An Attempt to Identify and Classify Scenes With a Central Buddha Depicted on Ceilings of Qizil

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An Attempt to Identify and Classify Scenes with a Central Buddha Depicted on Ceilings ofthe Kyzil Caves (Former Kingdom of Kutcha, Central Asia)Author(s): Emmanuelle LesbreSource: Artibus Asiae, Vol. 61, No. 2 (2001), pp. 305-352Published by: Artibus Asiae Publishers

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EMMANUELLE LESBRE

AN ATTEMPT TO IDENTIFY AND CLASSIFYSCENES

WITH A CENTRAL BUDDHA DEPICTED ON CEILINGS

OF THE KYZIL CAVES(FORMERKINGDOM OF

KUTCHA, CENTRALASIA)

I.

INTRODUCTION

Thisstudy s devoted o the leastunderstood artofpaintings n theKyzilcaves the most mpor-

tantBuddhist anctuarynown odayof the formerCentralAsiankingdomofKutcha(ca.st-IIth

century). t will attempt o identityandclassifyhe small ozenge-shapedcenes haracterizedythe

centralpatternofthesittingBuddha,whicharedepictedon the vaultedceilingsof mostKyzilcavesdedicatedo worship.Thosescenespresideovera few atakascenes or scenesof the PreviousLives

ofthe Buddha usually elegatedo bottomrowsof thevaults,and ormally eprived f the motif of

thecentralBuddha.Theceilingson whichtheyaredepictedmaytherefore e called he"mixed eil-

ings,"asopposedoceilingsdecoratednlywith"previousives" cenes.The decorpaintedonceilings

of theworship aveswasspecially onceived o fit in the vaultedarchitecturef the caveshrines, nd

havenoequivalentn wallpaintings ftraditionallyuilt monasteriesnKutcha, uchasDuldur-Aqur

orSubachi,romwhichonlyafewfragmentsweresaved, hanks o Pelliot.,

Whereasmostjdtaka ceneshavebeen dentified ince he return f EuropeanxplorersromChi-

nese Turkestan uringthe I9Ios,- ittle scholarshipn the West has beendevoted o sceneswith a

Let me thankChenShiliang,director f the Researchnstituteofthe KutchanCaves,whokindlywelcomedme in Kyzil,

andallowed henecessary hotographso be taken orthisstudy.I amalsograteful orMaShichang's elpandsketches,and orG. Pinault'skind advice.

I Pelliotexploredheregionof Kutcha rom anuaryoSeptember 907.Unfortunately, artof hisdiaryhasbeen ost,

includinghisreports n theKyzilcaves.For he monasteries fDuldur-AqurndSubachi,eeS.Gaulier,M.Hallade,

andL. Courtois,MissionPaulPelliot,KoutchaV: Templesonstruitstext),EditionsRecherche urles civilisations

ADPF, Paris, 982: 43-173,and, or heplates,L. Hambis chiefed.),Mission aulPelliot,KoutchaII:Templesonstru-

its (plates), aris,1967;DuldurAqur:pls.A-C, 28-45;Kyzil:pls. 269-270 and272-274.Volumeson the cavesanc-

tuaries waitpublicationMission aulPelliot,Koutcha -VI:templesupestres).2 The ChineseTurkestan asessentiallybeenexploredbetween19o00nd1915 ythePrussiansGrtinwedelndvonLe

Coq Kutchawasexplored uring3rd xpedition Dec.19o5-Apr.1907 and4thexpedition June 1913-Feb. 914),the FrenchmanaulPelliot, heRussian .Oldenburg,n1909-191o,heEnglishman irAurelStein, houghhespent

onlyonedayin Kyzil(Innermostsia,vol. 2:5ol-5o2)andJapanese fficersTachibana ndNomura, entbyCount

Otani 1902, 908-1909, 1910,cf.J.Sugiyama,CentralAsianbjectsroughtack y heOtaniMission, ationalMuseum,

Tokyo,1971).The narration f theseexpeditionss summarized y P. Hopkirk n "ForeignevilsontheSilkRoad",

J. Murray,London, 980, andH. Hirtel and M.Yaldiz,Along heAncient ilkRoutes,heMetropolitanMuseumof

Art,NewYork,1982:24-46. Kyzilwasactually iscovered ythefirstJapanese tanimission nI9o02,but theirnotes

305

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centralBuddha, o which more attentionhas beenpaid by some Chinesescholars.Griinwedel'sidentification ffortwas ndeedmore uccessfulorjatakacenespaintedontheceilingof cave38 han

forsceneswith acentralBuddha aintedon themixedceilingsof caves8and80,ofwhichheprovidedbut a formaldescription.3hemonotonous spectof the scenesand the fewnumber fhints left for

the arthistorian'snterpretationmake the taskof identification ifficult ndeed,andundoubtedly

account or thisdelay n scholarship. helozenge-shapedceneswith a centralBuddhadepictedon

theceilingsweregenerally escribed yGriinwedels"preachingcenes" r "Buddhacenes."Yet the

featsof theBuddha heydepictoftendiffer rom he"preachingcenes"llustrated nthe caves' ide-

walls.4Theysometimesllustrateunfriendly ssaults n the Buddha.Aparticularmphasissplaced,

I believe,ondemonstratingheBuddha'superiorityver hegodsandfollowers f otherreligions,

on onehand,andon the act of almsgiving,on the other.Theyalso llustrateparables ainted n no

otherpartof theKyzilcavesdecors.Thereforeheydeserve special tudy.

Iwill concentrate n scenespainted nrepresentativendcomplementaryeilingsofthreecaves

havecarefullyelectedn situ or hispurpose: os.34,80,and171.Before escribinghosebarrel-vault

decors,et me recall erybriefly ome ignificantactsabout hehistoryandgeography fKyzilwithin

the Kutchakingdom.

Kyziland heKutcha ingdom

Thehistoryof the Kutchakingdomwastracedndetailduring heI9Iosbythe FrenchcholarsCha-

vannesandLevi.5t maybebriefly ummarized s follows:

were otally ost.It was thenexplored xtensively yGrtinwedelndLeCoq,whobroughtbackmanymuralpaint-

ingsandmanuscripts. omeof the murals an still be seen n the Museum iirIndischeKiinst n Berlin,seeHartel,

H. andM.Yaldiz,DieSeidenstrasse:alereinndPlastikenusBuddhistischenohlentempels,taatlischeMuseenPreussis-

cherKulturbesitz,Berlin,1987:42-64, 70-91 (Kyzil fragments). he scene llustratingannouncement f the Bud-

dha'sdeath oKingAjataiatrubymeans f apaintingpresented yhis ministerVarsakara)s oneofthe mostfamous

ones cf.V. Mair,Painting ndPerformance,hinese icture ecitationnd ts IndianGenesis,l. IV).

3 Comparehedescriptions ndcomments n theceilingof the cave"der echzehnSchwerttriger""cavewith the 16

sword-holders"),owcave8,andof the southern aultof the"Hillentopfhahle""cavewiththeHell-cauldron"),ow

cave80,with thoseon the cave"mitdemMusikerchor""cavewith the Choir fMusicians"),owcave38, nA. Grtin-

wedel,AltbuddhistischeultstattennChinesisch-Turkistan,eorgReimer,Berlin,1912:53-57,95-97, 65-75.E.Wald-

schmidtextended tudyof thePreviousLives cenes ocaves17,178,114, swellas to caveswithmixedceilingsno.8,

80,198-199, and206(A.Lecoq ndE.Waldschmidt,Die buddhistischeSpatantike

nMittelasien,erlin,1922-23, 7vol.,

vol. 6: 9-24, 42-62). See also Yaldiz's ynthesis,M. Yaldiz:43-79 ("Jdtakasndandere egenden");akanoTeruo,

"Kijiru ekigadainiki no honjozu" Illustrationsf the PreviousLives n Kyzil'sMuralsbelonging o the Second

Foundation), ijutsu hi104(1978): 12-126; andYaoShihong's ecentclassification, hichincludesa usefultable

extendedo 40 caves,"Kezi'erfobenshengushihuaicai zhonglei"A classificationfthe ataka-scenesllustratednKyzil),

YaoShihong: 1-135,he tablebeingonp. 122.

Concordancesregivenforsome18cavesbetween he German ames,PelliotandOtani's lassifications,nd he

modernChinese ount,whichIuse, n M.Maillard,Monuments'AsieCentrale, .Maisonneuve,aris,1983: 79-280.

Seealso he moreexhaustive ablegiven nSuBai,vol. 3:21o-212.

4 The Chinese rchaeologists ing MingyiandMaShichang ave isted62episodes orall the cavesonthe Lifeof the

Buddha, tarting rom hePredictionfDipamkarandendingwith the Distributionftherelics.Cf."Kezi'erhikude

fozhuan ihua"Paintings llustratinghe Lifeof the Buddha n theKyzilCaves)n SuBai...:vol. I:218-219. Seealso

Yaldiz:79-87 ("DieBuddhaLegende").

306







Becauseof its strategic ituationon commercial ighwayswhichlinked Indiaand the Western

worldwith theChinese mpire,Kutcha, ituatedmidwaybetweenTurfan ndKashgar,wasoverrun

militarily everalimesbythe Chinesebetween heIstcenturyA.D.(araidbyGeneralBanChao n 88)

andthe7thcentury,when the ChineseprotectoratefAnxi(anxiduhufu)moved ntoKutchan erri-

tory 658).6 n383,GeneralLiiGuangabductedhe KutchanKum rajiva35o-4o9),whobecame ne

of thegreatest ranslatorsf ChineseBuddhist criptures.7 utchawasthen animportant eligious

and cultural enterand remained neuntil the 7thcentury,attracting ndianmissionaries s well as

Chinesepilgrims,includingthe mostfamous,Xuanzang 6o2-664). Its contributionn diffusing

Buddhism owardshe Eastwasessential."n698andagain n791,Tibetannvasionsollowed he Chi-

nese domination.Subsequently,slamcompleted he ruin of Kutcha,which wasmentioned or the

last timein theChineseHistory Songshi)n Io96.With its236caves,Kyzil sthe argestKutchanBuddhist anctuarynown oday.From tspainted

art tself, t rankshigher han ts neighborsKyzil-Gaha,Kumtura,Kirich) fig.I).Asfarasits' own

chronologys concerned,cholars gree ndating he decadence fKyzilaround he middleof the7th

century, orrespondingo theentryof the Chineseprotectoratef Anxi into Kutcha.Patronagef the

Kyzilcavesby thekingsof Kutchahas atelybeenascertainedorSuvarnapuspareigned618-624),

thanks o identification f his portraitas a donor n cave69.9However, he earlychronology f the

5 This historical econstitutions essentiallybasedon the Chinesehistorical ecordsfromHanshuoSongshi)ndalso,

on theKoutchanexts,cf.E. Chavannes, ChineseDocuments"ranslatedn A. Stein"Ancient hotan":44(on the

campaignof LiiGuang); "Trois eneraux hinois,"T'oung ao,1905:216-245 onthe conquest ed by BanChao);

S.Levi,"Le okharienB, languedeKoutcha,"ournalAsiatique,rie XI-II (Sept-Oct.1913):23-80.6 Payment fmany ributesbetween224and630byKutcha o the Chinese mpire s mentionedn Chinesehistorical

records. heHistoryftheLiangDynastyeportshevisit of anenvoyof thekingof Kutcha Niruimozhunasheng),oaded

withobjectsofart,during he secondyear nthereignofPutong 52o-527), .e.,521.TheTangHistorymentions first

diplomatic isit theyearEmperorGaozu LiYuan)wasenthroned618).He washimselfof centralAsianorigin from

Chengji, n theregionofLongxi, n the west ofGansu). t alsomentionsa tributeof horsesbrought o Chinaduring

the fourthyearoftheZhenyuan eign, .e., 630,to hissuccessor, aizong LiShimin),cf.Jiutangshu,.198:5303 nd

S.Levi, asabove): 48,367.

7 TheHistory ftheJinDynastymentions ,ooo stupasandtemples,as well asaroyalpalace o beautiful hatGeneral

LiiGuang, entbythe lordof thedynasty f the PreviousQin (350-94), eltthe need oorder satirical ieceofpoetry

on it (cf.S.Levi,S. [asabove]: 34, itingthe noteonLiiGuang's ampaign, eportedntheHistoryfthejinDynasty).

8 Kutchans eemto haveparticipatedn translatinghe Buddhist cripturesnto Chinese romasearlyas the3rdcen-

tury.For nstance,BoYan,named ssuchbytheChinese ources ndcontemporaryf theWeiEmperor ao 254-26o),

maybequoted.His surnamendicates hat heprobablywasa member f theroyal amilyof Kutcha.SeeChusanzang

jiji, j. 2 quotedbyXu Wanyin, "quicihiji" "Chronologyf the Eventsrelating o Kucha"),n SuBai,vol III:272.

A. Howardalso mentionsBo Yuanxinand Bo Faju,assistants f Dhamaraksa, ho wasa contemporaryf theJin

EmperorWudi(died n 304).Theymayalsohavebeendescendants f the sameroyal lan.However, do not believe

that their Kutchandentityshould mply earlydates or theKyzilcaves,as Howardhassuggested A.Howard,"In

support f a newChronologyortheKizilMuralPaintings,"ArchivesfAsianArt,XVIV[1991], . 81).As for the Indianmissionaries, uddhayafasFotuoyeshe,84-417),whotranslatedn Chinese heDirghagama

(Chang han ing)andthe monastic ulesof theDharmaguptachool theSifenlu),ndDharmamitraTanmomiduo,

356-442),bothcoming romKashmir,maybequoted.The ChinesemonksSengchun ndTanchong ame o Kutcha

in 379,andSengjing, eadinganexpeditionofIOmen n theyear400.

9 The nameand heroyal tatus nscribednthe circular alosurroundingheheadof theking,paintedwithhisspouse

on the upperwestern ectionof the wall now close to the entrance,weredeciphered y G. Pinault n 1994 seethe

307







Kyzilcaves s stilla matterofdiscussion, aryingbetween he3rd nd6th enturies.This ssuehasbeen

addressedn detailby Howard.Ongroundsof stylisticarguments asedessentially n comparison

with theearlyChineseDunhuang aves, hebelieves hatKyzil's early avesdateback o the4thcen--

tury.1o he husagreeswith viewsadvanced yChinese rchaeologistsuBaiandHuoXuchu,mainly

basedonCI4measurements,hecontradictoryetailsofwhichwill be reviewedbriefly t the end of

thisstudy orthe threecaves nvolved.,

Situated nthe Muzart iver,halfway etween hepresent ownsof Kuche 67 kmsoutheast) nd

Baicheng6o km west)I(fig.I),Kyzil's xactpositionon the Northern ommercial oadwhich inked

theChineseEmpirewiththe Indianworld s alsodebated,although t nowseems aken orgranted

that its neighbor,Duldur-aqur,was a very importantpassat the beginningof the ChineseTang

dynasty.3'st shouldbeemphasizedhat heKyzilcaves remuch esssinicizedhan heKumtura aves

locatedonly2o kmeast,next to thepass.ThisgivestheKyzilcavesapurerKutchan tyleand den-

tity.I4

Apart rom he mural ragments,which had beenremovedby explorers t thebeginningof this

century,manypaintingshavebeenpreservedn theroughly80worship avesofKyzil.Fairly xhaus-

tive colorcatalogshaverecentlybeenpublishednChina,whichareofgreathelp nidentifyingpaint-

ingsnotyetunderstoodn situ.Theyconstitutea usefulcomplemento Westernpublications, ssen-

tiallybasedonpaintingsremoved uring he first wodecades f thecentury.15

reproductionn Minami,ShinkyoohekigaMurals f Xinjiang],Tokyo,1981, ol. I, where nscriptions n thehaloe

are tillvisible).FordetailsonidentifyingSuvarnapuspandhis two sonsSuvarnadevandHaripuspa, iththekings

of Kutchamentionedn theHistory ftheTangDynasty,eeLevi:311-21.

TheGerman xplorers avealso ound n the cave"with he reddome"nowclassified s no.67)a list of donors

includinga queenandsixkingsincludingSuvarnapuspand hissonSuvarnadeva.t seems hat the namesof King

TottikaandQueenSwayamprabhaerewrittenonpanelsof themuralpaintings akenaway romcave2o5 formerly

called he "cave fMdya f thesecond oundation")rfromcave224(cf.M.Maillard, s in note3: 114;Huo Xuchu

andWangJianli:21).Thereignof Tottikaprobably receded hat of Suvarnapuspa,ccordingo R.Jera-Bezard,

"Avant-propos"n Sites ivers e aregioneKoutcha,pigraphieoutchenneMission .Pelliot, ocumentsonservesumuse

Guimetta*aBibliothequeationale, ocumentsrcheologiquesIII):VIII.However, uvarnapuspandSuvarnadevare

the onlykingsof Kuchawhohavebeenpreciselydentified o far n the Chinesehistory hat enableddatingtheir

reigns.

