Yun Gang Grottoes and Northern Wei 7508525389

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CONTENTS CHAPTER I: ENIGMAS OF THE YUNGANG GROTTOES CHAPTER II: THE SOUL OF THE YUNGANG GROTTOES CHAPTER III: THE AFFECTION OF THE YUNGANG GROTTOES CHAPTER IV: LIGHT OF THE YUNGANG GROTTOES CHAPTER V: FALL OF THE YUNGANG GROTTOES CHAPTER VI: RHYTHMS OF THE YUNGANG GROTTOES

Nie Huangui

About the author A Chinese writer and scholar with a number of works: A Dynasty Carved on Stone, which is a pioneer academic prose; Datong, An Ancient Capital City of China, which is honored as "the first biography of a city"; Wild Wolf, a short story; Interpreting the Fallen Leaves from Eight Perspectives, an essay that has been included in the state teaching materials and textbooks and adopted in the examination paper. Some works have been translated into English, German and Japanese.

CHAPTER I: ENIGMAS OF THE YUNGANG GROTTOES

T

he approach to the Yungang Grottoes requires a journey through a 1,500-year-long historical tunnel. The approach also requires the difficult task of probing the secrets of one of the most mysterious dynasties of Ancient China.

The dynasties of the Qin (221BC-206BC), Han (206BC-220AD), Tang (618-907), Song (960-1279), Yuan (1279-1368), Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) are explicit and identifiable, but the Northern Wei (386-534), which carved its name on the Yungang Grottoes in Wuzhou Mountain is rather vague and mysterious, especially the legendary Xianbei nationality.

The 5th to 13th of the Yungang Grottoes, the panoramic view from the 5th to 13th of the Yungang Grottoes.

The Dunhuang Grottoes, a sutra repository of world cultural treasures, were carved in the second year (366AD) under the reign of Jianyuan of the Qianqin Kingdom. Unfortunately, fatuities and damages have led to the loss of rare treasures. I have often been affected by this enormous national tragedy which overlapping the horrifying havoc cause to Yuanmingyuan, the garden of gardens. The historical literature on the discovery of the Yungang Grottoes is unbelievably and sadly limited. Amid vast and numerous classics, researchers have only found a short description with dozens of characters in the Commentary on the Waterways Classic: Luoshui River (Shui Jing Zhu, Luoshui), fragmentary records in the History of Northern Wei: On Buddhism (Wei Shu, Shi Lao Zhi) and a concise inscription in the Stele for Rebuilding Grand Grotto Temple in Wuzhou Mountain in Western Capital of the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234). In addition, thousands of Buddha statues in various sizes, looks and postures have left us with numerous mysteries. Once upon a time, I dreamed that the Yungang Grottoes might have had an undiscovered sutra repository that might one day be discovered and unveiled. It is a dream I have pursued consistently. Throughout the past 15 centuries, the Yungang Grottoes have been telling the world of their past glory and the dream of a dynasty and a nationality, and their politics, economy, culture, Buddhist history, as well as their immortal and amazing art that ranged from music to sculpture, painting, costumes and more. A series of enigmas under the mysterious veil of the Yungang Grottoes are like a cluster of fragrant and fantastic buds on a vigorous plum branch. When and who first started carving the

Yungang Grottoes? What does the"First Mountain in China" mean? Why is the third grotto was vacant at the beginning? Why does the primary statue in the thirteenth grotto have a black stone on the instep? What is the relation between the Tanyao Five Grottoes and the five kings? What does the dual-Buddha statue symbolize? What is the origin of the Six Beauties and the enigmas of the Yunzhong Stone Chamber, the Cold Spring in the second Grotto and the inscription"Deep in the Clouds" (Yun Shen Chu)? There are many others. It is these enigmas that highlight the unique charm and eternal enchantment of the Yungang Grottoes. They are like the glistening smile rippled on the face of the Buddha. Who can clarify the Buddha's expression? Is it noble, exclusive, merciful, compassionate, lenient, pitying, solicitous or charitable? The appreciation of the smile and expression from any angle allows one to experience lofty sentiments and plenty of poetic imagery. The smile is purely connotative and connotatively pure. It is the smile of the Xianbei nationality and an expression of the Northern Wei Dynasty. Wuzhou Mountain shortens distances. No star is eternal in the heavens and no flower perfect on the earth. However, a piece of a petal may bring fragrance for a whole spring, and a drop of rain may reflect a dazzling season. The enigmas of the Yungang Grottoes present an overwhelming silence. As the The Sitting Buddha in the 11 Grotto built between 494 and 525. saying goes "silence is Zen", thus, the Yungang Grottoes are like majestic Zen. Empty, pure and clear, Zen, the wisdom of the oriental world, stresses communication of the soul instead of literatures and sutras. Ch'ien Chung-shu gave a beautiful explanation of silence: "Dante said even the sun is silent in hell (Nell'inferno dove il sole tace). Silence can be deemed as a transparent status for the audition, just like emptiness and clearness a solemn and quiet status for the vision. Silence makes people hear the sounds unheard under normal conditions, moralists hear the words from their innermost, and poets hear the approaching of twilight and sprouting of grasses. The more noise you hear, the less voices you catch... Just like at a reunion of relatives or friends after a long separation, they often fall in silence with hands clasped tightly together. This sort of silence is like a pregnancy, filled with soundless underlying motions." th

