Datong, Shanxi Enshrine The Mural

Deep in the forest and quiet places in Shanxi province,many ancient temples are preserved there. The ages of these temples range from Tang Dynasty to Ming and Tsing Dynasty. Exquisite frescoes are painted in some of these temples, which are precious data for our national mural painting study The Mahavira Hall (Daxiong Baodian) of Huayan Temple in Datong city remains complete figures of mural painting on its walls. According to the written words (BangTi) on the wall.we found it was created by Dong’an, and it might be created in the fourth year of Emperor Guangxu in Qing Dynasty(1878AD). Two parts of early fresco were found on the lower east wall,which was shadowed by sutra cabinets.during the process of maintainess in1997. Comparing these two parts shadowed by sutra cabinets with the frescos painted later around and their connected places we find that the later frescos may be repainted right upon the original one. So the lines and the colors may seem a little rough, even the figures of paintings seem naive,but it does reflect the image characteristics of murals of former dynasty. Through comparing these murals with the statues and frescoes in Shanhua Temple in Datong city, we can conclude that the image arrangement and modeling style are basically coincident in these two halls.which reflects the effects among temples during same period. Comparing the frescos behind sutra cabinets in Mahavira Hall in Shanhua Temple with murals in temples around Datong,and according to the records on <<Rebuilding Great Huayan Temple Stele>> in the first year of Emperor Chenghua in Ming Dynasty.we confirm that the murals behind sutra cabinets should certainly be of Ming Dynasty (1465AD),and the accurate time should be the fifth year in Emperor Jingtai(1459AD). In Mahavira Hall of Yanhua Temple.there are five Buddhas,the Statues of Twenty Tianzun.the Story of Buddha on the walls,Illustrations to the West Paradise,the Cunti Buddha Ceremony Picture,Sixteen Contemplations,The Thousand-hand Bodhisattva,Qichu jiuhui,Bodhisattva Guanyin of the Water Moon,Falun First Round Picture,Sahana’s Fifty-three Respects and so on, the comprehensive disposition of all these images,buildings and sculptures represent that the main historical thread of HuayanTemple is the spread of Huayan’s thinking, which combined with Zen and Tantra gradually in the long history. Murals of Huayan Temple fully reflect the choice of context and configuration of murals with the influence of certain school through the spread of Buddhism.