IO A. Soper,L.Hambis,andRowland lso ended o defend hisopinion.Cf.A. Howard,"InSupport fa new Chrono-

logyfortheKyzilMuralPaintings,"ArchivesfAsianArt,XLIV 1991):69, 81,notes2 to 4. Forabriefreviewof the

chronologicaliscussions,ee nfra"DatingProblems.

11 Cf.SuBai,"Kezi'erhikubufen ongkuieduan uafen uniandaidengwentidechubuansuo"Preliminarytudyof the

Classificationyperiods ndof thequestionof thedatingsofsomeof the caves n Kyzil) nSuBai,vol. I:10-23, and

Huo XuchuandWangJianli:1-30.

12 Kyzil 82u3o'North/4IU47' ast)ssituatedupstreamromKumtura82u40o'orth/4IU43'ast)ontheMouzart. he

locationofKumturas incorrectn Maillard as n note3):map4 ("les ites delaregiondeKutcha").

13 Duldur-Aqur asrecentlybeen identifiedas an importantpassfrom whichmanycommercial oadsbranched ff

towardsheWest,cf.Wang Binghua,"Tang nxizhejueguanuzhibing ouguan enti anjiu""Concerninghepass

Zhejue n theregionofAnxi under heTang"),Xibei hidi1987/3: 0-19.

14 ChenShiliang,now ncharge fthe Researchnstituteofthe Kutchan aves, s alsoworkingonthis issueofgeogra-

phy,wherehe citesandcriticizes teinandPelliot'sviews cf "Qiuciosideyanjiu,"n Qiucifojiaoenhuaunji,Xin-

jiangmeishu heying,Urumqi,1993: 1-65).

308







Theworshipaves ndtheir eilings

A thirdoftheKyzilcaveshavebeen dentified sworship aves,asopposed o cavesdestined o med-

itation,habitation, eligious eaching,or bookstoring.Some5Iof these8o cavesweredugaround

pillarusedforcircumambulation,6sin Indiancaves.This architecturalradition llows he succes-

sion of the antechamber,he mainchamber, nd the rear ella behind hepillar.Because f erosion,

most antechambers avecollapsed.Princelydonors,bodhisattvas,eachingscenes,as well as other

eventsofthelife of the Buddhawerepaintedon sidewalls f the mainchambers,whichhavemostsuf-

fered rom he Muslim conoclasm, ecause f their owposition.The rear ellaof the cavesandcor-

ridorseading o it weremost oftendedicated o thenirvana fthe Buddha.

Thehigh positionof the mainchambers'eilingshashelpedpreservehem.Theyweredecorated

withalargenumber f scenespaintedwithinlozenge-shapedramesdelineatedwithstylizedmoun-

tainpeaks.Thesepaintedmountaindecors ecall he motifssculpted n clayandpaintedwhichoften

surroundhe nichedugin thecircumambulationillar, n whicha statueofthe Buddhawasplaced.

Theyare ypicalof Buddhistart nKutchan xcavatedhrines.The ozenge cenespaintedon the ceil-

ingof caveII8andceilingsof cave77'scorridors, elieved obelong o the most ancient aves,arerel-

atively arge n size anddecoratedwith theprevailinghemeof meditation n a natural urrounding

withanimals.1They henbecomemore egular ndmorenumerous n thevaulted eilingsof the main

chambers fcaveswithcentralpillars thepillarseparateshe mainchamberrom he rear ella: t is

not in the mainchamber).Theircontent s alsomorecomplex.As I havesaid, womain ypesof ceil-

ingscanbedistinguished:hejdtaka eilings,whereonlythe former ivesof the Buddha redepicted,

and the "mixed eilings,"wherea largenumberof scenes Go o 78)appear.Thesearecharacterized

by thepatternof a sittingBuddhaplaced n the centerpresidingovera few atakascenes,generally

situatedonthe bottomrow.,'Thisarrangementpparentlyesembleshendtakaopies ound nKyzil

15 The recent eriesareDuanWenjie chiefed.):3vol.andSuBai:3vol.Theycomplement arlierbooks uchasGriin-

wedel'salreadymentionedAltbuddhistischeultstittennChinesischurkistanas nnote3):37-181"Qyzyl"), .Griin-

wedel,Alt-Kutscha, erlin,192o, vol. II:57sq.;E.Waldschmidt,Gandhara,Kutscha/Turfan,linkardt& Biermann

Verlag,Leipzig,1925: 9-78; L. Hambis(ed.),L'AsieCentrale,Histoire t Civilisation,ollectionorientalede I'Im-

primerieNationale,Paris,1977:212-215andpls. 55,105,111-112,II5-11-6,118, 120, 130,134,I42, I44, 146-149, 153;M.Bussagli,Lapeinturee 'AsieCentrale,kira,Geneva, 963: 1-85;M.Yaldiz:17-98;B. Rowland,ZentralAsien,n

"KunstderWelt"series,HolleVerlag,Baden-Baden,97o:155-182chapter :"Serindien:ieritterlicheKunstvon

KuchaundKyzil"); iro Sugiyamaas n note2):pls.10-15.The exhibitioncatalogues lsooughtto bementioned:

H. Hairtel nd M. Yaldiz(as in note2):pls. 9-41;andJ. Giesand M. Cohen chiefeds.),Serinde, erre eBouddha,

R.M.N., Paris, 1995:cat. 79-81, 16I-I62, 168, 186,191, 193.

16 An alcove susuallyduginthispillar, oinstallasculpture roccasionallypaintingoftheBuddha.Apart rom hese

5Icaves, heotherworship aveshaveasquare lanorweredesigned o holdalarge tatue MaShichang:I74-I75).17 CaveII8,which theGermans alled"thecavewith thehippocampi,"onsistsofa rectangularella,wider han t is

deep.It is situatedatthe northof thevalleywhichdivides heKyzilsite in twoparts,westandeast.Less hanhalfof

the vaultdecorremains,he other ectionhavingbeencarried waybyGriinwedel tthebeginningof thecentury. tis nowkeptatthe Museum n Berlin cf.SuBai:vol.II, pls. Io, 151, 54 ndGriinwedelas nnote3): o7-1o8(paint-

ing copiedafter);E. Waldschmidt,Gandhara,Kutscha/Turfan,linkhardt& BiermannVerlag,Leipzig,1925:Taf.

37).Forcave77, see SuBai,vol.II, pls. 20-22, 150, 51 ndGrtinwede92.18 This sageneraldivision.One shouldalsomention llustrationncaves69and178ofsomemonastic ules,as n afew

scenes,deprivedof the centralBuddhapattern,placedamonga greatnumberofjdtakascenes.See YaoShihong:

I37-I43:"L'e huKezi'erjieldushihua" AnInsight ntothe ScenesofMonastic isciplinepainted n Kyzil).

309







- a sort of narrativedesignedforpublic performance,based on the previouslives and feats of the Bud-

dha- unfortunately, hardlytranslatedat all.x9

Lozengeceneswitha centralBuddha

In these numerousscenes,in which the repetitivemotif of the Buddha confersacertainmonotony, the

Buddha is representedseated on a rectangular hrone,most often topped by a stylized bodhi tree in

full bloom orbya st xpa.He generallysits with legs crossed n meditativeposition oroccasionallywith

legs down. He wearsa monastic robe with his rightshoulderuncovered.He is paintedslightly offcen-

ter, so that more space is left to depict subsidiary figuresor animals, generallyconcentrated on one

side of the lozenge. Theseperipheralelements arealternatively placed on the right or left side of the

Buddha.Less than in the Gandharan arvedpanels, they are the only indications that may permit pre-

cise identification of the scene. The presenceof the seated Buddha under the tree of awakeningno

longer automaticallyindicates a teaching scene or a "friendly" elationshipbetween the Buddha and

his faithfuldisciples. It mayalso be associatedwith assaultsagainstthe Buddha or with his subduing

the heretics- episodeswhich Foucher dentified morereadily n panels showing astandingBuddha. o

Whereasmore than half of the 130 dtakascenesrepresentedon the ceiling vaults of the painted

cavesat Kyzil have been identified and listed caveby cave,"fewer than one third of the scenes with a

central Buddha has been identified. No complete inventory of these caves or of individual scenes

painted on vaults of their main chambershas been undertaken.At best, identification has been pro-

posed forpart of the scenes in some of these caves. Ma Shichang and Yao Shihong are the first schol-

ars,to my knowledge, who have involved themselves in the difficult task of identifying these scenes,

whom I shall quote in the footnotes. One may regret,however,that they exclusivelyrefer o the Chi-

nese Buddhist scriptures,without mentioning the IndianArt precedentsor Kutchanepigraphypub-

lished in Europe.-

19 Discoveredn theKyzillibrary, ltogetherwith the oldestcopiesof the Indian heatreknown oday, ragments f

thesendtakaopies howan alternationfproseandverse,andcontain cenic ndications.Encompassingoth music

andpantomime,heyservedasa basis orpublicperformancesroduced yasinglenarrator, ho alteredhis voice

accordingo the characters. hisformof narrativeerformance,istracting ndchangeableo suit the indigenous

audience, s the ancestor f the "chantefables"r Chinese"transformationexts".Suchplay-scriptswritten n B-

TokharianorKuchananguage) epresentn ntermediarytepbetween he Indianprototype nd heChinesebian-

wen.Cf.G. Pinault,"IntroductionuTokharien,"n Lalies (1989):9,andV.Mair,TangTransformationexts,Har-

vardUniversityPress,CambridgeMass.), 989.Pinault's ummarizedranslation f the "Great eparture"heatri-

calscriptwritten n B-Tokhariananbe found n GiesandCohen eds.,as nnoteI1): at.35.The mostancient cripts

ofIndiandrama, ased nBuddhism,werealsodiscoverednKyzil.Thesanskritragments ere tudiedbyH.Liiders,

"Bruchstiickeuddhistischer ramen,"n Kleine ansrittexte, GeorgReimer,Berlin,1911,Wiesbaden,979reprint:

1-69.

2o Foucher:79sq.Inaddition o theMara's ssault,describednfra,otherexamples faggressionmaybecited,suchas

the second ulllozenge cene n the3rdrowof caveI7I'swestern ault, n whicha manbrandishes sword,andalso

the thirdscene n the 2ndrowonthe eastern ide,inwhicha manseems o dumpaplateof stonesonto the Buddha

(cf.DuanWenjie,vol. I:pls.183and185).

21 YaoShihong: 22.

22 MaShichang asproposedoidentifyabout30of about80scenespaintedon theceilingof the bestpreservedaveI7IL

This included he dtaka cenes.He hasalsoproposeddentifyingsolated cenespaintedon the vaultedceilings n

310







Whendealingwith scenesof the vaultswitha centralBuddha,MaShichangusestheconceptof

yinyuanushi- or'cause-effecttories.'However,he Chinesewordyinyuan asbeenused o translate

the sanskritwords vaddnandnidana,husreferringo either fthe6thor IIth categoriesf theBuddhist

scriptures. hedefinitionofavaddna,whichhasbeenusedto describehelozengesceneswithacen-

tralBuddha,s itselfunclear, sit mayvariously eunderstood sextraordinaryeatsoftheBuddha,

metaphorsrparables,jatakasrevenaspredictions. orLeonFeer,whotranslated lateSanskrit er-

sion of theAvaddnaSatakanto French, navaddnatorymainly mpliesa cause-and-effectelation-

shipbetween wotales.23However, here s no formal lement uggesting herepresentationf events

by pairsorsomesortof causalink between he scenesdepictedon theKyzilcaveceilings.Ratherhan

usingtheambiguous onceptofavaddnand rying oguesswhich aleshavebeendepicted, t might

be morerelevanto simplyattempt o identify he storiesormetaphorsvokedbythepainted cenes

themselves.

Within thisvagueconceptualrameofyinyuantories,MaShichanghasneverthelessdentified

numberof lozengesceneswith a centralBuddhaasepisodes n the life of the awakenedBuddhaor

occasionallysscenesofmetaphoricalontent piyu). 4YaoShihong,aformer irector f the Research

Instituteon the KutchanCaves in Kyzil),hasdevotedanoriginalandconvincing tudyof sceneson

the ceilingsof Kyzilcaveswhichspecificallyllustrateparables.His studyshows heseteachingsof

the Buddhabasedonparableso occupyanimportant laceonceilingsof thetypestudiedhere.25 et

the interpretationf a singlescenemay varycompletely,dependingon whetheroneexpects o dis-

cover n it aknownepisodeof the Buddha's ife or aparable.ThusI will addmyowninsightsto the

presentationf scenes orwhichprior dentificationeem ounded.

Instead fthevagueconcepts f"cause ndeffect tories," Buddhacenes," r"preachingcenes,

I will propose hreethematical ategories subduing,almsgiving,andparables , deduced rom

empirical bservation. o conduct his studyamong he 25cavesdecoratedwith "mixedceilings,"'6

caves8, 38,80, IoI, I63, I75,2o5,and224.SeeMaShichang: 98-212, andYaoShihong,"Jieshaoi zhong ezi'eriyu

gushihua"Presentationf a fewPaintingsofParablesn theKyzilCaves):YaoShihong:144-157.23 L.Feer,Avaddna-(ataka,entMgendesbouddhiques)raduitesusanskritAnnales u MuseeGuimet,vol.18),E.Leroux,

Paris, 89i, ntroduction:X.Hohogirin,asc.1 1929): agreeswith the definition: nomd'ungenre itteraire ul'acte

presentd'unpersonnagestrapporte arcomparaisonunepisodede sonpasse," ndgivestwoChinese ranslations

for heSanskrit,piyu, comparison,"ndchuyao,shedight,"whereas oothillgivesanevenbroader efinition: para-

bles,metaphors,tories, llustrations.

24 MaShichang'shuoshi aper equiv. o M.A.,unpublished)oncentrated nstudyofpaintings n vaultsof the main

andbackchambers f the caveswith acentralpillar n Kyzil.He proposed binary lassificationor ozenge cenes:

thosewhich llustrateddtaka tories lingge ensheng)n onehand,and those llustrating"cause effectstories" n

the other. nthemidstof this lastcategory, ather aguelydefined,he still identified few scenesofparables.Cf.Ma

Shichang:79-212.Grtinwedel'sonceptof"preachingcenes" as nnote3:95:"Buddhapredikten")asusedbythe

French cholars .Gaulier,M.Maillard, ndR.Jera-Bezard,uddhismnAfghanistanndCentral sia(Seriescono-

graphyofReligions, ection7, fasc.14),Brill, Leiden, 976:8.

25 YaoShihong:I44-157.26 25cavespresent imilarvaultedmixeddecor,which s still relativelywellpreserved. hecavesareno.8, 34, 58,63,

80, 98, Ioo, 101, O104, 63, 171, 172, 175, 179, 184, 186, 188, 192, 193, 196, 199, 20zo5,06, 219, 224, agreeing with Ma

Shichang's list, from which we have deducted cave no. 38, which is special in that it alternatively presents rows of

jdtakascenestogether with scenesdepicting the life of the Buddha. It deserves a classification of its own. A close exam-

311







I have chosen the best preservedandcomplementaryscenesof ceilings in caves34, 80, andI7I, with a

particular ocus on cave34,which has been overlooked to date.

Formaldescriptionfmixedceilingsat caves34, 8o,and171

These threegatheralmost all subjects represented n the "mixed"ceilings: cave34- (formerlycalled

"thecave with the Meditating Sungod"by the Germans,becausethe painting at the top of the vault

portraysSuryasitting ona chariot27),ave80 (formerlycalled "thecave with the Hell cauldron"),and

cave I7I1.Cave34 is situated at the westernend of the site close to the "cloisterwith stairs" cave36),

identifiedby the Germans(fig. 2).z8 The scenes depicted in cave34arethe most lavishand least hier-

atic ones,which forma useful complement to those of the better-known cavesI7I and 80.

The position ofperipheralelementsvaries: n cave34,from one row to the next (fig. 3-4), whereas

the alternationtakesplace from one section of the vault to the other in cave8o, or from one scene to

the next in cave 171,29 located eastof the gorge (fig. 2).

Somezz sceneshave remainedentirely preservedon the easternsection of cave34,butonly 14scenes

on the western section(fig. 4), of which the lowerparthascollapsed.The erosion has beenmore severe

at the southernextremityof the ceiling in the main chamber han in the two other caves.Closeexam-

ination of the ceiling showsthat the detail of the complexionhas beenapplied only on the two lower

rows,at least as far as the preservedeasternsection is concerned(fig. 3a).3O t seems that the painting

of the scenes was not finished.The decorativemotif usuallypaintedon top of the Buddhais lacking,

except fortwo sceneson the easternsection of the vault. In one of them, situatedin the middle of the

fifth row(startingfrom the top ofthevault), one cansee the top ofastf pa,adornedwith garlands,onto

variouspartsof which the samemonogramhasbeeninscribed(fig. 3a). These inscriptions,written on

variouspartsof the figuresor elements of the scenes,may referto either the colorsto be appliedor to

abbreviationsof the painters'names31, hich would suggest that decorationof the vaultedceiling was

assumedby a team,with certainpainterstold to applythis or that color or to figures'complexions.32

Whereasthe western side section of the barrel-vaultceiling in cave 80 is almost completely col-

lapsed,the easternside is relativelywell preserved.This allowscounting 39sceneswith a seatedBud-

dha, spreadover six rowsof six or seven lozenges.33 As for cave 34,the initial numberof sceneswith a

centralBuddhamayhavebeen 78, if one expectsboth sides of the vault to have been arrangedwith a

similaralternationof rowsof six and seven scenesper row.

ination, ed insitu,madeusaddcave34,whichwasprobably mittedaccidentally yMaShichang, ndcave88(cf.