John Keats said in a philosophical way: "The silent music coming from the pipes and timbrels is far more pleasing than the audible music of real life...". Victor Hugo compared the

Notre Dame de Paris to a symphony composed of huge stones. Franz Liszt described silence in his Pianolude Liebestraum (Dreams of Love). And Felix Mendelssohn named his pianolude album Silent Songs. A sweet tale popular in Ancient Rome noted that someone could use music to guide scattered materials into order and erect a majestic and high building in the square. Thus, the moonlight and a meandering stream-like rhythm and melody are permanently cemented into the building and represented in a golden proportion and graceful dignity. Stahl and Gothe compared buildings to concretionary music. Once, I visited the Yungang Grottoes on a snowy day. At the foot of the Buddha, I quietly listened to the rhythm of flying snowflakes, the enthusiasm of pine branches toward the snow, the pecks of hopping sparrows in the snowfield, the warm of brown soil and the dream of green grasses under the snow, the footsteps of the approaching spring, and the extensiveness and profoundness of the Yungang Grottoes in the snow.

Snow View

The ruins of the destroyed Les Grottes de Bamiyan.

Ku Hung-Ming (1857—1928), who had been assistant to Governor Zhang Zhidong (1837 —1909) for nearly two decades and respected as a remarkable genius, ended his famous paper The Spirit of The Chinese People like this: "The serene and blessed mood which enables us to see into the life of things, that is imaginative reason, that is the Spirit of the Chinese People." Looking up at the majestic Yungang Grottoes and listening to their grand silence, who can refuse "the blessed mood"? Whose spirit will not incur ripples of incessant reason? Silence does not refer to the extinction of sounds and the stillness of pines and wind, but the "silence of the soul". The empty, tranquil psychology is quite similar to "the so-called 'still meditation' in aesthetics, starting from emptying everything and isolating from the worldly affairs without anything in mind. Then, an inspiration will be enlightened to observe everything. Like images in a mirror, they are bright, clear and properly placed in their own substantial, interior and free lives. This is the so-called realm: One can enjoy the delight when observing everything with a calm heart."

The ruins of the destroyed Les Grottes de Bamiyan.

Les Grottes de Bamiyan in Afghanistan are similar to the Yungang Grottoes in their popularity. They were built nearly during the same historical period. Echoing each other from afar, the two sites jointly are an unprecedented and unparalleled spectacle. Alas! In an early spring of the new century, Bamiyan was blown down to relics, shocking the whole world. This irremediable regret and destruction highlight the value of Yungang Grottoes in a sorrowful way. The masterpiece Fingerprints of Gods by English author Graham Hancock is honored as a "wise archeological record". However, all archeological objects on which he relies for presumptions and predictions cannot be separated from existing mysterious phenomena and civilizations. The pure lithoid world of the Yungang Grottoes and their builders from the Northern Wei Dynasty are filled with enigmas and mysteries. Aren't they a fantastic "fingerprint" carved on the palm of God? People often associate the enigmas of Yungang Grottoes with the charming Loulan Kingdom. Loulan, one of the 36 kingdoms in the Western Regions of ancient China, was a logistics hub for western and oriental goods, and an influx of Chinese and western cultures. Between the 3 and 4 centuries, Buddha entered the shrines of the Loulan Kingdom from faraway India. The exquisite Buddhist culture nurtured Loulan to a dazzling gem embedded on the Gobi Desert. rd

th

Most probably, the highly civilized and cultured Loulan might have some contacts with the

