Maiji Mountain is a solitary peak in Xiaolong Mountain in the Yumai of Qinling Mountains. It is named after the mountain shape resembles wheat stacks. Although the scenic spot is located in Gansu Province, it is completely different from the Gobi Desert in the west. It has green mountains and green waters, a pleasant climate and rich biological species. Diverse, with famous landscapes such as “The Fairy Gives Lights”, “Shimen Night Moon”, and “Pure Land Songtao”, especially “Maiji Misty Rain” is listed as the first of the eight scenic spots in Qinzhou. According to records, the Maijishan Grottoes were built in the post-Qin period of the Sixteen Kingdoms (384-417 AD) and were excavated by more than ten dynasties of the Northern Wei, Western Wei, Northern Zhou, Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties Rebuilt, there are 221 existing cave niches, 10632 clay sculptures and stone sculptures, and 979.54 square meters of murals. It is one of the four largest grottoes in China and the first choice for tourists to visit Tianshui. Different from the other three major grottoes, the Maijishan Grottoes are excavated on the cliffs that are almost 90 degrees, and the caves are all connected by volleys erected on the cliffs. From the local folk proverbs: “After cutting Nanshan firewood, build Maiji Cliff”, “First there are ten thousand meters of firewood, then Maiji Cliff”, one can imagine the arduous and grandiose construction of the grottoes back then. Because the Maiji Mountain where the grottoes are located is a typical Danxia landform, the rock structure is relatively loose and difficult to carve carefully, so the ancient craftsmen chose clay sculptures to make sculptures according to local conditions. These 1500-year-old clay sculptures and stone sculptures boldly break through the strict rules and iron laws of religion, with delicate and vivid expressions, lifelike, and are known as “the exhibition hall of oriental sculpture art.” The Sanhualou, which has a history of 1400 years ago, is the largest palace-style grotto in the country. The plaque above the lintel is taken from Buddhist scriptures, which means: “Whether it is right or wrong, get Whether it’s lost or lost, it’s nothing more than that.” The whole building is meticulously crafted and the Buddha statues are lifelike. It is one of the most artistically valuable masterpieces of Maiji Mountain. It is worth mentioning that there are 7 flying murals on the top of the Sanhualou Cave, which are world-renowned for using the rare “thin meat sculpture” technique. According to reports, these seven “Joyful Flying Clouds” were created at the turn of the Northern Wei Dynasty and the Western Wei Dynasty. The face and body of the statues are made of a thin layer of fine mud sculptures with a maximum thickness of about 5 mm. The clothing and flowing clouds are painted. The picture is very exquisite, giving people a feeling of “ready to come out”. Ancient Chinese craftsmen skillfully combined sculpture and painting to give their works a three-dimensional effect. This artistic technique did not become popular in the Western art world until the 20th century after 1500. However, because the “thin meat plastic” is exposed outdoors and exposed to wind and sun for a long time, the oxidation is very serious, so friends who want to see must act as soon as possible. The Maijishan Grottoes, as the most complete cave in the country that preserves the clay sculptures of the Northern Dynasties, is a masterpiece of the sinicization of Buddhist statues. In 1961, the Maiji Mountain Grottoes were announced by the State Council as the first batch of national key cultural relics protection units. In 2014, they were designated as World Cultural Heritage by UNESCO. Transportation: In Tianshui City, take bus No. 5 and 34 to the terminal station Maijishan Parking Lot Station.

Qingyang, Gansu, is one of the birthplaces of my country’s early farming civilization. It is well-known both at home and abroad for its long history and profound traditional folk culture. According to the “Historical Records”, the ancestor of the humanities Xuanyuan Huangdi once discussed medicine with Qi Bo, the originator of Chinese medicine, and wrote the world-famous “Huangdi Nei Jing”, which is also the name of the “Hometown of Qi Huang”. When you come to Qingyang, there are two must-visit attractions, one is Zhou Zu Mausoleum and the other is Beishiku Temple. The North Cave Temple is located at the foot of Fuzhong Mountain, 25 kilometers southwest of Qingyang City. It was founded by Jingzhou Governor Xi Kang in the second year of Yongping in the Northern Wei Dynasty (509 years). The South Cave Temple in Jingchuan County, Pingliang, Gansu was also excavated at the same time. , Two temples, one south and one north, are opposite each other, hence the name “North Cave Temple”. The entire group of grottoes is excavated on a red sandstone cliff 20 meters high and 120 meters long, with mountains and water behind, and beautiful scenery. For more than a thousand years, the Beishiku Temple has undergone successive additions and repairs in the Western Wei, Northern Zhou, Sui, Tang, Song, and Qing dynasties. There are 307 large and small cave niches, 2,126 exquisite stone statues, and more than 150 inscriptions. It is a stone sculpture in Gansu Province. The remains of a cave group with the most concentrated art, its various stone carving art can be called the masterpiece of the Northern Wei grotto art, together with the Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes and Maijishan Grottoes, they are also known as the “Four Great Grottoes in Gansu”. The first grotto of the Beishiku Temple-Cave 165, is 14.6 meters high, 21.7 meters wide from north to south, and 15.7 meters deep. It was excavated by Jingzhou Governor Xi Kangsheng himself. It is the largest, richest and most valuable cave in Beishiku Temple. Cave. On the north and south sides of the cave gate are carved stone statues of the Heavenly King with a height of 5.8 meters, as well as inscriptions and inscriptions in ink scripts from the Song, Yuan, and Ming periods. There are 23 large stone statues and more than 110 relief statues in the cave. The altar in Cave 165 enshrines seven standing Buddha statues with