MaShichang: 99).

27 Grtinwedelas n note3):62 and33, ig.67.

28 Griinwedelas n note3):39,fig.79.29 Thepainterhasbroken hisprincipleonlyin ordernotto infringeon theruleofgeneral omposition. t consistsof

settingthesecondaryigureon theleft in the caseof thelozenges ituatedonthe extreme ightof therowandvice-

versa. f. SuBai,vol. II: pls. 5and8.

30 Cf. SuBai,vol. I:pls.78and80.

31 Thishypothesissproposed yG.Pinault,after onfronting isownobservationnsituandphotographicocuments

whichI presentedo him.

32 Cf. SuBai,vol.II: pls.78-81.

33 Cf. SuBai,vol. II: pls. 53.

31I







In comparison,the vaulted ceiling of cave 171 s the best preservedof the three caves.Exceptions

are the last row, which has been cut, and wherevermeditating Brahmans,monks, or the SaSa ataka

(placed in the center of the row) aredepicted, just as on the barrel-vaultsof caves34 and 80.34Both

sides of the vault contain30scenes each with acentralBuddha,equally spreadover fiverows,andthere

is usually a single figure standing on either side of the sitting Buddha. The bodhi tree is repeatedly

evoked on top of the halo surroundingthe Buddha, and one or two birdsaredepicted standing on its

blossoming flowers.The colors usedas backgroundsareabout the same in the three caves,but they

arericherin caves34and171;only in the latter has the red ochrenot faded.

2.

SPECIFICATION OF TYPOLOGY

Whereas events of the life of the Buddha representedon side-walls include episodes of the youth of

Gautama,those depicted in the vaulted ceilings' lozenges seem to concentrateon the later life of the

Master afterhis awakening.The predominant arrangementof thejatakas on the bottom row of the

vault suggest achronologicalreadingfrom the bottom rowup to the top row.But since this arrange-

ment is not general, and as long as we do not know exactly the sources that determined this icono-

graphicalprogram,a thematicbreakdownof scenes s preferable o anattemptto reconstituteachrono-

logical sequence.In fact,as Foucherremarked, he Buddhist scripturesshow much divergencein the

chronologicalsuccession of events in the later biographyof the Awakened, to which new legendary

episodeshave been added.

The majorityof scenesdepicted may begrouped thematically into threecategories.The firstcon-

sists of the Buddha'sdemonstration of superiorityover his adversaries, ods, orreligiouschiefs,whom

he convertsorsubdues,peacefullyorviolently. The second centers ongifts oralmsgiving (ddna n San-

skrit) which constitutes one of the six virtues encouraged by Buddhism, illustrated in numerous

avaddna tories.35 he thirdgroupincludes the Buddha'sparables,ormetaphoricalteachings,accord-

ing to the categoryestablishedby Yao Shihong.

ThesuperiorityfBuddha,subduingsnd conversions

Buddhist literature abounds with picturesqueexamples illustrating the superiorityof its hero over

diverse divinities or overcompeting sectarians.The Kutchanepigraphy suggests that a cult centered

on commemorating the Buddha's superiority over the gods was practiced in Kutcha's monasteries.

Indeed,Paul Pelliot discovered he fragment of a hymn proclaiming theBuddha'ssuperiorityat a com-

34 The asa-jadtaka,n which apigeonorharecommitssuicide n order o warmandfeedanascetic, s one of the most

frequentlyllustratedPreviousLives,bothon jataka eilingsand in "mixed"eilings.Thejatakawith the hare s

depictedapproximatelytthe centerof thelowerrow nthe eastern ectionofceilings neachofcaves34,80,andI7I,cf.SuBai,vol. I:pl. 78,vol. II:pl. 53,vol. III:pl 5.Incave80, thesacrifice f thesnake-king organkhapdla-jataka- is representedtthe left end of thevault's outhern ide.Thegasa-jdtakaf thepigeon salsounusually aintedon

theupperrowof thevault'snorthern ide(seeLecoqandWaldschmidt as n note3),vol. 6: 58,figs.19o0, here he

cave s mistaken,6o, andzo5;SuBai,vol. II:pl. 64).

35 Rewardsor iberalityoward he Buddha rotherreligiousmendicants, swellaspunishmentsorreluctanceogivealmspervadehrough heavaddnaSatakaFeer squotedabove).

313







munication rossroadnlyI5kmawaynDuldur-Aqur. oofragmentaryo beidentifiable,hishymn

contains a list of gods over which the Buddha had been victorious, among them Mara, followed by the

yaksasAtavaka ndSurya,aswell as the ndgadivinities,Upaldla ndBhima.36 similar ragment

of Sanskrit text praising the Buddha as a converter was in the same region. It too mentions the sub-

duing of the yaksa Atavaka, the snake-king Apalala, the angry elephant of Rajagrha, and the heretic

killerAfigulimala.37he scenesevokedbelowmayhavebeen related o suchproclamationsf the

Buddha'superiorityver hegods.

i. ThesubduingofMara

The firstandthe mostimportant fthegodsoverwhomthesageofthe clanofSakyawasvictori-

ouswasMara,hegodof desire.Several cenespaintedonthe mainwallsor on lateralwallsofthe

Kyzil caves illustrate the various assaults of Mara, including the attempted seduction by his daugh-

ters.38

The scene can be only schematic in the reduced space of ceiling lozenges: in cave 80, charac-

teristic eatures ermit dentifying he villain:hisgreen kinandpointedears, hehairdressedn

pigtailsgatheredon topof his skull.He attacks he Buddhaarmedwith a javelin hathe holds

with both hands, the right foot raised (fifth scene on the second row; fig. 5).39

In contrast to cave 80, Mara has a halo over his head in cave 171.40 He sits on a throne compa-

rable to that of the Buddha, but smaller, and has four arms: the two upper arms seem to want to

hit the Buddha with a lance pointed at him, while the lower arms hold a weapon lying on his thighs.

In this way, the two moments of aggression and subduing of the god are represented simultane-

ously.4I

36 Cf.the Pelliotfragmentfindno. 882,provisionalist no.1116) uoted n B.Pauly,"Fragmentsanskrits e Haute

Asie(MissionPelliot),no.XII: 'hymne nI'honneuru Bouddha akyamuni;exteenprose ur esproclamationse

superiorit'," ournalAsiatique,ol. 248(g196o):2o-521). Upalalamaybe an indigenousadaptation f the Indian

Apalala, hesubduingof whom s said to haveoccurredatein theBuddha'sife (Divyavadidna,uoted n Foucher:

figs.270-275).Otherdivinitieswereprobablyistednext,whichmighthavehelped o identify cenespaintedon the

vaults.

37 Simpledescriptionsf thesubdued regiven nthese ragments, sthatof thefieryhair, rembling ongue, eeth,and

eyes ike sunofAtavaka;hefire-spittingnakeApalalaromHimalaya,hebloody lephantromRajagrhalikely o

bethe onesentbyDevadatta ndAjatasatru,smentioned urther own,p. 21),andAhigulimala,thekillerof one

thousandpeople"aboutto kill his ownmother.SeeD. Schlingloff,Buddhistischetotras usostturkistanischenan-

skrittexten,kademie-Verlag,erlin,1955:o1-1o5 fragmentG: "Preis erBekehrungen uddhas"Praise f the con-

verting-Buddha]).

38 Those n caveIio areamong he most beautiful.This scenedepictingMdira'sssault n thelarge unettepanelplaced

rightunder he vaultedceiling,was still visibleat the beginningof thecentury, f. Hambis as n noteI5): ig.146

(MissionGriinwedel LeCoq).Therectangularateral cenes till visibletoday ncludeMdara'saughters'ttempted

seductionnd heir unishmentcf.SuBai,vol.II:pl. IIy).Two otherexamples fMara'sAssaultmaybequoted, n cave

80(rightwall,cf. SuBai,vol. II:pl. 51) ndprobablyncave92(verydamaged,eft ofthewalloppositeo theentrance).

39 Cf. SuBai,vol.II:pl. 57.

40 Thishaloseems o contradict figure upposedo incarnatevil; t isprobably laterdeviation, omparedwith the

Maraigurepaintedonthe vault n cave80.Incave34, n a sceneofwhichonlytheupperpartremains,here s a blue

figuredrawingan arch.A humanhead s paintedbelow t. If this relates o Mdira's ssault, he absence f a halo s

justified.

314







Thesubduingof twodivinitiesbelonging otheyaksas ategorys also llustrated midscenes

witha seatedBuddha.TheyconcernheSubduingftheOgre-of-the-Waste-land,ituatednexttothe

previous one, in cave 171(extreme left of the fourth row in the eastern section), and that of his fel-

lowcreature,Hariti, hemother-of-demons,epicted n moreworldly eaturescave 71's astern

sectionvault, n thefourth ceneof the second ow),42 andalsodepictedn caves34and80.Xuan-

zangreportshat he hadvisitedcommemorative onuments fthesubduings f bothof these wo

yakdsaods43, o whoma commonritualoffering ffood, nexchange fabandoningheirreputed

cannibalism was perpetuated in Buddhist monasteries.44 Thanks to her function as a child giver

and the exoticism of her legend,45 Hariti was nevertheless to acquire a higher reputation in China

than that ofAtakava, who was to become the General-of-the-Waste-land.46

2. Thesubduingof theogreAtavaka

Depictedwitha naked hestandcoveredwith asimple oincloth ike Indians f lowcaste, heogre

presents young nfant o the Buddhawhoholds t in bothhands,his left kneeon theground.A

halo emphasizes his status as a god (fig. 6).

The similarity to the Gandhtran reliefs47 suggests the identification of Atavaka48, who is

specifically named on the indigenous list proclaiming the superiority of the Buddha mentioned

above.49

41 This Mara iguremaybecomparedwith its equivalentn the scenesituatedat the extreme eft of the upperrowon

the western ideof cave224'svault.In it thevillain,with agreen kin,alsohas ourarms.Bothpairsof armsarebusy

attacking heBuddha, he twoupperarms hreateningo dumpaplateofstones romabove cf.SuBai,vol. III:pl.

142).This lastpointmakesmequestion hescenepainted n the secondrowof caveI7I'seastern ide.A youngman,

depicted nshortdress n it, threatens he Buddha n the same ashion withaplateof stones. question f this is not

a continuation fMdra'sAssault cene,rather hanDevadatta'sssault, sbelievedbyMaShichang:2o3.

42 Cf. SuBai,vol. III:pl. 5.

43 Sacrifices ere till beingcarried utinthe7thcentury t thestupa hatcommemoratedhe conversionfHariti,sit-

uated n the Gandhara,omewhere etweenPkalavati nd Varoucha. he text is not clearas to theprecise ocation

of thestupa,which s specified nly bythe distance f "co i to the northwest f thestrpasof Brahma ndIndra."Cf.

S.Julien,Memoiresur escontresccidentales,ol. I:119-I22.

44 Xuanzang laims o haveseen a stupamore han30 li east of the templeof thegod Narayana,ocatednorthof the

Ganges. twaspreceded ya column nscribedwith a textcommemoratinghe Submissionfthedemon(s)ftheWaste-

landby heBuddhacf.Foguangacidian: 666 andS.Julien,MemoireseHiouen-thsang,ol. I:381).

45 SeeE.Lesbre, jiebotuuanyanjiu,"Meishuanjiu 996/4:24-29, andMeishuanjiu 997/1: 5-92;E.Lesbre, La on-

versionde HaritiauBuddha: riginedu theme conographiquet interpretations icturales hinoises,"ArtsAsia-

tiques 5 2000):98,114note4, andJ. Murray, RepresentationsfHdriti, heMotherofDemons,andthe Themeof

'Raising he Alms-bowl'n ChinesePainting,"ArtibusAsiae,vol.XLIII,no.4. (1981-1982):253-84.46 Atakava,whosenamen Sanskritmeans he demonof thejungle,will become heGeneral-of-the-Wastelandskuangye

dajiang)n China,associatedn particularwith the Fast of Water and Earth shuilu hai),(cf.C. Gyss-Vermande,

"Demons t Merveilles: ision de la naturedansunepeinture iturgiquedu XVesiecle,"ArtsAsiatiques,ol. XLIII

(1988): III).

47 Cf. Foucher:507,511,igs. 252-253.48 Cf.MaShichang: 04, fig.IO8.

49 MaShichangdentifies he sameepisode n the sceneat the extreme ight n theupper owon thewesternwall ncave

14:a manwith ablack kin,veryhairy,andbearded, ressedn ashort oinclothof thelowcastes,holdsan infantby

the hand cf.SuBai,vol. I: pl. 44)-

315







Themomentrepresenteds the surrenderf theogre,whohandsover o theBuddhahe infant

he wasabout o devour.Different alesdepict he childas either he son ofakingorofa richmer-

chant.Theydescribe ubduings,whicharemoreor lesspeacefulorprovokedby the menaceof

Vajrapatni.5o

3. ThesubduingofHaritiTheyaksiniHdriti,betterknown n China sthemother-of-demons,srepresented neelingdown

orseated,5'acing heBuddha,whom sheappearso implorewith herhands oined n thear-jali

gesture.Hercurlyhair s ruffled, signofherdespair fter hedisappearancefheryoungest on,

whohas beencaptured nd hidden n Buddha's lmsbowl,in order o forceherto renounce er

child-devouringctivities fig.7).52

A haloindicatesher roleof goddess,veneratedorfertility, ike theyaksasofpre-Buddhist

India.Her lastsonappearsnprofile sprisonern the Buddha's lmsbowl,placed n frontof the

latter's hrone.Onlyhishead, houlders, ndjoinedhands merge rom he bowl.

Finally, cenesof conversionfthegodswhobelong o thendgas ndgandharvasategory realso

illustratedonmixedtypeceilings.Ndgadivinitiesarerecognizedby the characteristicood of

amany-headedobra,whichsurmounts ither hebodyofasnakeor that ofananthropomorphic

o50 Fora translationnto French f the episode, eethe secondpartof the story"of he big strongmanwho converted

thegangof bandits n the desert egion," xtractedrom heZa baozangjingT.2o3,IV(8):97-98 (section97)), in

whichthechild receiveshe nameof "(the urvivor)rom hehands oftheogre)of the Waste ands"kuangyehou),

cf.E.Chavannes, inq entContestApologues,ol. III:96-98. Thestoryof thevinaya f theMulasarvastivadinsvery

close otheprevious neandgivesthe Sanskrit ameofthe childasHastakacf.thesummary fthe Tibetan ransla-

tion in Panglung: 53-154). violent ntervention f thevajrapaniccurs n thestoryof the Guanfoanmeihaijing,

andthe ogreis confusedwith Samjfieyasanzhi).Seethe synthesisof the various ndianand Chinese ncidentsby

R.Duquesne,Daigensui', ibogirin, thfascicule, 983, . 617.Note thatthestoryalsoappearsnthe Chinese rans-

lation of the northern ersionof theDhammapadathe illustratedUddnavarga,r Uddndlankara.he childtaken

awaybytheyaksa aluopo)n it is theverybeautifulon ofaveryrichman romAtavi(aluopi)cf.Ed.Huber,biblio-

graphicalnoticeon A. Foucher,"Lesbas-reliefs u stipa de Sikri,"B.E.F.E.O., 904,p. 461,and the Chuyaoing,

T. 212, V (12): 672b 673b).

5I In caves34(rightendofthe thirdrow nthevault's asternection) nd171fourth cene n the second owof the east-

ernsection), hehasher eftkneeon thegroundand igureso the left of theBuddha,whileshe s seatedontheright

in cave80(extremeeft of fifthrow,southernection).

52Thestory s narratedn thefollowingChineseBuddhist criptures:heZa baozanging,T zo3,IV(9), 492a-b, sup-

posedlya translationroman unidentifiedndian extby Tanyaon 472;andthe Genbenshuoiqieyoubuinaiye ashi

(MiscellanyfthevinayaoftheMulasarvdstivddin),. 1451,XXIV 31): 6oc-362c,a Chinese ranslation yYiJing in

695,andofwhichthere s aTibetanequivalentcf.Panglung: 96).Thelatterversions the mostdetailedandgives

thegoddess500oohildren,whereasheZa baozangingattributesIo,ooo to her(cf.complete ranslationn Peri,"La

mere-de-demons,".E.F.E.O.,917: -15,andEnglish ummariesnMurrayas n note45]:253 q.).Thisstory s also

summarizedn theLifeoftheBuddhawritten n versebyBaoyunn the5thcentury,T. 193, V(4):82 and n theLian-

huamianing(Sutra ftheFace ftheLotus),ranslated yNarendrayasasn 585,T. 386,XII:1076-7. Forasynthesis f

thevarious tories, ee E.Lesbre,La conversioneHdritt,Mere esdimons,ans 'iconographiehinoise,h.D. disserta-

tion(unpublished,NALCO,9):37-5oand"Laonversion...]" asin note45),ArtsAsiatiques5 200ooo):8,114note

4, where he scene llustratingHdritl's ubmissionn theKyzilcaves s alsodiscussedfig.I).