rising northern powerhouse Tuoba Xianbei. According to some views, the statue of Six Beauties is a reflection of Loulan girls. The records on Loulan suddenly disappear from historical documents. Loulan city, as elegant as a porcelain vase with engraved patterns in the vast desert, lost its prosperity and deteriorated into an everlasting wasteland. Records prove that the disappearance of Loulan was linked with ecological deterioration. Immense lakes dried, and degraded to scorching sands. What an enormous change! It was not due to the natural vicissitudes but the people's ignorant and horrible damages. Chinese imperial courts from the Han (206BC-220AD) to Eastern Jin (317-420) dynasties deforested and cut grasses for reclamation and farming in Loulan and Gaochang. The supreme position in the Han Dynasty for reclaiming the Western Regions was Wuji Xiaowei. Dong Zhuo, a character in The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, was recalled to Luoyang to be General Zhonglang for his meritorious reclamation as Wuji Xiaowei. The populus euphratica, said to live 1,000 years, stand for another 1,000 years after death, and be imperishable for another 1,000 years after falling down, were lopped off, thus, the contained sand storm was released to celebrate its reoccupation to the land. Loulan is just a miniature of the miserable Western Regions.

Loulan

It is nearly impossible to find another planet as agreeable as the Earth. The advice on building a green civilization in the Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold and Silent Spring by Rachel Carson are of the same awful influence as the inventions of Isaac Newton or Albert Einstein. Some scientists warn that the death of Loulan is a yellow card shown by nature. Loulan might be the first vanishing kingdom but it is by no means the last one and the last drop of water on earth will be the tears of humankind. In 1902, Swedish adventurer Sven Hedin, who once explored in Xinjiang, cheered: "I found the country called Loulan from geographical names" in reference to an article titled Excavation by the Side of Ancient Lop Nor. Loulan re-emerged from its name. Archeologists and historians rapidly cast their sharp sights on Loulan relics. The New Loulan Project aiming at representing the ancient kingdom's prosperity raised by experts and professors will retain our memory and imagination.

Gaxian Grotto, the stone chamber built by ancestors of the Northern Wei of Tuoba.

The discovery of the Gaxian Grotto resulted in clues to the background and pedigree of Tuoba. However, in the chain of life, from the Gaxian Grotto to Yunzhong Stone Chamber, Yungang Grottoes and Longmen Grottoes, the Northern Wei of Tuoba, like Loulan, have left numberless enigmas to us to test our infinite imagination.

In modern times, many scholars from Japan, France and other countries have been fascinated by the Yungang Grottoes and made new findings. In the 1930s, a wave of research on the Yungang Grottoes overtook the Chinese literati. Everyone believed it was a delight to communicate with the Buddha in the Yungang Grottoes. Celebrities underscored the brilliant and marvelous artistic value of the Yungang Grottoes. Among them were historian Chen Yuan, Buddhist scholar Zhou Yiliang and archeologist Su Bai, architect Liang Sicheng, Lin Huiyin and Liu Dunzhen and literary figures like Hu Shi, Bingxin and Guo Moruo. Now let's enjoy Zheng Zhenduo and Bingxin's youthfull ode to the Yungang Grottoes. Zheng Zhenduo: The majesty and mightiness of the Yungang Grottoes are unimaginable... Each grotto, each statue, each head sculpture, each posture, and even each piece of cloth drape, each fire wheel or pattern is worth lingering, appreciating, observing, scrutinizing, analyzing and researching... Indeed, the overall structure deserves honor as the largest carving museum. However, even a single grotto, a single cave or a single rock can bring its visitor gentleness, tenderness, kindness and prettiness. They are in a complete layout. Together, they are vigorous and gorgeous; separate, each one is complete and distinct... Entering a grotto is like entering a mountain of treasures. The abundance of rare treasures and the beautifulness of landscapes make you feel your hands and eyes are too busy to work.

Yungang Grottoes photo taken between October 23 and 27, 1907.

Bingxin: Billions of Buddhist incarnations are carved on mountains with extremely fine craftsmanship, impressing the visitors and catching their eyes and soul. The Buddha, the world,

each wing, each flower and each leaf are too delicate to be described and delineated. It is such a charming place that one forgets to leave and continues observing. Too many things to see! Just like a thief in a treasury does not know what to pick. After the trip, one feels like a dream of the heavens, you may feel it but cannot describe it. Then you will really understand the amazing sights that are beyond words. Xu Zhimo and Lu Xiaoman had never been to the Yungang Grottoes but longed day and night to visit. Surprisingly, they worked out their only five-scene drama Biankun Hill with the local stonecutter as the protagonist and the adjacent village as the venue. Lu Xun had not gotten close to the Yungang Grottoes, but yearned for the spectacle. In The Crisis of Essays, he praised the "grand work standing in the sandstorm": "A Preface to Orchid Pavilion engraved in a small piece of ivory plate is even honored as 'artwork'. However, it is too tiny to be seen if be placed at the foot of the great Buddha statue in the Yungang Grottoes." Lu Xun also cherished the rubbings, photos and albums of the Buddha statues in the Yungang Grottoes. On July 3, 1923, he bought 14 photos of the Buddha statues in the Yungang Grottoes at Yamamoto Photo Studio while touring Dong'an Market with his brother Zhou Zuoren. He was as joyful as a child and could not help writing down the unexpected gains and delights in his diary. The 1,500-year-long battle and weathering devastation have gradually faded the original beauty of the Yungang Grottoes. Vicissitudes are the unique beauty of history. The vicissitudes of the Yungang Grottoes represent their artistic depth.

