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Why Shanxi?
By Rich Zhu |
June 13, 2012, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
I have visited Shanxi Province twice, I plan a third visit later this month and probably a fourth trip later this summer. I am often asked why I'm so interested in Shanxi and keep coming back.
My answer is that you can find everything there, far beyond your imagination. But the answer from my heart is that the beautiful Buddhist sculptures are irresistible.
Shanxi, famous for its coal reserves and many coal tycoons, is also rich in relics of all kinds, temples and caves containing murals and statuary.
To be fair, it should be ranked one of the top tourist destinations for culture and history lovers, but it's shadowed by neighboring Shaanxi Province with the Terra-Cotta Warriors.
There's a saying that Shaanxi Province is China's underground museum (because the warriors were excavated), while Shanxi is China's ground-level museum.
Shanxi contains thousands of Buddhist sculptures, far more than all other inland provinces.
Many temples and caves containing artifacts have been damaged by conflicts, fire and natural disasters, except for areas such as Shanxi and Sichuan provinces. Because of its relatively dry weather and fewer conflicts, Shanxi is the province with the most ancient temples and the best preserved sculptures, according to the book "Ancient Chinese Buddhist Sculpture" by professor Jin Weinuo.
More important, Shanxi's masterpieces are clear evidence of the spread of Buddhist arts from India and Pakistan, through China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and Gansu Province to its interior.
If you want to see the DNA of China's Buddhist and Taoist art, Shanxi is at the top of the list, along with Gansu Province, site of Dunhuang and Maijishan.
My answer is that you can find everything there, far beyond your imagination. But the answer from my heart is that the beautiful Buddhist sculptures are irresistible.
Shanxi, famous for its coal reserves and many coal tycoons, is also rich in relics of all kinds, temples and caves containing murals and statuary.
To be fair, it should be ranked one of the top tourist destinations for culture and history lovers, but it's shadowed by neighboring Shaanxi Province with the Terra-Cotta Warriors.
There's a saying that Shaanxi Province is China's underground museum (because the warriors were excavated), while Shanxi is China's ground-level museum.
Shanxi contains thousands of Buddhist sculptures, far more than all other inland provinces.
Many temples and caves containing artifacts have been damaged by conflicts, fire and natural disasters, except for areas such as Shanxi and Sichuan provinces. Because of its relatively dry weather and fewer conflicts, Shanxi is the province with the most ancient temples and the best preserved sculptures, according to the book "Ancient Chinese Buddhist Sculpture" by professor Jin Weinuo.
More important, Shanxi's masterpieces are clear evidence of the spread of Buddhist arts from India and Pakistan, through China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and Gansu Province to its interior.
If you want to see the DNA of China's Buddhist and Taoist art, Shanxi is at the top of the list, along with Gansu Province, site of Dunhuang and Maijishan.
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