316







figureof noble role,s53 s in the art of Gandhara.A round halo reminds the viewer of their divin-

ity.

4. The subduing of the ndgaThe scene in which the Buddha is entwined in snakerings and surmountedby a canopymade of

snake-headsevokes the conversion of the firstndga-king, Mucilinda, who protected the Buddha

againstthe cold just after the breakingof his fast (cave 80, third row, fifthscene; fig. 8).54

Consideringthat their names are mentioned in the indigenous fragmentof Thehymnofprocla-

mations fsuperiorityiscoveredby Pelliot, it is likely that the ndgasUpalalaandBhima arerepre-

sented in other scenesdepicting snakessurging out of the waters orshowing ananthropomorphic

na-ga iguremaking the a-jali greeting. Nevertheless, in the absenceof more precise indigenous

textual evidence, it is difficult to relate these succinct representations o particular egends.

5. The harpcontest won at the expenseof the Gandharvaking (Supriya)

The subduing of the vain Gandharvaking who believedthat his musical talent wasunsurpassable

is seldom illustrated.

His identification,proposed by MaShichangforcaveI71'svaultdepicting the second scene in

the fourth row of the westernsection,55s better documentedforthe scenesketched aside(fig. 9)56

andsituated on cave196'seastern section ceiling in the fourth row. It portraysa manwith a bare

chest, dressedin a long loincloth, a halo over his head and holding a harpin his left hand, while

anotherharpis laid on the floor in front of the Buddha.

It is likely that the god holding a harpin a scene of the secondrow at the easternceiling sec-

tion of cave34refers o the same event (fig. 9).

The tale,which is illustrated,seemingly constitutes anoriginalextension of the 'Visit of Indra'

episode.It isusuallyidentifiable on the Gandharan eliefs,bythegandharva, olding aharp,placed

in frontof Sakyamuni.57

This gandharva-king namedSupriya n the Avaddnaiataka nd in the Tibetan translation of

the vinayaof the Milasarvdstivddin, r Shan'ai n the Chinese translationS- had seen the major

events of the life of Sakyamuni,as he was Indra'sassistant,without converting. In orderto lead

this god of music to conversion,the Buddha,disguised as agandharva, hallengeshim to a com-

53 Theyareusuallypaintedbare-chested, earing necklace, nddressed n trousers.

54 Cf. SuBai,vol. II:pl. 57.

55 Thegandharvaearsanecklace n cave171.His halohasbeenscraped, nd hisrightarm s raised,probablyn asignofadmiration.Cf. DuanWenjie,vol. I:174,pl. 188.

56 Cf. SuBai,vol. III:pl. 94 (middlescene n the eastern ection's ourth ow).

57 SeeA. Foucher:92, figs.246-247. Foradetailedreproductionf the scene n cave196,cf. DuanWenjie,vol. 2:pl.

62, inwhichaspecifichairstyle haracteristicf thegandharvasvisible.His hair s tiedupin fourpigtailsontopofthe skull.

58 Cf.Panglung: oo, theChinese ranslation fMiscellanyftheVinaya ftheMflasarvastivddin,lready ited,T. 1451,XXIV 37):395b-396c, ndFeer,Avddana-(ataka:6-79, although hestory sgiventhereasonepartofajdtaka ale

and hasanunclear nding.In theDivyavaddna,itedbyFoucher,hegandharvahoaccompaniedndrawas called

Pancasikha,ut there s noquestionof hissubmissionFoucher:92).ThestoryofSupriyas alsotold.

317







petitionontheharp, n whichhe is superiorn every xercise,inspiteof thestringsbeinggradu-

allyremoved rom he instrument.Evenwithoutstrings, heharpof the Buddhaproduces mar-

velousmelody,whichovercomesheprideofthe musicianking.59Thegilded legendof theBuddha howshimvictorious,notonlyover hegodsbut alsoover

his various piritual ompetitors, suallyreferredo as the "heretics"r "preachersf falsedoc-

trines"tirthika). here realsonumerouscenesllustratinghesubduing f heretics n side-walls

of theworship-caves.60TheBrahmanic ord heywearacrosshechesthelpsto identify hem as

"heretics,"utthis identification annotalwaysbespecified.'61ivesuch scenes ollow here.The

first s a miracleperformed y the Buddhawhichmaybe interpreted s aparticular emonstra-

tion of his superiority ver he heretics variously escribed, ccordingo the different ources,

asNirgranthail-taputra r thegroupof Six Preachersf FalseDoctrineshebelongs o, or,yet,as

mere Brahmans.'6z

6. Jyotiska esuscitatedrom he fire

At themiddleof the thirdrow n cave34'seastern ectionvault,akneelingmanwearing turban

presentschildwithhishands o theBuddha,while he yingbodyofawoman ssurroundedyflames

(fig.Io).Ibelievehisscene vokes hespectacularonfirmationfapredictionormulatedytheBud-

dha,concerninghegender fanheir ong hoped orbya devotee fthe Buddha'sompetitors.

The Six Preachersf FalseDoctrineshadpredicted o that manofJambuthebirthof agirl.

Downcast,hefuture atherollowed he adviceof a friendandputthequestionagain o the Bud-

dha,who,in turn,promisedhim a son. The Six Preachers f FalseDoctrines,drivenby jealousy

andbythe fear hat theirpredictionwouldturnoutto bewrongwhenthe motherwoulddeliver

thechild,offeredherapoisoned ruit,andshe died.63 he Buddha ntervenedn order o reverse

59 MaShichangmentions hepresence f acomparablecenepaintedon thelateralwalls n the leftgangway f the cir-

cumambulationn several aves, ncluding80,whichI havenot beenable overify cf.SuBai,vol.I: 2o7,episode53

ofthetable).

60 As in cave80, in the lunetteunder he barrel aultfacing he entrance intheplaceof theclay-relief umerumoun-

tain,cf. DuanWenjie,vol.II:pl. 161).Thescene s alsopresented n therightwall of caves14andzo7(cf.SuBai,vol.

I: pl. 43).

61 See, orexample, cenesplacedon theleft of theupperrow n the eastern ectionand n the middleoftheupper ow

in the western ectionof cave34'svault(figs.Iand2).

62 In theDivydvaddnand he Tibetan ranslationf theVinaya ftheMdlasarvastivddin,he father s identified s Sub-

hadra, discipleofNirgrantha-jfiatiputrahohasbeenassimilatedo theJainpatriarchontemporaneousoSakya-

muni,whilehis son s called yotiska,the iery'A:Foucher:27,Panglung: 68-169).TheChinese ompilationrom

whichI inferredhis identification anearlyMingeditionof theShishi uanliu inghuahiji(Eventsnd Conversions

oftheBuddha)1425,BeijingLibrary, hengZhenduo und,cat. Xiti shumu0336) peaksof the "brahmans"bolu-

omen). heepisodenarratedn thispopularLifeoftheBuddhas basedonapreviousChinese ompilation,thejinglu"

yixiang,wherewefind n the45thchapter correspondingtory, tselfderivedromaChineseranslationftheMahd

parinirvdnautra, he Dabanniepaning,T. 375,XII(28):788b-89a.The Chinesellustrators ave he meritofrepre-

senting he mother lsoresuscitatedsee, orexample,hepaintingof theJueyuansi,n eastern ichuan,MuXueyong,

Jiangeueyuansimingdaifozhuanihua, .143, pisodeII2z,ndE.Lesbre, Une ncienne ie illustreedu Buddha atant

de I425 Shishi uanliu inghuahiji),et safonctiondemodule,

llustriepar espeinturesmurales uJueyuan i, au

Sichuan riental," rtsAsiatiqueso. 57 tobepublished).

318







themistaken iewsof thefather,when he deadwomanwason thestake,and he incineration ad

alreadytarted.He senthisdisciple, he doctorJivaka o extract he childfrom he mother's elly.

Thechildcameout aliveandprovedhe Buddha o beright,since t wasaboy.His father epented

havingworshippedhe Six Preachersf FalseDoctrines ndbecame onverted o theBuddha.64

7. The falsepregnancy nmasked

The denunciation f a feigned pregnancynvolvingan adeptof the tirthikas (namedCifica

Manavikanthe IndianandTibetan ources)s anothermiraclepratihdrya)ywhich heBuddha,

falselyaccused ythatwoman o havehadsexual ntercourse ithher,denounces ndsubdueshis

libellousrivals.65

Cave80 shows he mostexplicit llustration, pparentlywithout aGandharanntecedent.A

womandressed saKutchans sittingonthe left of theBuddha,herrighthand aid on herbelly,

fromwhich sslippingabigwoodenbowl.Awhitemouse,known o be anephemeralncarnation

ofIndra, leesafterhavingchewed he bonds hatkeptthe falsebellyinplace fig.11).66

8. Conversion f the butcherA thirdepisode n which the Buddhaundoeshis adversaries'ccusationss probablydentifiable

in a cave34sceneat the secondrowof the western ection's ault.

Ayoungmonkkneelswithjoinedhands othe left of the Buddha.Abutcher's nife ies aban-

donedon theground n frontof alyingcow that alsoseems o belistening o the Buddha's each-

ing.An animalhide sdepicted ver heyoungman fig.12). believe hisshouldndicate butcher

whohasgivenuphisprofession.Accordingo the Chineseranslation f theUddnavarga,he Bud-

dhapronouncedome shrewdverses, howingthathe had foreseen hatthe hereticsplanned o

slander im.Thispromptedheiracknowledgementf theBuddha'superiorityver hemselves.67

9. Thesubduingf rtgupta, hepoisonerThe heretic hown o bepouring ood nto theBuddha's owl(middleofthirdrowatthe south-

ern sectionof cave8o'svault)seems o evoke he subduingofSrigupta,whointended o poison

him withfood.Thestoryrelates hat heBuddha ndhisdisciples ouldeatthefoodwithoutbeing

hurt,thanks o a miracleof Sakyamuni.Amazedat this extraordinaryeat,Srigupta epented.Somesourcespresenthim as thebrother-in-lawfJyotiska,mentionedabove.68 is features re

63 This s the version f theChinese ranslationf theMahaparinirvdnazatra,nwhich he mother's oisonings attrib-

uted to the HereticMasters. t seemsmoreprobablehan hat of theDivydvaddna,hichblames hehusband.

64 The scenehasantecedentsn the artofGandhara.Cf. Foucher: 27-528, igs. 258-260.

65 See thesummaryn the Tibetan ranslation f theepisode ncorporatedn theVinaya ftheMulasarvdstivddin,an-

glung:5o;and the French ranslation ccordingo theDhammapadaf Feer, njournalAsiatique,eries9, vol. IX,(1897): 88-317.

66 Cf. DuanWenjie,vol. II:pl. 17I,on the fourth ceneof the fifthrow.

67 Thisepisode s related n theFajupiyujing: . 211, V(3):590-591 section19:"calomny"),nd t canbe traced n the

compilation lready ited,Shishi uanliu inghuahiji Events ndConversions f theBuddha, pisode120o).68 Theepisode s narratedirst n thescriptureselated o theMalasarvastivadinchool, hatis theGenbenhuoyiqieyou

bunituonamudejia:. I452,XXIV 8):444b-445b where he failure fSrigupta'sttempt o make heBuddha all n

319







typicallyhoseof the heretics epicted tKyzil:a Brahmanicordacross bare hest, hehipscov-

eredwith a loincloth allingto hisknees,bearded,he hairdressedn achignon fig. 13).69

IO.The conversionftheKdayapa rothers

Finally, he conversion f the Kasyapa rothersromUruvilva, ire-worshippersith theirhair

tiedin achignon jatila),seems o be evoked n the scenerepresentedt the extreme ightofthesecond owwithin the samedecor n cave80.

a) A serpent ntwines tselfaround heBuddha, ndseemsready ospititsvenom,while aman,

dressed sSrigupta, tands o the left of the Buddha,holdinga jugof water n his left hand

with hisrighthandraised o thesky(fig.14a).

The sceneevokes hesubduingofavenomouserpent tthetempleof theKa-yapa roth-

ers.Thepainted cene romvaults ntheKyzilcaves lightlydiffers rom he Gandharaneliefs,

as the snakedirectlyentwines he Buddha nsteadofstandinguprightnext to him.70

b) The sceneat the fifthrowof cave34'seastern ectionvault belowHa-riti)maybe another vo-

cationof the sameevent.It showsa manwith achignonanda beard.He is dressed s a heretic

in the actofdropping omeobjects nto anexpanse f water fig.I4b).I believe t mayrefer o

thefinalabandonmentytheKa-yapa rothersortheirnephewUpasena) f theirobjectsof

worship,whichthey eventuallyhrew nto a river.

Froma formalpointofview,the scenesabove llustrate n asyntheticmanner he Buddha'sman-

ifestations fsuperiorityver hegodsandheretics,depictingeitherof two moments: heyrepre-

sent thefigureordivinityat theexpense f whomthe demonstrations made,either n the act of

aggression r in thefollowingmomentofbeingsubdued, ymbolizedbythekneelingorsitting

position.It is likelythat otheractsofaggression epictedon the samecategory fceilingsevokeother eatsof Buddha omparableo thosepresented bove.Their dentifications still awaited r

uncertain.7I

a firepit is narratedirst: otus flowersuddenlybloomedupto let him walkon them.Sriguptabecame shamed nd

released iswife(Jyotiska'sounger ister)whobegged he Buddha oforgivehim.Sriguptas said o have atenhim-

selfpartof thepoisoned oodwithoutbeinghurteither.Thestory s also narratedn thepresumedChinese ransla-

tion of the vinayaof the Sarvastivadinchool a translation o whichKumarajivaascontributed,heShisong,

T. 1435,XXIII 61): 64-465.Thisstorymaybecomparedo thosenarratinghepunishment fa manandawoman

whohaverespectively ouredurineandexcrementnsteadof food nto the bowlsofreligiousmendicants.Because f

theirevildeed,theywererebornntopretas Feer,Avaddna-?ataka,os.41and44:162-166and171-174).

69 The scene n cave8, reproducedn SuBai,vol. II:pls. 53and57,maybecomparedwith the middlescene n the sec-

ondrow of the western ection n cave34.Theheretic, eatedon a stoolin cave34,alsoappearso offer ood to theBuddha.

70 ThescenereproducednSuBai,vol.II:pl. 53orthe evenmoreexplicitvariation,n whichandga omesoutofagreen

lake, n the second owofcave196's asternection SuBai,vol.III:pl. 95)maybecomparedo Foucher:49, fig. 224.

71 Menareseenthreateninghe Buddhawitha swordor aplateofstones n scenes ocated n themiddleof the second

and hirdrows n theeasternectionof caveI71's ault.Theabsence fcomplementarylements ndrelated pigraphic

documents oesnot allowprecisedentification.

320







i I;fi IJ .).ei

",!+I

................." -\•

, $o

I xty

\ i

,eA.

i iV

l v l d r

? ? k v

Fig.I MapofKyzilandtheneighbouringKuchanBuddhist hrines.

f ~ c a L

c a v f U - A l

(S.,Ely?75--77

5?3\~?~f?.~+b~~~4?(

Fig.2 General ketchoftheKyzilcaves, howingocationofcaves34,80&IT7.







Fig. 3 Eastern section of ceiling vault of cave 34.







Fig.4 Western ectionofceilingvaultof cave34-







SUBDUINGS

AND CONVERSIONS

Fig. 5 Subduing of Mara(cave 80).

::: t"

'I'

:....

Fig. 6 Subduing of Atavaka(cave 171); afterMa Shichang.

Fig. 7 Subduing of Hdriti (cave 34).

Fig. 8 Subduing of the ndga(cave 80);

afterMa Shichang.







Fig. 9 Harp Contest with Supriya;cave34.

Fig. 11 CincdManavika's alsepregnancy

unmasked(cave 80).

Fig. Io Jyotiska resuscitated(cave 34)







Fig. 12 Conversion of the butcher (cave 34).

Fig. 13 Subduing of Srigupta(cave 80).

Fig. 14 Conversionof the Kasyapas a:cave80,

after Ma Shichang; b: cave 34)-







ALMSGIVING

I IFig. 15 Almsbowl received from celestialkings

(cave 171);afterMa Shichang.

Fig. 16 Offering of food by the merchants (cave 34).