The Sitting Buddha in the 20 th Grotto built between 460 and 471.

Li Daoyuan, a geographer during the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534), gave a brief and fine praise of the Yungang Grottoes in Commentary on the Waterways Classic: Luoshui River (Shui Jing Zhu, Luoshui). In addition to this book and the History of Northern Wei: On Buddhism (Wei Shu, Shi Lao Zhi), the inscription in the Stele for Rebuilding Grand Grotto Temple in Wuzhou Mountain in Western Capital of the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234) was another extant record most closely related with the Yungang Grottoes. The Stele for Rebuilding Grand Grotto Temple in Wuzhou Mountain in Western Capital of the Jin Dynasty, known as the Jin Stele, was discovered and annotated by the famous archeologist Su Bai in 1947. The Jin Stele, like a sketch or a name card of the Yungang Grottoes, is a golden key for people to open the treasury and crack its enigmas. The Lugou Bridge Incident in 1937 interrupted people's appreciation of history and art. According to the real time battlefield report of Fan Changjiang in his Condolence on Datong, the Yungang Grottoes were used as "a hospital for the injured soldiers". While looking for and reading the works of the aforesaid masters, an idea came to my mind: Wouldn't it be a great delight to pick the scattered pearls and link them into a colorful collection for general appreciation?

I became determined to collect and sort poetry, prose, theses and inscriptions in all previous dynasties according to categories. It is really unreasonable that such a majestic historical relic has been ignored by the dynasties after the Northern Wei. Mr. Cai Yi had doubts and complaints. "We often value paintings, calligraphic or printing works of the Song and Ming dynasties as rare jade and are even very joyful for getting some fragments. But, why can we be indifferent to the much earlier and grander carvings in the Yungang Grottoes? Moreover, globally speaking, at the end of the 5 century, the Roman Empire collapsed and art in Western Europe declined due to the Teutonic invasion. Although the Gupta Dynasty in central India was prosperous and had some artistic influence on the Yungang Grottoes, the carvings in the Yungang Grottoes were obviously ahead of those of the Gupta Dynasty. So, of all the developed art centers in the world at that time, only the achievements of the Byzantium in East Europe were comparable with those found in the Yungang Grottoes." th

Inscription for the Statue Work in the 7 th Year of Taihe on the east wall of the 11th Grotto.

Other than Song Yu (an unnoticeable poet from the Tang Dynasty) who left a poem on the Yungang Grottoes, a crop of great poets from the Tang and Song dynasties including Li Bai, Du Fu, Bai Juyi, Liu Yong, Li Qingzhao and Su Dongpo did not write a single word on the Yungang Grottoes. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, some scholars with official positions in Datong wrote poems and proses on the Buddha statutes and temples to express their sentiments. Perhaps this was related to the Datong Massacre in the 6 year under the reign of Emperor Shunzhi and the renovations of the Yungang Grottoes during these two dynasties. Hu Wenye, the magistrate of Datong in early Qing Dynasty, indirectly and connotatively described his lament and laid blame for the Datong Massacre in his poem Touring the Grotto Temple. th

In the 17 year under the reign of Emperor Chongzhen (1644), Li Zicheng, leading uprising troops, set off from Xi'an, captured Ningwu and Yanmen and approached Datong. The city's th

Garrison Commander Jiang surrendered to Li Zicheng without a fight. The next day, Li Zicheng rode to the Yungang Grottoes with attendants and piously knelt to the Buddha to pray. Several days later, Li's army captured Beijing and ended the Ming Dynasty. The Yungang locals said it was the Buddha in the Yungang Grottoes who blessed Li's capture of Beijing and his enthronement of the emperor of Dashun. When leaving Datong, Li entrusted Zhang Tianlin to guard the city. Unfortunately, the Garrison Commander Jiang surrendered to the Qing Dynasty and rebelled again, pushing Datong into a massacre. Duo Ergun, the prince regent of Qing, directed the historical tragedy himself. The whole city was covered with bodies and bathed in blood. Even several years after the massacre, "the trees and flowers still seemed sorrowful and the collapsing walls were in loneliness".

