Research On The Statues Of Water-Moon Guanyin In Dazu And Anyue Areas

The Water-Moon Guanyin is a new style of Guanyin that appeared in the middle Tang Dynasty.It is the earliest localized Guanyin and one of the 33 Guanyin in Buddhism.The image of Water-Moon Guanyin appeared in the middle and late Tang Dynasty and became popular.There are thirty-seven Water-Moon Guanyin remains in Dazu and Anyue stone carvings.Due to the geographical location and cultural background of Dazu and Anyue stone carvings of Water-Moon Guanyin,the artistic style of the statue itself is different from that of other regions,and the theme and image combination of the niche grottoes have also changed.There are many combinations of Water-Moon Guanyin,Sudhana and Dragon Girl in Dazu and Anyue areas,but the Sudhana and Dragon Girl here are mostly standing images around Guanyin,and Sudhana is mostly for the elderly.Secondly,there is also the combination of Water-Moon Guanyin and mystical gods,which is only seen in Dazu area.The Water-Moon Guanyin is also combined with ten Kings,Guanyin's transformation,Guanyin's transformation(eight difficult pictures)and other subjects.In the combination of these statues,the Water-Moon Guanyin is in the position of the Lord,and a single niche to provide,showing the rising status of Water-Moon Guanyin in Dazu and Anyue area.At the same time,the changes in the process were more complex and creative,which may be related to the beliefs of the people at that time.Therefore,this paper takes the Water-Moon Guanyin in Dazu and Anyue areas as the research object,and focuses on the combination and collocation of statues.Based on the analysis of the features of its statues,the origin of its pinks and the religious connotations,this paper discusses the reasons for the placement of its attached images by taking several representative combinations of niches and caves as examples.According to the author's research,the belief of Water-Moon Guanyin in Dazu and Anyue region is to pray for the elimination of disasters and to relieve the spirits of the dead.Meanwhile,the statue of Water-Moon Guanyin in Dazu and Anyue region also has strong local characteristics.First,their composition is a faith-oriented image creation.For practical purposes,believers combine images of different doctrines,rituals,and even sects for the same religious purpose.Secondly,the combined images are mostly created by localization.The images were not based entirely on the sutras,but were simplified or recreated in combination with the popular costumes of the time.Finally,the Water-Moon Guanyin in Dazu,Anyue two places respected high,its belief popular after the Ming and Qing Dynasties,until today,Anyue Pilu cave still has people burn incense to provide.The study of the statue characteristics of Water-Moon Guanyin in this region also provides important clues for the historical spread of Water-Moon Guanyin,which is helpful for us to understand the image and belief of Water-Moon Guanyin more comprehensively and deeply.