Fig. 17 Mahaprajapati's ift of preciouscloth (cave34). Fig. 18 The offering of flowers(cave 34)-

Fig. 19 Alms of dust (cave34)-







PARABLES

Fig. zo Six animals (cave 34).

Fig.21 Four erpentscave34).Four erpents;he unchastewifewithherlovers'basket,andTodeya eborn sadog(cave80).

Fig. 22 Logofwood's ree loat cave171).







Fig. 23 Bandit hit 300 times (cave I7I). Fig.24 Blind tortoise cave171).

Fig. 25 Child strangled in the well (cave 171);after Ma Shichang.







Fig.26 Monkey rapped nstickygrass

(cave224).

Fig. 27 Rahulaand the jug (cave 34).

Fig.28 Theelephant eaving hesword cave34). Fig. 29 Submission of Devadatta.







OTHER FEATS

Fig. 30 First Sermonin the Deer park(cave 171)-

Fig.31 Buddhapaintinghisself-portraitcave34).







Scenesf exemplarylmsgiving

Anotherprevailinghemeto whichscenescharacterizedythe centralBuddhamotifmaybe related

is that ofAlmsgivingorliberality.Numerous cenesrepresentiguresmaking hegestureofgiving

anobject o the Buddha.Thisobjectmaybeabowl,acloth,a bunchofflowers, scintillatingobject,

an oil lamp,sometimes venareligiousmonument.

I. Buddha eceiveshe almsbowl from he FourKings

The firstoffering,whichBuddha eceived nemergingromhissix-yearast,was heprecious owl

broughtby the FourCelestialKings.It permittedhim to receivealms of foodlikeany begging

monk.At the extreme ightof the second ow ncaveI71's aultedeastern eiling(fig.15), nesees

thepersonificationf the fourkings,who arebeautifullypainted,eachcarrying isbowl,on the

larger ceneof the rightwall of caveIIo.71 Dressedas a militarychief,kneelingwith a halo over

hishead, his characterresents blue bowl to theBuddha.73

Comparinghis to its Gandharanntecedents,heclothinghasbeenadaptedo local ndige-

nous taste.74

2. Offering ood

The foodofferingbymerchantswho become he firstupdsakas orlaydevotees mayberepre-

sentedto the rightin the fourthrowof cave34'seastern ectionvault. Herea bare-chestedman

seemsto takesomething romthe load borneby two lyingcows(fig.16).I believethe moment

alluded o mightbe the Buddha'seachingdelivered o the merchants efore heirhandingover

ofalms,sinceBuddha s not shownofferinghis bowl.

3. Pirna'salms

In the second ceneof caveI7I'supperrow n the eastern ection, heBuddha s shownreceiving

abowlfromanotherman.Theabsence fahalo ndicates hatheis ahuman,notagod.Hisclothes,sobererhan hoseoftheCelestialKing,seem osuggest hathe is theson of a noble amily:bare-

chested,he wearsalongblue oincloth,a turban verhishair,anda roundnecklace.MaShichang

recognizes urna's ffering ffood or heBuddha's owl.75 hisgiftwasrewarded hundredfold

byan infiniteharvest f cereals ransformedntogold,which wouldgrow againafterbeingcut.

Thekingsawthismiracle,as didPurna's rothers,whocouldnotbelieve hat theirpoorbrother

hadsuddenlybecome o rich.Consequentlyheytoo convert o the Buddha.This reward f golden

cereals oncerns oth the act ofalmsgiving,which s symbolized ignificantly ere,and mplicit

72 Cf.SuBai,vol. II:pl. 116andvol. III:pl. 5,andMaShichang:zoo, fig.198.A fragment f thesamescenewas also

painted n the shrineofDuldur-Aqur,ee Gies andCohen eds.,as in noteI5): at.I92.73 Accordingo E.Huber, hisepisodes indeed ocatedunder he TreeofAwakeningnthealreadyitedChinese rans-

lationof the northern ersionof theDhammapada,heChuyaoing(T. 212, V(12)), ontraryoMahdavasturadition

(cf.Huber,B.E.F.E.O., 904:462).

74 Cf.for nstance, he reliefofSikri, n Foucher:17,fig.2Io.75 MaShichang: oz, no.2,where he sectionof the vault ndicatedhasbeenmistaken or he leftone,when t oughtto

be therightone.

333







recognition f the Buddha'superiorityver heBrahmanicystem owhich1rna belonged rig-

inally.76

4. Theepisodeof themonkeyhospontaneouslyffers bowl ffresh almsap o the Buddha s illus-

trated n the samevault's irst cene n thefourthrowofthe section.77 s areward, e wasprom-

isedaprivileged ebirth.

5. Thegiftofthefirstmonasteryo theBuddha'sncreasingly umerousommunity fdisciplesbythe

richmanofSravasti, udattaAnathapindada,s probably voked n a sceneshowingan architec-

tural lement.Numerous iftsof monasteriesrstupas nd heirrewardsredescribedn the Bud-

dhistscriptures. nd heceilingof cave171 resentshree ceneswith apieceof sucharchitecture.78

One mustadmit that it is impossible o tell precisely romthe solepaintingwhich eventthey

depict.

6. Mahaprajapatiautami's ift ofaprecious loth

Theofferingofaprecious lothbythe Buddha'step-mother,Mahapraj'apati,ppearso be well

identifiablen a scene ocated n cave34'svault in the fourthrow of the eastern ection:a well-

dressedkneelingwomanpresentsa foldedcloth,placedon a traywhichshe carries n herhead

(fig.17).Mahaprajapatispresented ysomescripturesshavingofferedhe Buddha ndhis dis-

ciples orcommunity?)wo monastic oats,wovenbyherself, s shewasrequesting ermissiono

becomea nun.

This scenethus indirectlyrefers o the difficulties n founding he femaleBuddhistorder,

acceptancef whichwassupposedo implythe fall of BuddhistLawmuchearlierhanpreviously

planned.79

76 Accordingo theChinese cripture .2o3,IV(49):469-470, Purna'stranslitteratedfuna)lmsconsisted f rice.His

fourbrothersollowhisexamplebyeachoffering rejoicing ill to theBuddha,whilemaking hewish to be reborn

amongthedevas.LikePurna, heyreach he stateofandgamin,nter ntoreligion,andreach he saintliness f the

arhat.Accordingo the Sanskrit ersionof theAvaddnaSatakaranslated yFeer,Purnapouredallsortsof solid and

liquidfood nto theBuddha's lms-bowl,whoin turnpouredt into the bowlsof theI,ooo bhiksus.Buddha's owl

neverthelessemainedull (Feer,Avaddna-(atakao. I: 25).The Chinese ranslations moredetailed:Purnas pre-

sentedasarichbrahman,ather hanapoorpeasant,who firsthears f the Buddhahrough friend oming romRa-ja-

grha.TheincensePurnaburns rom hetopof ahigh buildingto invitethe Buddha s saidnotonlyto remain us-

pendedas cloudsontopof theBuddha's eadbut also o haveperfumedhe wholecity(T. 2oo,IV:2zo3).77 Cf.SuBai,vol.III:pl. 8,MaShichang:2ol, fig.94, andFoucher:513, ig. 254 stupaofSikri).

78 In the next to last sceneontheright n thethirdrowofthewestern ection,a monk s shownkneelingon therightof

theBuddha,hishands oined,whilearectangularmeditation ell ispaintedonthe left.MaShichang lso dentifies

a monastic ell in thepointed riangular bjectrepresentedehind he monkdepicted n another ceneat therightendoftheupperrow.Finally,on the extreme ightof the thirdrow n the eastern ection,aman,dressedn a mer-

chant'sbluecoat,kneelsandholdsa cloth n his hands. t maybeunderstoods agestureofdonation,whileastupa

with severalevels s representedehindhim(cf.DuanWenjie,vol.II:pl. 193).

79 Thegift of twogarments hehaswoven s mentionedn T. 1421,XXIV 29): 85b,presumablyhe Chinese ransla-

tion oftheMahisdkavinaya,ythe Cashmeree uddhajiva423).Theshortening ftheBuddhistLawbecausehe Bud-

dhaaccepted oundation f the nuns'order s explicitlymentionedn numerousexts,such asT. 26, I (28):605c,

334







7. Theofferingof flowers

Theofferingof flowers o the Buddha ppearsn numeroustoriesand s oftendescribed sbeing

rewardedysomemiraculous vent.A mandressedn a loinclothandascarf, turban nhishead,

standsupand offersa bunchof flowerso theBuddhawith hisrighthand fig.18).Is he thegar-

den-keeper f theJetavanan Sravastiwho offeredhimself he lotus which bothAnathapindada

and a discipleof the tirthikaswanted o buyfromhim in viewof offering t to theircompeting

religiousmasters?Or doesherepresenthe inhabitants fRajagrha ho,atthesightof the Bud-

dha,decided o offerhim flowers riginallydestined or theirtyrannical ing, despite he death

penalty heywould receive ordoingso?8o

In the caseof the dramatic ndingofthe latter toryandtheofferingmadebythe old woman

beggarNandadescribed elow, hetaleendswith the Buddha's rophecyvydkarana)romising

to realize he wish(pranidhadna)orafuture ife formulated ythese igures.Acomparisonf these

scenesmaytherefore e drawnwith other"scenes f wishes" dentified n Kutchanpaintings.81

8. Thescintillatingobject,presented yanotherman,kneeling dressednalongblue oinclothand

wearing knotted urbanwhilecrownedwithahalo)hasbeen nterpretedstheprecioustone eing

offeredy heBrahmanewelerfourth ceneofcaveI7I'supper owof the western ection).82ncave

80weprobably ave he sameBrahman ressed sa Kutchanmerchantsceneat the extreme ight

ofthe fifthrow).83

9. Thesymbolicalmsof dust

I believe heofferingof dust(Pdnsu-pradana)yayoungchild is illustrated n thelastscene,half

preservedn the fourth owof cave34'swestern ectionvault(fig.I9).The Buddha ondescendso

present isbowl o thechild o receive issymbolic lms.He informs imofaprophecyvydkarana):

T 196,IV:158a-b, heBhiksunivinayaf theMahasamghika-lokottaravadinchool transl.n FrenchromSanskrit yE.Nolot, Regles edisciplineesnonnesouddhistes,accard, aris,1991: -9).

80 See he last sceneon the extreme ightof theupper ow ncave34'swestern ectionand he central cene n theupper

rowof cave 71'seasternection,where he mankneelsandwears narrow ieceofclothacross is bare hest thebrah-

man'scord).The SanskritAvaddnaSatakancludesa few stories nvolving loralofferings. n caseof the lotus flower

Anathapindadanda tirthikas deptbothwanted o buyfrom hegardener,he talesays hatafter hegardener ad

thrown he lotus onto theBuddha,t became sbigas the wheelof a chariot ndremaineduspended ntopofBud-

dha'shead "padmavadana,"o.7, Feer: 1-43).Inthe "Nirmala"tory, he mimosa ent to theBuddhabyanother

gardenermmediately rowsasa treewhenfallingto theground no.29, Feer:1o8--o9).

Neither of theseextraodi-

nary eatshasbeendepictedn the ozenge,whichmay ndicate hatthe ast nterpretation,roposed yMaShichang:

199 or cave171,s moresuitable: hestoryof inhabitants f Rajagrhas described n thepresumedChinese ransla-

tion of theAvaddnaSataka,Zhuanji aiyuaning,T. zoo, IV(6):229(53rdection),but it doesnotappearn the late

sanskrit ext translated yFeer.81 Cf. the exhibition atalogSerinde, erre eBouddha, aris,R.M.N,1995:145, l. 65 (afragmentnowkept n theHer-

mitageMuseum,StPetersburg,whichwasbrought romKyzil's"cave f thedemons"i.e.cave198)byBerezovskin

1905.82 This dentifications suggestedbyMaShichang.TheepisodesdescribednthealreadyitedZabaozangjing,. zo3,

IV(7), 79thsection:480c-48Ia.Note thatthefirst ceneofthe samerow s formally eryclose.

83 Cf. DuanWenjie,vol.II:pl. 173.

335







thathe will be bornagain o becomeaking(Aloka).This famous tory,whichwas llustrated n

the Gandharananels,84lso nspired beautiful nd arger aintingon the side-walls f thenearby

sanctuarytKumtura.s85

IO.The oldbeggar's lmsoflampoil

Finally,he lit oil lamp hatakneelingwomanpresentsothe Buddhawithbothhands caveI7I'swestern ectionat therightendof the fifthrow).Itprobablyllustrates heexemplary evotionof

the oldbeggarNanda,who didnot hesitate o giveall she hadcollected n herquest, n order o

buythe oil destined o feedonelamp n the Buddha's ihdra.Thesincerity fher aithmakes he

lampshine hroughouthenight,while the Buddha eplieswith aprophecyhatanswers erwish

to be bornagain na bettercondition norder o freeher ellowbeings romevil.86

Ii. Avaricious odeya eborn sadog

The second cene,with a whitedog lyingon asquare tonenextto a recipient,depictedon cave

80'sceilingin the fourthrowof the southern ection fig.21), seems o illustrate he rewardor

punishment)or ackofliberality.By depictinga bad ate that s, reincarnation,ere, nthe ani-

malphase deserved yonewho refuses ogivealms, his scenemaybeinterpretedsanindirect

enticement o almsgiving.

A housemastertands o the left of theBuddha,his handsrestingon a sword.Thisgesture s

probablyan allusionto the aggressivenessf SubhamanavaTodeyaputta"theson of Todeya")

towards heBuddha,whosearrival rovoked isdog'sbarking. ndeed, heBuddhahasjust rep-

rimanded hedogforhis meannesswhena richman n hispreviousife. Inorder o demonstrate

that the dog is none other than the reincarnationf Todeya, he housemaster'sather,Buddha

orders im togoandunearth hefamily reasure, hich srepresentedytherecipient hownnext

to theanimal.

Theepisode, eportedntheMadhyamdgama,xisted nGandharanculptedpanelsandpassedinto the laterLifeof the Buddha ompiledn Chinaandalready ited.87

84 Cf.Divyavadana26),citedbyFoucher. heepisodewassculptedn the Gandhdraanels, f. Foucher:I57, fig.z55, n

which the Buddha s shownstandingup.A Chinese ranslationf theepisodecanalso be found n theXianyu ing

(SU-traf the Wise and heFool)T. zoz02,V(3):368c(I7thsection).

85 As one canjudge rom hefragment epositedbytheRussianBerezovski, owkeptin theErmitageMuseum:Gies

andCohen eds.,as in noteI5): at.94.

86 Thestory s told in theXianyu ing(Sutra ftheWise ndtheFool),T. zoz02,V(3):370-372(20othpisode)where he

namegivento the femalebeggar s Nanduo, hesame ranscriptions one usedforBuddha's andsome ousinand

refractory isciple.She s not named n theTibetanVinaya f the Malasarvastivadincf.Panglung: 5). n theChi-

nese tory, heBuddha ccepts erentry ntoreligionandpromises er hatshewill reach he BuddhahoodIookalpas

later.The second ourcemakest clear hat the womanbeggarwill resuscitate s aSakyamuni uddha, ndplacesher

offeringn the contextofhospitality xtendedbyKingPrasenajito the Buddha nd o hiscommunity,o whom he

kinghasofferedmany amps n thehopeofasimilarprophecy Panglung: 5).The dentifications mentionedbyMa

Shichang:0zo,ig. 27.Foradetailed eproductionf theequivalentcene n caveIo8,cf.DuanWenjie,vol.3:pl.o108.87 Todeya s thepdlinamequoted n the notesappendingo the Chinese ranslation,whileHuber,citedbyFoucher,

spells t Taudiya.Cf.Foucher:524-525 nd ig.257b,Shishi uanliu inghuahiji: pisode107,andT. 26, I(44):703c.

The scene s reproducedn SuBai,vol.II:pl. 53,andDuanWenjie,vol. II:pl I72.

336







Rewardsfor these famousacts of generosityandpunishments forbeing reluctant to give alms

werecertainlyknown by pilgrims. Tales wereprobablynarrated o them during their visit to the

sites orduring "narrative erformance"heatricalplaysbased on the 'feats'and'former ives' of the

Buddha.Fragmentsof them have been discoveredin Kyzil. Froma materialpoint of view, these

examplesofpiety andgenerosityremindedthepilgrims of theirobligationto be charitable owards

the Buddhist community, where most of the alms were directed towardsshelter, clothing, and

food.88

Should its identification be correct,cave I7I's scene at the extreme right of the western sec-

tion's lower row couldbe understoodasexhortingthe devouts to begeneroustowards he religious

community. Two monks arerepresentedunderatree,onewearinga blue monasticgarment,hold-

ing a long object in his right hand(maybe a rolledparchmentor a stick), andseeming to teach the

other,painted lowerdown, dressedwith a green kasdya,his handsjoined in asign of submission.