a height of 8 meters. The one in the middle is Buddha Shakyamuni. The six Buddha statues on the left and right sides are the Buddha, the Buddha, the Buddha, and the Buddha. Detained Sun Buddha, Kunnagamuni Buddha, and Kassapa Bo Buddha. According to textual research, they are the earliest and most magnificent statues with the theme of “Seven Buddhas” in China, and their majestic aura is not lost to the four major grottoes in China. It is worth mentioning that these seven Buddha statues have round faces, thick lips, and strong physique. They have a clear temperament of the northern ethnic minorities. In the Northern Wei Dynasty, there were exactly seven emperors from Tuoba to Xuanwu Emperor Yuanke. Therefore, some experts and scholars speculated that these seven Buddha statues may be carved by Xi Kangsheng in the appearance of the seven emperors of the Northern Wei Dynasty to extol the emperor’s merits. , To consolidate the ruling regime of the Northern Wei Dynasty. The walls of Cave 165 are carved with more than 110 relief statues of Buddhist stories such as “feeding the tiger” and “cutting the meat trade pigeon”. These statues are all dressed in peculiar clothes and have good-looking faces and are of high historical, archeological and artistic appreciation value. . Among them, the most exquisite carving technique is a 3.05 meter tall elephant riding bodhisattva. She wears a jade crown on her head and is graceful, which is extremely rare in the Northern Wei Dynasty. Due to the age, most of the cave statues in Beishiku Temple have been weathered. In recent years, the local government has allocated funds to strengthen and repair them. At present, the second floor and above of the cave have been closed. Friends who want to visit must act early. Transportation: Take the shuttle bus from Qingyang to Zhenyuan County (every 2 hours) and pass through Beishiku Temple. Or take a bus from Qingyang Airport to Qingyang South Bus Station, then transfer to a taxi to go to Beishiku Temple via Dongzhi Town.

Luoyang Longmen Mountain, 303.5 meters above sea level, has two peaks facing each other in the east and west. The Yi River flows slowly to the north, and the natural scenery is very beautiful. However, according to legend, in ancient times, Longmen Mountain was a connected whole. Because the Yishui River was blocked on the south side of the mountain, flooding was often caused. So Dayu sculpted Longmen Mountain during water control and divided it into east and west halves, allowing the water to flow out to the north. Since then, the “Longmen Mountain” has been hailed as the first of the eight scenic spots in Luoyang. The Longmen Mountain that Dayu excavated back then is where the Longmen Grottoes are now. According to records, the Longmen Grottoes began to be carved when Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty moved to Luoyang. In the 16th year of Taihe in the Northern Wei Dynasty (493), Emperor Xiaowen ordered the construction of a grotto on the Longmen Mountain. After more than 1,400 years of construction in more than 10 dynasties such as Eastern Wei, Western Wei, Northern Qi, Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, Song, etc., it became the longest-built grotto in the world. According to statistics, there are 2,345 existing cave niches, more than 100,000 statues, and more than 2,800 inscriptions on steles. They are a collection of sculptures, architecture, calligraphy, costumes, literature, religion and many other art forms. They are the world’s largest statues and largest scale. The treasure house of stone carving art, together with Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, Datong Yungang Grottoes, Tianshui Maijishan Grottoes, are called “China’s Four Great Grottoes”, and it ranks first among all the major caves in China. These more than 100,000 statues and inscriptions on the steles are densely distributed like honeycombs on the 1km-long Longmen Mountain and Xiangshan rock walls on both sides of the Yishui River. The largest one is 17.14 meters high and the smallest is only 2 cm. For more than a thousand years, although the grottoes have been damaged to varying degrees due to natural wind erosion and man-made destruction, their lifelike and ingenious carvings have been admired to this day, and are hailed as the pinnacle of Chinese stone carving art. It is worth mentioning that the Longmen Grottoes are also the only royal grottoes in the world. Most of its statues are built by royal nobles. Among them, the Lucena Buddha carved by Wu Zetian according to his appearance is the most famous. This Buddha statue is 17.14 meters high, with a plump and round face, serene and majestic, and its image is admired by many Buddhist believers at home and abroad. It is known as the “most beautiful Buddha in China”. The Three Caves of Binyang, excavated in the Northern Wei Dynasty (500 AD), were built by Emperor Xuanwu of the Northern Wei Dynasty for his parents, Emperor Xiaowen and Empress Dowager Wen Zhao. The “Scissor Hand” Buddha statue that is popular on the Internet is located in Binyang North Cave among the three holes. This statue of about 10 meters high is called “the cutest Buddha in history” because of the broken right thumb, just like the cute “scissors hand”. . The Ten Thousand Buddhas Cave, completed in the first year of Tang Yonglong (AD 680), is the most complete cave in the Longmen Grottoes. On the wall outside the cave is a statue of Avalokitesvara with a height of 85 cm. The left hand holds the bottle clean and the right hand raises the dust. The posture is natural and graceful. It is said that the artist Mei Lanfang spent two hours here when he wrote and acted the Peking Opera “Luo Shen”, and then he was suddenly enlightened and the performance was a great success. It is said that the lotus roof of the Great Hall of the People in Beijing was designed based on the lotus relief in the lotus cave of the Longmen Grottoes. However, it is regrettable that a large number of exquisite statues in the Longmen Grottoes were insanely robbed and vandalized in the 1930s and 1940s. Some are stored in overseas museums, and some are still missing. This is not just the Chinese nation’s whereabouts. The pain is the shortcoming of human civilization.