Information about Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes

Mogao Grottoes, commonly known as Thousand Buddhas Cave, is located in Dunhuang at the west end of the Hexi Corridor. The Mogao Grottoes murals are painted on the four walls of the caves, on the top of the caves and in the niches. The content is extensive and profound. It mainly covers seven categories of themes: Buddha statues, Buddhist stories, Buddhist historical sites, sutras, gods and monsters, donors, and decorative patterns. In addition, there are many expressions Paintings of various aspects of social life at that time, such as hunting, farming, textiles, transportation, war, construction, dance, weddings and funerals, etc.

The Mogao Grottoes are excavated on the cliff at the eastern foot of Mingsha Mountain, 25 kilometers southeast of Dunhuang City, facing Dangquan in the front and Sanwei Mountain, a branch of the Qilian Mountains in the east. The total length from north to south is 1,680 meters, and there are currently 735 caves built in the past dynasties. They are distributed on cliffs with a height of 15 to 30 meters, ranging from 1 to 4 floors. It is divided into southern and northern areas. The southern area is a place for Buddhist worship activities. There are 492 caves with murals and colored sculptures from various dynasties, more than 2,400 colored sculptures, and more than 45,000 square meters of murals.

The Mogao Grottoes were first built during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. According to the Tang Dynasty book "Li Kerang Rebuilt the Mogao Grottoes Buddhist Niche Stele", in the second year of Jianyuan of the former Qin Dynasty (366), the monk Lezun passed by this mountain. , suddenly saw golden light shining like ten thousand Buddhas appearing, so he dug the first cave in the rock wall. After that, Zen Master Fa Liang and others continued to build caves here to practice meditation, which were called "Mogao Cave", which means "high place in the desert".