Ma ShichangandYao Shihong agreethat this scene evokes the conditions forreligious teaching

to succeed, i.e. that disciples be freed from all preoccupationabout food.89

In cave I7I, in particular, many scenesof liberality areillustrated,yet too succinctly to allow

identification of a particularepisode in Buddha's life. One may question whether these scenesall

refer o precisemoments ofSakyamuni's hagiography,or whethertheywere intended to stimulate

believers to give alms generously.Kyzil dependedon this generosity materially,asdid the other

Kutchan sanctuaries hat weredenselypopulatedandrichlydecorated.

Some Kutchan inscriptions, notablya passageof the Karmavibhangahat Levi has translated

into French,presentsan interesting echo to the general invitation to liberality.The English ver-

sion says:"Therefore,he who wishes to be happyat all times must give with joy."9o

The Buddha's arablesorscenes f metaphoriceachings

The parablesarethe third prevailing categoryto which referscenes characterizedby the motif of the

centralBuddha painted on mixed ceilings of the Kyzil worship-caves.From a formalpoint of view,

nothing evoked thus farpermits them to be distinguished from other events in Buddha'scareer.This

category, establishedby Yao Shihong, still appearsappropriateto describea significant number of

88 Thefourth egular lms-giving oncernsmedicaldrugs.Contraryo the threeother ypesofalms, t isaccidental. he

vital character f thesealmsdonations or the Buddhistcommunity xplains heremarkableontinuitywithwhich

these notable xamples ontinued o be illustratedwith the samepopularityn China,anduntil the lasttwodynas-

ties,asexemplified ythe illustratedLives f heBuddha,irculatednprintorpaintedonthewallson Buddhist em-

ples(suchastheShishi uanliuyinghuahijialreadymentionedand the muralpaintingsof theJueyuansin eastern

Sichuan, iangecounty).

89 Adisciplewasunable o learn he sitraswhenhe started o feelhungry.He recovered isfacultyofconcentrationhe

daythat adevotee ookchargeof his meansof subsistence.Cf.YaoShihong: 4 (no.62),MaShichang: oz-zo3, no.38andfig.o102,ndXianyu ing,T.2o2, IV(Io):417a-b 45thsection).

90 Thefragmentaryerses o to I3arecentered round he actofliberality.Cf.S.Levi,"Fragmentsetexteskoutcheens,

Uddnavarga, dinastotra,Uddnalamkarat Karmavibhanga,ublids t traduits vecunvocabulairet uneintroduc-

tion sur e 'tokharien'"Kuchanragmentaryexts from he Uddinavarga,ddinastotra,dndlamkdarandKarmavib-

hanga, ublished nd ranslated ith avocabularyndan ntroductiono the"tokharian"),nCahierse aSoci&tAsi-

atique,irst eries,Paris,1933:o2.

337







sceneswith a centralBuddha tudiedhere.Even ftheirprecisemoralnterpretations notalways asytounderstand,n thewhole, heir unction eems oencourage eligiouspractice ndsensual elf-con-

trol. Thesesceneshaveno knownprecedentsn Indianart or laterChinesepaintings.9ITheyseem

specifico Kutchanpictorial rt.

Inmostcases, hepainter hows he unfortunateewards fbreachingherules.Theonlypositive

parable one well known o symbolizehe idealadvanceo nirvana showsatree runk loatingun-

hindered, arried ythe river o the sea.The mplicitlydescribed usterities reaimedatcontrolling

the sensesgenerally rrejecting hetemptation f lust inparticular. etme startwiththeparables f

generalnature.

I. The six animals

The astscene ncave34'swestern ectionattherightof thesecond owshows ix animals ttached

to a stakeplanted n frontof the Buddha's hrone rying o flee n alldirectionsfig. 2o). A monk

is seatedon theleft,his hands oined,as if listening o the Buddha'seaching.Thesix animals

snake, rocodile,dog, jackal,bird,andmonkey illustrate he six-fold ense phere eye-sight,

ear-hearing, ose-smelling, ongue-taste,body-touch, ndmind-thought each eading o dif-

ferentandcontradictoryctivitiesandsensations nlessoneexercisesestraint rbodyconscious-

ness,symbolizedbythestake.91

Indeed,whenfeeling hungry, he snake ries to enter he burrow,he crocodile o enterthe

water, he bird ofly ntheair, hedogtoenter hevillage, hejackalo visit the charnelield,and

themonkey o return o the forest.Only bodyconsciousnessllowsone's enses o stopthestrug-

gle topulloneself oward harming bjects.

2. The fourvenomous erpents

Thefableof the fourvenomous erpents,hefiveenemies,and hesixthieves s another arable f

evenmoregeneralnature. twasrelated n the same ectionof the treaties fcontemplationormed

bythemixedgamas Samyuktdgama).hesewere ranslatedntoEnglishnicelyby RhysDavids.

It is representedn caveI7I'sbarrel ault at the extreme eft of thesixth row n the western

sectionas well asin cave8o'sthirdrowof the southern ection fig.21).A bare-chestedman n a

long blueloincloth,wearinga necklace, its on a seat to the rightof the Buddha.Next to him

appears nopenbasket romwhichfourheadsofserpents merge.

The story ells thata mandarin aises ourvenomous erpentsn a basket,until the day hathe

realizes hat f thesereptilesbecame rritatedwith him, theycouldkill him. In a momentof panic,

he abandonshe basketandrunsaway,but immediately omesacross ivemurderousoes,armed

with knives,who threaten o kill him. Havingescaped rom hem,he hears bouta sixthone,who

91 The illustration, painted on the southern wall of Dunhuang cave 257 (dating Northern Wei), of the suicide of the

monk to whom a young woman had made advances,is an exceptional Chineseexample of loyalty to monastic rules.

92 This story appearsin the SaldyatanaBookof the P-li version of the SamyuktdgamaL. Feer [ed.], Samyutta-nikdya,

H. Frowde, London,1884,text IV, 197, XXXV, IV, 5-zo6), and in its Chinese translationin Ioo chaptersby Gunab-

hadra,the Za a'han ing: T. 99, II (43):313a-b(verse27I). See the English transl.by Rhys Davids, The Bookofthe Kin-

dredSayings,Luzac &Co., London, I950,vol. 4: I30-132("TheSix Animals," in "KindredSayingsof the Senses").

338







yet again,wants o takehis life. He findsrefuge nanemptyvillage,whereallhouseshe entersare

deserted,moldyandcrumbling.Learninghatrobbersregoingtoplunderheplace,he runsaway,

but hisflightsooncomes oa haltbya riverwhichbarshisway.He buildsa makeshift aft, ome-

howcrosses heriver, nd,crawling n his handsandknees,he reachesheother hore nd s finallyfreed romallhis torments.93

The Buddha xplainshemeaningof this simileto the monks: he four erpents rappednthebasket reametaphoror hefour lements earth,water,wind,and ire theemptyvillagealludes

to thepersonal ix-foldsensespherementionedabove... and the othershore securityandsafety

from ears)s a name or henirvana,iberation rom he hold of the sensesover he humanbeing,

whichhasto be reachedhrough ffort.

3. Thepigeon,theraven, heserpent, ndthe deer

If its interpretations correct, he scenerepresentedn caveI71'shalf-lozenge ituatedat the

extremeeft of the thirdrow n thewestern aultsectionmayalsorefer ogeneralappeasementf

thepassions:Buddhapresentshesufferingsausedbycarnal esire,hungerand hirst,angerand

fear allhindrancesoEnlightenment asthe worst ears, espectively,f thepigeon,raven, er-

pent,and deer.94 he Uddnavargaresents he fouranimalsaspreviousncarnationsf the four

monks o whomBuddhadelivers histeaching.Hence hismetaphormaybeassimilated sa"pre-

vious ife" ale,whichexplains heabsence f the Buddha igureand ts replacementythefigureof anascetic, dentifiedbyWaldschmidt sViryabala.95

4. Thelog ofwoodfloatingwithouthindrance

Theadvance owardsiberation romisedbythenirvdnasexceptionallyllustratedn theparableof thetree runk loatingwithouthindranceo the sea.Itsuggestsa fluidprocess atherhana fran-tic raceon a road ull ofobstructions.

To the left, a bhiksuits on a cushion,hands oined.Underthe throneof Buddha, here s a

greenexpanse f wateroverwhich a long object loats fig.22).YaoShihongrecognizes ere he

great ogof woodmentionedntheparablenwhich he Buddha omparestsfree loat oward he

ocean o theattitudeofdetachment equiredo reach henirvdna.

As themonk comes o reporthis achievementso theBuddha, heBuddha ellshim thathe

shouldprogresswithoutattachment nd withoutbreaching ispractice, ustas thelog of wood

advanceswithoutbeingstranded n eitherbank,withoutsinkingorbeingstoppedbyanyislet,

withoutbeingcaught n thewhirlpools rrotting nwardly. o should hemonkprogress ntilhe

93 This story appears n the SaldyatanaBookof the Samyutta-nikdyatext IV, 197, XXXV, IV, 5-197: Asivisa),and in its

Chinese translation mentioned above, the Za ahanjing: T. 99, II (43): 313b-c (verse272) (cf. Yao Shihong: 148).See

the English transl. in Davids. (asabove):vol. 4: Io7-IIo ("Thesnake").

94 This story is narrated n the chapter"On the appeasement [of the passions]"(anningpin: section 25)of the Fajupiyu

jing, one of two principal Chinese translations of the Uddnavarga, f. T. 211, IV (3):594c-595b.

95 Lecoqand Waldschmidt (as in note 2),vol. 7: 42-43, where the scenedescribed belongs to the vaulted ceiling of cave

II4. This scene is also illustrated in two more caves,of which 17is exclusively decorated with jdtaka scenes (Yao Shi-

hong: 75 [no. 651, 93and 122).For a detailed reproductionof the scene, see Duan Wenjie, vol. II:pl. 186 orSu Bai, vol.

I:pl. 67.

339







reacheshe finalreward fnirvdna ithout alling nto the stream f lureand ust or into thesor-

rowsandpleasures f the senses.96

Retribution orevil behaviors illustratedntheparablesboutaprisonerwho stortured nceas-

ingly byblowswith a lanceandof a blind tortoisewho stickshis head hrougha hole n adrifting

plank.

5. The bandithit threehundred imes

Theparable f a bandithit300timeswith aspearwithout herespiteof death llustrates eserved

infernal unishmentor icentiousbehavior.

To theright,abare-chestedman,dressed n ablue oinclothwitha white turban nhishead

andhis left kneeon theground,hashis handsboundbehindhis back fig.23).His left shoulder s

pierced by a three-prongedork.This seems to justifyidentificationby Yao Shihongof the

metaphor f a thiefcaughtred-handed ndhanded ver o thekingforexemplary unishment:

Thekingordershathe shouldbepierced ootimeswith a lanceatdawn; hen,seeing hathe

is still alive,Ioo moreblowsare nflictedat noon,andIoo more n the evening,until the bodylooks ike a holedcoin.

TheBuddha esortso thismetaphoro illustrate heeverlastingorments f hellpromisedo

the dishonest.97

6. TheBlind Tortoise

Themetaphor f the blindtortoise s illustratedn cave171 fourth ceneof the sixth row n the

western ection):

on theright,a monkkneelswith his hands oined.There s anexpanse fgreenwaterbehind

the Buddha's hrone.A floatingwoodenplankhasa holethroughwhicha tortoisepassests head

(fig. 4).Thisstory omes oonafter hepreceding ne nthe Chineseranslationf theMadhyamdgama,

when theBuddhadescribes hesufferings nduredbythoseborn n theanimalphase or ackof

wisdom.He tellsthis to illustrate hedifficulty ftransmigrationnto the humanphaseonceone

has allen ntothe animal ne.Theprobability fgoodtransmigrationsjustas ikelyasthe chance

of a blindtortoisepassing ts neckthrough he hole of a driftingplankpushedby the wind on a

river.

96 Cf.the fourth cene n the second owof caveI7I'sbarrel ault n the western ection, n SuBai,vol.III:pl. 8,andYao

Shihong:153fig.- ), I54-155.As thefirst woprevious pisodes,his oneappearsn theSamyutta-nikdyatextIV,197,

XXXV, V,5-200:Darukkhandha)nd ts ChineseranslationZaahaning,T.99,II [43]:314c: erse274).SeeDavids

(as n note89),vol.4:113-116"Theog ofwood").

97 The scene s at the extremeeft of the second ow n caveI71's astern ectionvault.Cf. SuBai,vol. III:pl. 8. Inthe

Chinese ranslation f theMadhyamdgamayGautama amghadeva,hekingis namedShalidingsheng,aid o cor-

respondo theIndiannameKhattiyamuddhdvasittaZhonghaning,T. 26, I [53]: 59c-76oa).

98 This is a parableusedto illustrate he fruitsof Ignorance, sopposed o Wisdom,to whichthe chapters devoted

(T.26, I [53]: 6Ib-c).SeeYaoShihong: 46(fig.2),147,andSuBai,vol.III:pl. 8.

340







7. The child strangledin a well

The parableof the child strangledin a well is an explicit warningagainstlust, representedwithin

the cave 171vault's third scene in the third row of the western section (fig. 25) and in cave 80

(extremeright).99

A woman stands on one side of the Buddha,while the headof a child seems to be caught in a

rope, emerging from the top of a rectangularconstruction representing a well. The episode,

identifiedbyMaShichang,has been translated nto FrenchbyChavannes:amother,having come

to the well with her child to draw water, meets a handsome lute player. In ordernot to be dis-

turbed while she is carryingon with the player,she attaches the child. But, in the middle of her

pleasures,she does not notice that the child has fallen into the well and thatthe ropeis strangling

him.0oo

This episode, related in the section on carnaldesire of the Chuyao ing, aChinesetranslationof

a Uddnavargaversion with commentary,probablyillustrates the following verses: "ODesire, I

know your root; it is in the imagination that you are born. I shall not imagine you, andyou will

not be born in me."Io1

8. The monkey trappedon sticky grass

The parableof the monkey trappedon sticky grass, illustrated on the upperrow of cave 80's pre-

servedvault section, and still more explicitly in cave 224 (fig. 26), is also a warning against sen-

sorystains in this world.

A ginger-coloredmonkey is shown leaning forward,hands andfeet stuck on a squaresurface.

In a mountainous region, peopled with men and monkeys, a hunter applies onto the grassa

glue made from glutinous millet. The clever monkey, who saw him do it, walks away from the

trap,whereasan idiot monkey, attractedby the smell, is caught, sticking firstone front leg, then

the second, then the backlegs, then his mouth until his whole body collapsesand he is caught by

the hunter. o2

This parableseems to be aparticularwarning against the temptationsto which the monks are

likely to be subjectedwhen they beg for food in the secularworld.

99 Cf. SuBai,vol. III:pl. 9, andvol. II:pl. 53,andMaShichang:200oo,ig.93.

Ioo Cf.E.Chavannesas nnote47)vol. III:268-269,no.478, inwhich hestory s translatedrom heChineseBuddhist

compilation roduced nderEmperorWu oftheLiangdynasty, heJinglii ixiang.

IoI SeetheFrenchranslation yN. P.Chakravarti,'UddnavargaanskritMissionPelliotenAsieCentrale, nfinished

edition),A. Maisonneuve, aris, 930,vol.I.TheexactChinese ranslation f the same tanzasfound ntheChuyao-

jing,T. 212, V(4):626c-627a.Thestoryof the childstranglednthewell isplacedbetween everal epetitions f the

samestanza.Thesamestory s found n theVinaya f theMu-lasarvastivadin,n which theyoungwomanmeets theBuddhandespairorthedeathof thechild, converts, nd reachesainthoodcf.Panglung: 5).

102 Thisepisode s told in "TheGreatChapter n theStations fMindfulness"f theSamyutta-nikdyalready ited(text

V, 146,III,I/7:Makkata)nd n theChinese ranslation f theSamyuktdgamaT. 99, II [24]:I73b-c:verse620).See

YaoShihong: 47-148andDavids as n note89):vol. 5:127-128.Fora reproductionf thescene, ee SuBai,vol. II:

pl. 53 cave80).A moreexplicitversion, nwhich hehunterappearsocarry wayhisprey, s seen n cave224 (cf.Su

Bai,vol.III:pl. 151,irst ull-lozenge ceneoftheupper ow n theeastern ection).

341







Finally, woscenes, ituatedone above he otheron thevaultedceilingof cave34,are nter-

pretedastwometaphorsntendedby the Buddha or his youngson Rahula.They llustrate he

unfortunateonsequencesftellinglies.

