look. The Buddha statues on the four walls and pillars of the tower are carved in high relief, which is similar to a round sculpture. The Buddha statue has a strong three-dimensional effect. We raised our eyes and looked around, and found the entire cave space, Buddha statues, Arhats, auspicious birds and mythical beasts, flowers, etc... Please come with me to enjoy this beautiful and moving picture... Okay, everyone is free to watch in the grotto, and we will gather here in one hour.

When the sickle harvests the last ray of sunshine at dusk, please take photos under the open-air Buddha. I hope the Buddha will leave you with deep memories and bring you good news. Thanks!

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