9. R-ahuland hejugof water

At thecenter f the thirdrow nthevault'swesternection,ayoungmonk, eft kneeontheground,

holdsajugof water n hisrighthandand hetailof his monastic oat nhis left hand.Alargecup

is lying on the ground n front of the Buddha,who hasjustkickedit awaywith his left foot

(fig. 27). 13

In order o stophis sonRahula,whois a youngnovicesevenyearsold, from ellinglies, the

Buddha rders im totakeabasinand o washhis feet.He askshimthen, f it werepossible ouse

it forcooking.Rahula aysno,andunderstandshe lessonabout ies,whichmay ead ocompara-

bleconsequences. hen,the Buddha hrows he basinontothegroundandkicks t with hisfeet,

andasksRahulawhetherhe is afraidhat t maybreak.Thenegative eply romhis songives way

to a further eprimand, ecause though ouarea Shaman,et being nableoguard ourmouth r

yourongue,ouaredestined,sa small nd nsignificanthing, obewhirledn the ndlessddiesftrans-

migration anobjectfcontempto all theWise.104

Io. Theelephantwho leaves he sword

The second cene,painted ustabove heprevious ne,ontheupper owof the samevaultsection,

represents youngmonk,standingwith his headbowedas a sign of obedience o the Buddha;

belowhim is anelephant ying down,in front of whichis painteda sword,set on the ground

(fig.28).

In theFajupiyujing,he otherknownChinese ranslationf the Uddnavarga,hemetaphor f

theelephants associated ithawarning gainsties,translatedyBealas ollows:"Lethemguard

against he arrow hatstrikesnthemiddle!Let hemkeep heirmouth, esttheydieand all ntothemiseryoffuturebirths n thethreeevilpaths!"ioshe Buddha xplains o his sonthattelling

lies is asserious sthemistakeofawarelephantwho, nsteadofkeeping he mostvulnerable art

of his body,his trunk,down,rolls t up to catcha swordandengages n the hostilities.An ele-

phantthat showssuchexcessive rdorduringcombatas to forget he mortaldangerofexposing

histrunk o enemyarrows houldberemoved rom hearmy.Telling iesis thuspresented s the

firstof theIo faultsandcondemnshe liarto a rebirthn the threeevilpaths.'o?An equivalentcene s paintedonthe last row second cene)of cave80, except hat nomonk

is paintedandthe sword s set vertically n the trunkof an elephant,which is lying down.It is

impossibleo knowwhether his refers o thesameparable r llustrateshe attacked against he

103 Cf.SuBai,vol.III:pl. 78.

104 SeeFajupiyu ing(T. 2II,IV:599[33rdection]),and ts English ranslation, . Beal,TheDhammapada,ection31,

"TheElephant":143.

lo5 Beal asabove):144.

1o6YaoShihong:150-151.

342







Buddha by the elephant Nalagiri, sent by Devadatta.Indeed, Gandharanreliefsshowed the ele-

phant, attacking the Buddha, chargingwith a weaponin his trunk, which some sourcesidentify

as a sword.1o7

This is a good example of the difficulty of interpretingscenes on vaults characterizedby the

centralBuddhapattern.Nevertheless, it is likely that both scenes havebeendepicted onvaults in

cave34, which maybe distinguished because ofa figure representednext to the elephant.Indeed,

the third scene in the easternsection'ssecondrow not only depicts anelephantlying down (with-

out aweapon)but includes a young man in laydressinsteadof the monk represented n the scene

on the vault'sopposite section (fig. 29). This young manmaybe identified asDevadatta, a cousin

of the Buddha, afterhis releasingdrunkenelephantshadfailed to kill the Buddha.

Otherfeats f theBuddha

There areafewpaintedscenes in the vaultedceilings ofthe "mixed" ype that cannot berankedamong

the three thematic categoriesoutlined above. They may still be mentioned briefly. They include the

First SermonftheBuddha n theDeerParkofBenaresos(fig. 29), asceneoftendepicted in alargerscale

on the caves' main walls;Io9theself-portraitaintedbytheBuddha(fig. 30) to allow andspreadhis cult

(basedon his image that the otherpaintershad failed toachieve)•o;

and theMiraculousCrossing fthe

Ganges."'Anothersceneseems to illustratetheConversionf Ugrasena,who hadbroken all ties with his

noble family and was living asa strolling player,forthe sake of his beloved femaledancer."1

107 Su Bai, vol. II:pl. 53;Foucher: ig. 75,267-269, andthe Chinese ranslation f the Ekottardagama,. 125,II (9):

59oa-59Ia.

IO8Thesecond cene, econd ow,eastern ection ncaveI7I, scharacterizedythepresence ftwodeers,painted ymet-

ricallyon thethroneuponwhichthe Buddhas sitting.Totherightof theBuddha, kneelingmonkprobablyym-bolizes he first ivedisciplesof theBuddha,whorenounce heir ormer sceticpractice. t is thus animplicitrecog-nition of thesuperiority f the Lawofthe Buddha verotherpractices.

log There saverybeautiful xampleon therightside wall in cave224(SuBai,vol.3:pl. 136).

IIOThis is the caseregardingcenes ituatedatthethirdrowofthe eastern ection n caves34(totheextremeeft of the

sixpreservedcenes)and171 second ceneof thefivewith a centralBuddha):he Buddhaholdsapaintbrushn his

righthand,whichhebringsonto a rectangularanvas resentedo him bya monk,whoholds t bytheuppercor-

ners.Severalimilar toriesdescribe ings,whoworrywhetherheywillbeable o imagine heBuddha fterhisdeath

butresolve heproblembythemiraculousntervention f the Buddha,whoeitherpaintshis self-portraitrrepro-duceshis effigy nstantaneouslyn a myriad-fold.TheXianyu ing (Sfitra f the Wise andtheFool),quotedbyMa

Shichang, resentsKingBosaiqiVasuki?)s thepatron f84,ooo picturespaintedafter hemodelmadebythe Bud-dhahimself,whose magetheartistscould notcapture.Theseeffigieswerethendistributedo the samenumber f

countries norderoallow hemtovenerate heBuddha.Thestory omesrightafter heOffering f Dustbythechild

who will laterbebornasKingA'oka.This formsanassociation etweenbothpatronkingsandthelegendaryigureofpaintingsorpagodaswhichthey sponsor. eeT. 202, IV(3):368c-369a(I7thsection).TheGuanfoanmei ai ing

(T.643,XV)givesanother ersion,nwhich heBuddha roduces series fimagesofhimself,accordingothevision-

arypractice f theSamadhi o appeaseheanxietyofKingSuddh6danat theideaofSakyamuni isappearing. hislastepisode s illustrated n thealreadymentionedChineseLifeoftheBuddha, hishi uanliu inghuahiji Events ndConversionsf theBuddha,1425: pisode93).

III Inthescene ituatedattheextreme eftof thelowerrow ncave80'svault, heBuddha ppearseated,notonhisusual

thronebut on a long-shaped bjectendingwith adragonhead,paintedonthesurface fanexpanse fwater.A man

holdingastickdisappearingntothe water itsnext tohim. MaShichang roposesorecognizehemiraculousross-

343







Thefollowing ables ummarizehe exact ocation f the35 cenespresented boveonvaulted eil-

ings of the three cavesusedin this study. Theyalsoidentifythe Buddhistsourcescited so faras

Kutchan, ndian,Chinese, r Tibetan.

SubmissionsndConversions Cave34 Cave80 Cave171 Othercave BuddhistSources

I. Mara W4 (I)? S2(5) E4 (2) Numerous

2. Atavaka,

theOgreof theWasteland E4(I) ProclamationfBuddha's

Superioritykutchanrgmt);

VinayaMS Tib.:Panglung:153);

Chuyaoing:T212, T20zo3,643..3. Hariti, he Mother-of-demons E3 5) S5 I) E2(4) VinayaMS(Tib.:Panglung:196;

Chin.:TI451 3I)),T203,193,386...

4. Theprotectingnaga

(Mucilinda?) S3 5) ? Numerous

5. theGandharva-king,Supriya E2(4)? W4 (2) I96E4 VinayaMS Tib.:Panglung: 00zoo;

Chin.:TI45I [37]);Avadanaiataka(17)

6. Jyotiska esuscitated E3 3) Divyavadana, inayaMS Tib.:

Panglung: 68),T375

7. Cinca'seignedpregnancy W4(2)? S5 4) 163 Dhammapada; inayaMS

(Tib.:Panglung:5o);TzI2(IO)

8. The butcher W2 (2) Fajupiyuing:TzII(3)

9. Thepoisoner, rigupta W2(3)? S3(4) VinayaMS Chin.:TI452 8)),

Vinayaof Sarvastivadinchool

(TI435(61))

IO.Kasyapa rothers:

a) b) E5 3)? S (7) Numerous

CodificationE=Easternectionof thevault;W=Western ection.W4 (2)=Western ectionof thevault,4thrank,2nd

scene.Ma=MaShichang;Yao=YaoShihong.VinayaMS=Vinaya f theMulasarvastivadinchool

ing of theGangesbytheBuddha,who crossed he riverbyair,where hepassernsistedon makinghimpay,then

regrettedhislackofpiety(SuBai,vol. II:20o9). hedepictionof thedragonappearso conformmoreclosely o the

storyoftheVinaya f theMfilasarvastivIdin,hichalludes o theBuddha's assage cross heGangesoverabridge

formedbythe headsof the river'snagas,whichhepreferredo the bridgeconstructed yKing Ajatasatrucf.Pan-

glung:21,andSuBai,vol. II:pl. 53).

II2 In the thirdsceneat thefifthrowof thewestern ectioncave8o'svaultand ts counterpartn caveI7I(tothe left of

thethirdrow n the western ection),a youngmandressed sa noble(long oincloth,bare-chested, ith anecklace

andaturban) laysona tambourine.He is seated ncave80 andupright ncave 71.ComparisonftheKyzilpainted

scenewitha Sikrireliefpresented yFoucheruggests heidentyofUgrasena,whowasmetbythe Buddhanapub-

licplace n Rajagrha hilepracticinghis newtradeof comicactor seeFoucher: 20-522andfig.256b).

344







Almsgiving Cave34 Cave80 Cave171 Othercave BuddhistSources

I. BowlbyCelest.King E2(5) Numerous

2. Foodbythe merchants E4 (4)? Numerous

3. FoodbyPirna EI 2) AvadanasatakaIu), T200oo,2o3...4. Freshpalm-sapbythemonkey W4 (I) T202(seeI.J.Schmidt,

DerWeise&derThor,ch.4o),Xuanzang'sRecords...

5. Monastery E3 5)

W2(4), W3 (5)? Numerous

6. Precious loth

by Mahapraj pati-gautami E4 (3) TI421(29)

7. FlowersbyRajagrhaeople WI (6) EI(3) Chin.tsl ofAvadmnasataka

:

Zhuanji aiyuaning:Tzoo (53u)8. Precious tonebya Brahman S5 6) WI 4) T20zo37)

9. DustbyfutureAsoka W4 (3)Divy-vadmna

Io. Oil for amp,

byoldbeggar Nanda?) W5(5) 108 Xianyuing:T20zoz,inayaMS

(Tib.:Panglung:35)

II. AvariciousTodeyareborn s adog S4 (2) Madhyamagama;.26(44)

Parables Cave34 Cave80 Cave171 Othercave BuddhistSources

I. Sixanimals W2 (4) 224 (Pdli)Samyutta-nikayaV,197,

XXXV, IV,5-zo6; (Engl.)

Davids:vol.4:130-132;Chin.):

Za a'haning:T99(43-271): 3132. Four nakes S3(I) W6 (I) (PRili)amyutta-nikayaV,197,

XXXV, IV, 5-197;(Engl.)

Davids:vol.4:IO7-IIO;Chin.)T99(43-272):313

3. Pigeon,raven, erpent& deer W3(leftend) TzII 3)

4. Logofwoodfloatingdownsmoothly W2 (4) (Pali)Samyutta-nikayaV,197,

XXXV, IV, 5-zoo; (Engl.)

Davids:vol.4:113-II5;Chin.)T99

(43-274): 314

5. Bandithit 300ooimes Ez(I) Chin.trsl. ofMadhyam-gama

Zhong 'haning:Tz6 (53)6. Blindtortoise W6 (4) Same

7. Childstrangled n thewell S3 6) W3(3) Udinavarga,TzIz(4), VinayaMS

(Tib.Panglung:2z)

8. Monkey tuck SI(5) 224 (Pali)Samyutta-nikaya, 146,III,

I-7; (Engl.)Davids:vol.5:

127-128; Chin.)T99(24-620):

173

9. Rahula ndthejug W3(2) S6 (5)? TaII 33rd ection)

IO.Theelephanteaves hesword WI (2) S6(2)? Same

345







Otherfeats Cave34 Cave80 Cave171 Othercave BuddhistSources

I. i•"eaching n DeerPark Ez 2) Numerous

2. Self-portrait E3 I) E3 2) T202(3)...

3. Ugrasena'sonversion S$ 3) W3(I) (Bigandet,Vie,p.I89)4. Crossing f theGanges S6(I) VinayaMS(Tib.Panglung: 1)

3.

CHRONOLOGICAL DIVERGENCES AND

LIMITS OF IDENTIFICATION

Problemsf dating

The controversialdating of the cavesI have basedthis study on ought to be outlined here. As I have

said,the chronologyof the Kyzil sanctuary s still being debated. Von LeCoq, Waldschmidt,and Pel-

liot used to grouppaintings of the Kyzil caves(and of Duldur Aqur) under two styles - the first,so-

calledGandharan,dating from the 6th century,and the second,so-calledIndo-Iranian,going back to

the firsthalfofthe 7thcentury,before658.113he Chinesescholarsand some Americanscholars, nclud-

ing Howard, alreadyquoted, believe that the earlierpaintings may date backto as earlyas the 3rdor

4th centuries.II4

Before I emphasizethe problem of dating caves34, 80, and 171,I would like to recallbrieflythe

two typesof chronologyproposedbyChinesescholars,based on CI4tests andstylistic interpretation.

The first CI4 tests were carried out by teams of Beijing University, led by Su Bai in 1979-1981.

The tests were done in eight caveson samplesof wood foundin relicsof Sumeruhigh-reliefsmade of

clayand on wisps of strawtakenfrom the layerof preparation.Based on these measurements,Su Bai

divides the caves into three periods: a) 310 +/- 80 to 350 +/- 60; b) 395 +/- 65 to the beginning of the

6thcentury; ) 545+/-75to 685+/- 65s5.

Huo Xuchu andWang Jianlin, from the ResearchInstitute of Kyzil, proceededto a new series of

measurementswith carbon14, in collaborationwith the Institute of Archeologyof the Academyof

Social Sciencesof China.They then set up a chronologyincluding fourperiods:

I) 3rdcenturyto the end of the firsthalf of the 4th century,"6

2) The "development"phase:mid-4th-_ hcenturies;

113 Cf.thesynthesis f thesedatingsbyYaldiz:33-35.114 SeenoteIo.

II5 Thesecondphase tself acksconsistency,or t combinesCI4measurements 395+/- 65to 465+/- 65 withasub-

jectiveextension f theperioduntil the"beginning f the6thcentury" cf. SuBai,"Kezi'erhikubufen ongkuied-

uanhuafenuniandaidengwentidechubuansuo"Preliminarytudyof theClassificationy periodsandof theques-

tionofdatingsofsomecavesnKyzil), n SuBai,vol. I:10-23, zo20;ndMaShichang'sreviously uoted"Kezi'erhongx-

inzhukuhushiuanding u houshi ebihua"MuralPaintingsof the Vaults n theMainandRearChambers...),n

Zhongguohiku Kezi'erhiku, ol. II, pp. 174-226.

116 Inorder o formulatehehypothesis f his firstphase,Huo XuchubaseshimselfontheCI4datingconcerning ave

118,whichwere,briefly, 8oto I3OA.D.], ndwhichhe thenreinterpretsnto [75 o 322A.D.]cf.Archaeologynsti-

346







3) the "apogee"phase: 6th_-7th centuries,

4) the decline phase:8th_gth centuries,characterizedbythe repetitivemotif of the I,ooo Buddhas,of

Chinese influence."1

The authors of this general classificationbelieve that the worship cavesdug around a centralpillar

appearedduring the "development"phaseand reached heir full maturityin the "apogee" hase.The

decorof the vaulted ceilings in these caves would have firstgiven prioritytojataka scenesduring the

"development"phaseand then become more complex, relegating thejdtakas(in the lower rows) in

order to emphasize scenes with the central Buddha, which have been the focus of this discussion.

According to this, the paintings studied above would thus belong to the 6th and 7th centuries.

Yet the CI4 tests andtheir interpretations,asappliedto caves34, 80, and171 n particular,do not

match this generalchronology.Situatedat the eastof the gorge, cave171 s the largestof the three,and

it is joined to its neighboring cave172 in the antechamber. Its dating by carbon14representssome

gap between Huo Xuchu (410 +9o/-50o)and Su Bai, who puts it at 395+/- 65.1sHuo Xuchu's affilia-

tion of cave 171 o his "development"phasecontradictshis affiliationof the other largecaves with a

centralpillar to the "apogeephase,"aphase in which he observes a generalizationof the architecture

by pairsof caves.Although he does not proposeany explanation, this exception reservedto cave171

representsa gap of two centuries.

The disagreementbetween SuBai andHuo Xuchu is still moreimportantforthe two other caves:

while SuBai sets cave34 in periodb) (395 +/- 65to 465 +/-65),19 Huo Xuchu placesit in his "apogee

phase,"i.e., 6th_-7th centuries.,2o

Concerningcave80, in which Su Bai sees anold cell ofmeditationtransformednto aworshipcave

with a centralpillar, it is affiliated to phasea): 31o +/- 8o to 350+/-6o,,' while Huo Xuchu sees it as

a typical cave of the "apogeephase" 6th_7th centuries).This representsanothergap of interpretation

tute of theSocialAcademy fSciences,Zhongguoaoguxuehonganshisi iandaihujuji,I965-I9p9,

Measurementsithcarbon4 nChinesercheology,

rp65-9pp-),Wenwu,Beijing,1991:24,ZK2455).Bystylisticcomparisonasednotably

on thenaturalistictyleofmountains eakspaintednthescenes llustrated n thevaulted eilings,HuoXuchu hen

affiliates numberofothercaves 77, 92, 47, 48,and117 with thisfirstphase,cf.Huo XuchuandWangJianlin:1-30.

Oneoughtto beverycautiouswhilereading hesecarbon 4measurementsndtheir nterpretations,speciallywhenreading hemargins ferror,whichcuriously ary romcave o cave.Measurementsarried utbytheInstitute

of Archaeologyf theAcademy f SocialSciences esulted n cave77, for nstance,providing hefollowingdating:[60to IB.C.],whichwaschanged fteranunexplainedalculationo [92to 130o.D.].Cf.Archaeologynstitute... asabove): 23,ZK 245o.

117 Themostrepresentativeaves fthislastphaseare ituatedattheeastern nd ofthesite,uponthehill.Thereareveryfewcavesandsmallofsize.Thesearecave180, orwhichthe carbon 4measurementsive thedating 86o +95/-110o),andcave197.

118 SuBai,vol.I:19.

ii9 SuBai,vol. I:18.

I2zoHuoXuchuandWangJianlin:2I.Thedatingcarried utbytheInstituteofArchaeologyf theAcademy fSocialSciencesagaindiffers: 60-3IOA.D.,modified o 262-531A.D.,cf. Archaeologynstitute... as in note113): 23,ZK2448.

I2i SuBai,vol.I:18.

347







of20zooo 400 years.• Formerly,he German cholarKlimburgdated t from he secondhalf of the

6th century.123

Thus, according to these authors, the three caves are dated in a range varying for each of them from

the 4th o the 7thcenturies.Theinterpretationf SuBaiclaimscave8o to be the oldest,while Huo

Xuchu would classify cave 171as the oldest.

Of the three caves, although the vaulted decor of cave 171 is the best preserved, it presents less per-

sonalized scenes than those in the other two caves. The iconographical elements of the scenes are more

laconic and repetitive, to the point that I question whether certain scenes had not become general invi-

tations for almsgiving rather than illustrations of particular episodes in the life of the Buddha. By com-

parison, scenes painted on the vaults of cave 34 are more detailed, as, for instance, those illustrating

theConversionftheButcherndthe miracle f yotiska eingavedfromhere. Thisrichernarrative f

thescenesontheceilingof cave34is also ound n theparableftheelephantho abandons issword,

inwhichamonkwasdepictedncave34(fig. 28),andhasdisappearedn cave80.Thesceneof theSub-

duing fMdra showed wofiguresn cave34(thelowerhalfhascollapsed),ncludingademonpainted

in blue in the gestureof drawinga bow,as opposed o the single figureof cave171.Lastly,a still

unidentified cene hatmay llustrate miracleof the Buddha r admission f apoorpersonnto the

religion, s alsomorerichly llustratedn cave34than n cave171:n cave34(extreme left in the sec-

ondrowof thewestern ection) fig.4), the Buddha'seft handholds heheadofaveryemaciatedouth

sittingonastool,while he extendshisrighthand,as if to receive nobjectofferedbyaperson n the

guiseof agod (halo).This thirdfigurehas beenomitted n thesceneof caveI7I(extremeeft in the

thirdrowof the western ection).124

Thus,while we awaitmoreprecise cientificmeasurements,he detailedcomparisonf the three

caveswould ndicate hat theceilingdecor n cave34waspaintedearlier han thoseof caves8o and

171.

Limits fIdentificationhroughon-indigenousuddhistcriptures

Although hegeneralmeaningof theparables ecame oughlyunderstandable,hanks o references

to the ChineseBuddhist criptures rtheirIndianpredecessors,t oughtto be notedthat the moral

preceptsheyarerelatedomayvary romone sourceo the other.Someparables avebeen dentified

from ales nsertedwithintheUdanavargaerses.The translation fKutchanragments roughtback

to Europe n the Uddndlankaraa kind of illustrated ommentary f the Uddnavarga is unfortu-

nately oo limitedor too sketchy o allowprecise onnectionwith scenesdepictedon the caves'barrel

vaults.'5s hus the proposed dentificationswerebasedon Sanskrit ersions r Chineseand Tibetan

translations nownof theUdanavarga,r ts Southern quivalent, heDhammapada.omparinghese

versions owshows hat the same alesmaybe linked o different erses ndmay herefore ave llus-

trateda slightly differentmoral.The parable f the basinwhich Rahulauses to clean he feet of the

122 Huo XuchuandWangJianlin:17.123 Cf.Yaldiz:35,quotingM. Klimburg,1969,140.

124 SuBai,vol.3:pl. 5.

I25 Levi,S.,(as n note86):72-77 ("TheUddndlamkdra").

348







Buddha s agoodexample: in the Fajupiyu ing, t appearsn the "elephant"hapter,whilein the

Chuyaoing,as in the Tibetanversion, t is included n the "acts"hapter.126It is likelythat the tales

werederivedrombooksof narrativexamples7 and hat he Kutchansntroduced omearrangements

of theirown.

4.CONCLUSION

While we await helight thattranslations f theKutchan pigraphymay urther hedon suchdecor,

thegeneral ignificance f theparablesllustratedn themoughtto be underscored. heyencourage

a severeasceticism ndageneraldefenseof the six-foldsensesphere eyes,ears,nose,mouth,body,

and mind- againstall sortsof temptations hat would cause he monk to fallback nto ignorance.

Theyreflect quasi-obsessiveall toself-control escribedn the Udndlankadra,f which ndigenous

fragments avebeenfound.•8

Whereasmuchof the narrativentheLifeof the Buddhawill travel ur-

thereastright nto China suchas nthe illustrated iography f theBuddha,heShishi uanliu,which

spreadwidelybetween heI5thnd19th enturies)9 andJapan, heseaustere arableseem o charac-terize hevaulteddecorsof theKyzilcaves.

Thispredominancef asceticrigor,withoutequivalentn ChineseBuddhist conography,eems

to denote he influence f the SmallVehicle.The ChinesepilgrimXuanzang,whostopped nKutcha

on hisway oIndia n629-630, witnessed heactivityof theSarvastivadinmallVehicle chool.Kyzil,

as well asotherKutchan aves,mayhavebeen nfluenced,moreexactly,bytheso-calledMalasarvas-

126 Cf.Chuyaoing,T. 212, V(ii):668a section9:"Xingpi"),n whichcomparisonfdirtywater n the basin eems o be

more mportant.The lesson ranslatedrom heTibetanbyRockhill s as follows:"Well,Rahula,hou foolishman,

who hastshunned herulesof virtue who hast ied),thou art ike that(dirtywater eft in thebasin , I declare!He

whoknowingly ellslies,who is immodest,withoutshameandwhorepentshimnot,is castout of thepriesthood, s

is thrownaway his(dirtywater),"Rockhill asabove),appendix: 0o-2o6.Theverseswhich llustrate hisstory n

theChuyaoingweretranslatednto thefollowingChinese:"yifa uoquweiwangyuenbumianhoushiwu'ebugeng",

whichcorrespondsoughly o theFrenchranslation roposed yChakravartif the firstverseof theKarmavargan

theSanskritUddnavarga:Amanwho has ransgressed single aw,whose peechsfalse,andwhodespises he other

world, here s nocrimewhichhe doesnotcommit"transl.romChakravartias nnote96]:96).AlthoughbothChi-

nesetranslations ajupiyu ingandChuyaoing- thelatercorrespondingo the Tibetanversion ranslated yRock-

hill - relate heparable f Rahula's asin,which hasserved o clean he Buddha's eet with the act of lying,the the-matic ramework ndconclusions iffer.

127 Comparisonf theSanskritragments roughtback romChineseTurkestan yPelliot,Rockhill,andothers,with

theirpresumedChinese ranslations,emonstrateshe variable haracter f the linkof astorywith aparticulartanza

ortheme.The table howingcorrespondanceetween tanzas fthePaliDhammapada,heTibetanUddnavargatrans-

lated ntoEnglishbyRockhill), heFajupiyu ing(translatedntoEnglishbyBeal),andtheSuttaNipdtaalsoshows

the mobile andadaptableharacter f theversescollected n thesedifferent ources cf.Rockhill,The Uddnavarga,index:217-222).

128 "Unless he mind hasbeentrainedwiththe FourExercises ...],the rainofpassions nceasinglybeats)t. Itdestroysit. [...] Whose mindhas not been trained hrough elf-control ...], followingthe wisai(= skt:visaya:he sensual

objects) ...],"seeS.Levi as n note86):74-75.129 SeeE.Lesbre, sin note 62.

349







tivddinschool,whose creation n India can be situated aroundthe 4th-5th centuries.-30 pigraphicdoc-

umentation in Sanskritor Kutchan discoveredin the neighborhoodof Kyzil seems to indicate the

influenceof this school too.3s'And many scenesdepicting the Lifeof the Buddhain Kyzil have been

identifiedin the vinayatexts of this latter school. This was the case forquite a number of vault scenes

I havepresented,suchasthe Subduing fHdriti, the Subduing f heGandharva-kingMusicianSupriya,

Chin. transl.:Shan'ai),the Subduing fSriguptawho attemptedto give poisonous food to the Buddha,

the storyof the AdulterousWomanwhose onperishesn thewell, the ConversionftheFatherofJyotiska;

the denunciationof the FalsePregnancy fCirca Mdnavika,and the Crossing ftheGangeson a bridge

temporarilymade of the headsof ndgas.All were tracedin the ChineseandTibetan scripturaltrans-

lations relatedto the discipline of the M-lasarvastivadinschool.The iconographicanalysisconducted

by Ma Shichang,Ding Mingyi, andXiong Xi of scenes in the life of the Buddharepresentedon the

sidewalls of cavesin Kyzil was alsoessentiallybasedon the Chinesetranslationof that school's books

on discipline.132

In orderto provokethe viewers' feeling of contempt for lust, it is interesting to note use of the

image of unchaste women. Such was the casein the storyof the AdulterousWomanwhoseonperishesn

thewell.The sceneshowing awoman, sitting next to the Buddha,and anopen basketcontaining sev-

eral men'sheads,probably llustratesthe similartale of the UnchasteWifeand her overs' asketleft end

of 2nd owin the easternsection of cave34'sceiling: fig. 3b; and2ndscene in the 2ndrow at the south-

ern sectionof cave80's vault: fig. zi21).While the merchantDhanadevawasaway,his wife would sneak

a differentloverinto herhouseevery night by having them hide in abasketthatwould be broughtin

by servants.The storygoes on to say that the unchastewife, who was drunk, failed to recognizeher

own husbandwhen he was brought into the house in the same manner.As a result, the man became

disgustedwith his wife and decidedto becomea recluse.133he illustration of such storieswith demo-

nized women on the ceilings of the Kyzil caves is somehow contradictedby the strikingly sensual

images of women depicted in the royal couples on side-walls of the samesanctuary.These reflectthe

height ofKutchanpainting.134Thispictorialand moralambiguity is quite specificto the artofKutcha

andapparentlystoppedat the Chineseborder.

130o eeE.Lamotte,HistoireduBouddhismendien,Louvain,BibliothiqueduMuseon,1958, ol. I: 727.TheSarvdstivddin- whosenamemeans"thosewho teach hateverything xists" probably ppearedround he3rd enturyB.c..They

dominatedNorthwesternndiaandthe districtofMathura. he ChinesepilgrimYiJing is the firstonewho men-

tions theMulasarvdstivddins oneof fourschoolsderived romtheSarvdstivddin.heydominatedNorthern ndia

(CashmerendNorthernPunjab) ndwerenumerousn Magadha t the end of the 7thcentury.Yet the difference

betweenthe two schools s unclear Lamotte, s above:581,587,602).Their idealdoctrinesweresummarizedn

A. Bareau,Les ectes ouddhiquesuPetitVWhiculePublications el'EcoleFrangaise'ExtremeOrientSeries),Paris,

1955: 33-154.131 Froma linguistic point of view, studyof the Kutchanepigraphywouldseemingly ndicatethe influenceof the

Mflasarvastivadinect(cf. Pinault,asin noteI:I3).

132 Over40 of the61scenes tudiedhavebeen dentifiedn the Genbenhuo iqieyouupinaiye osengshiT. 1450),and a

dozen n theGenbenhuoyiqieyouupinaiye ashi T.I45I), f.SuBai,vol.I:218-219.

133 This scene sdepictedn cave34(leftendof thesecond owonthe Eastern ault, ig.3),and n cave80(fig.21). have

notyetfoundanyversion fthisstory arlierhan he Kashmirianalecollectedn Somadeva's athdarit dgaradated

aroundIo70),seeC.Tawney.transl.)andN. Penzer,TheOceanfstory,GraftonHouse,London, 924, ol.5:145-148.

350







Understandingthe "mixedceilings"of the Kyzil worship caves will hopefully be improvedeven

more by further investigations - iconographicaland textual - on the biography of the Buddha.

Clarificationsmayalso beexpectedfromstudyandtranslationof indigenous textsfound in Kyzil, espe-

cially of fragmentsof Buddhistplays (ndtaka)derived fromthe "PreviousLives"and"Exploits"ales,

which mayreveal Kutchanadaptations.135

FrequentlyCitedSources- Duan Wenjie (chief ed.), Zhongguo injiang bihuaquanji,Kezi'er,Tianjinrenminmeishu,Tianjin

(China),1992-1995, 3vols.- Foucher,A., Lesbas-reliefs reco-Boudhiquesu Gandhdra;E. Leroux,Paris,I905.- Huo Xuchu andWang Jianli, "bihuayishui fenqigaishu" "Chronologyof the MuralPaintings in

the Cavesof Kyzil"),in (The Research nstitute on KutchanCaves,ed.) Qiuciyishuyanjiu(Research

ontheArt ofKutcha),Urumqi (China), 1994: I-30.- Ma Shichang, "Kezi'erhongxinzhukuhushi uandingyu houshidebihua" MuralPaintings of the

Vaults in the MainandRearChambersof theCaveswith aCentralPillar n Kyzil), in SuBai,vol. II:

174-226.-

Panglung,J.L.,Die ErzalstoffedesMulasarvdstivdda-vinayanalysiert ufGrundder ibetischenber-

setzung StudiaPlilologicaBuddhica,Monographeries II ), Reiyuka,Tokyo, 1981.

- Su Bai, Ding Mingyi, Ma Shichang,Xiong Xi, Xu Wanyin, Kezi'er hiku(The cavesanctuaryof

Kyzil), (Heibonsha, Tokyo, 1983-1985) andWenwu, Peking, 1989-1998, 3vols.- Taisho hinsh&aizoky?abbrev.:T.] (The ChineseBuddhist Scriptures),T6kyo, 1924-1935.- Yaldiz, M., ArchdologiendKunstgeschichtehinesisch-ZentralasiensXinjiang), E.J.Brill, Leiden/

New York/Cologne, 1987: chapt. III. "DasKuga-Gebiet":I7-98.- YaoShihong, Kezi'er hiku ansuomi(Essayson theKyzilcaves),Xinjiang meishu sheying, Urumqi

(China), 1996, including, in particular,"Jieshaoi zhongkezi'er iyu gushihua" Presentationof a

few Paintings of Parables n the Kyzil Caves):I44-157.

134 See,for nstance, hepanel llustratingRudrayanand his wifeCandraprabha,ithdrawnromcave83andnow in

Berlin,SuBai,vol. 3,pl. I93;Griinwedelas n note3):10o3,igs.228(fromcave118), 2I,264(fromcaveI23)and128aswellas284(fromcaveI49).

I35 Pinault as n note19):I8-I9.

351I







GLOSSARY

an ningpin AAnxiduhufu f~-$N'BaiCheng

ntlf.Ban Chao fI

BoYan n

Bo Faju rFiMBo Yuanxin r

5_hang 'hanjing>•ziChenShiliang rER-

Chengji MiEichuyao am•Chuyaoing WRV

Ding Mingyi T-AJFajupiyujing (Pr)J•,WAjrf

Fotuoyeshe forg$q?[Funa 4

Genbenhuoyiqieyouunituonamudejia

Genbenhuo igieyoubupinaiyeposengshi

Genbenhuoyiqieyouupinaiyezashi

Jieshaoi zhongKezi 'er iyugushihua

fingliiyiciang $20

Kezi 'erFobenshengushihuaticaizhonglei

fi * f f f f,"

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