Sketch Map of Datong City in the Northern Wei.

Sakyamuni, Manjusri and Vimalakirti in the 6th Grotto built between 471 and 494.

The destinies of Yungang and Datong have always been closely connected. After Datong suffered the massacre, Yungang was also severely damaged. When Hu Wenye retired two years later, Cao Zhenyan, the great-great-grandfather of Cao Xueqin, succeeded in the post. Even Cao left no words on the Yungang Grottoes. He was a complicated figure with special historical significance. Cao not only participated in the Datong Campaign but also tried to repair Datong and the Yungang Grottoes. The great wealth and honor of the Cao Family were built up in the period when Cao Zhenyan governed Datong. Cao Zhenyan's feats and reputation in the Cao Family and his kindness and grudge with Datong and Yungang deeply impressed Cao Xueqin and became important materials for his eternal masterpiece A Dream of Red Mansions. In Chapter 79 Cao writes: "Jia She had promised Yingchun to a family named Sun from Datong Prefecture, one of whose ancestors, a military officer, had been taken as a pupil by the Jias; thus both families could be considered as friends of long standing." In Chapter 7, Madam You says:"He went out with our great-grandfather on three or four expeditions when he was young, and saved his master's life by carrying him off a battlefield heaped with corpses..." Researchers believe that this description refers to the Datong Campaign. Both Cao Zhenyan and his son Cao Xie climbed the social ladder from the Datong Campaign. Without Cao Zhenyan's jurisdiction over Datong, there would be no A Dream of Red Mansions. The Datong Massacre and the damage to Yungang resulted in two sets of repairs to the Yungang Grottoes during the period under the reign of Emperor Shunzhi in the Qing Dynasty.

Regardless of the background and psychological factors, the repairs resulted in boundless beneficence. Folktales like Emperor Shunzhi Goes to Yungang at Moonlit Night and Emperor Kangxi Looks for His Parent at Yungang are still locally popular. The plaque with the characters Majestic Buddha (Zhuang Yan Fa Xiang) inscribed by Emperor Kangxi was hung high above the 6 Grotto. th

Speaking of emperors and the Yungang Grottoes, it was like the drama Patrolling Emperor and Girls being showed on an open stage: In the Zhengde Period of the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Wuzong (Zhu Houzhao) felt too bored to stay in the court. When learning the majesty and mightiness of the Buddha in the Yungang Grottoes, he and the Minister of Rituals made a disguised visit to Datong in ordinary clothing. They lived in an inn at night after worshipping the Buddha during the day. Emperor Wuzong was attracted to the beautiful hostess Li Fengjie and they had a one-night-stand. Thus, the fascinated emperor forgot his court affairs. After persuading the emperor to go back to court, Li Fengjie threw herself on a stone pillar and committed suicide. Then Emperor Wuzong buried Li Fengjie near the Juyong Pass. Hu Shi arrived at the Yungang Grottoes with the intention to see the stone tablets described in the Biography of Tanyao by Daoxuan of the early Tang Dynasty. After searching the relics in vain, Hu was disappointed and surprised, wondering: "Why are there no inscriptions for the Yungang Grottoes? Why are the inscriptions on the Yungang Grottoes not collected in books (e.g. Collection of Stone Inscriptions in Shanxi by Hu Pinzhi) on Shanxi's inscriptions?" Presumably, inscriptions for the statues were slightly carved on sandstones exposed to the weather. Even some statues carved in relief were eroded. Likewise the inscriptions not deeply carved were demolished by wind erosion. So, he appealed to the historical points of religion and art:"The Yungang Grottoes were an important center for Buddhist art fifteen centuries ago... The country should pay attention to the collection of these ancient carvings and strive to protect them."

The photo of the middle part of Yungang Grottoes taken by Lin Huiyin in 1930s.

Similar to Hu Shi's disappointment was that of the famous historian and educator Chen Yun, who said: "The most surprising thing is no ancient stele or inscription for reference was found after touring more than 20 grottoes... "According to Historian Zhou Yiliang "the stone Buddha in Yungang Grottoes is the carving essence of China... Few carvings of later generations are comparable with it in majesty and mightiness." Liang Sicheng, Lin Huiyin and Liu Dunzhen gave a quite exquisite and profound analysis of the strange phenomenon "that no one had attached attention to the Yungang Grottoes for the last 10-plus centuries to the past three decades in China, a country that stresses inscriptional and archeological research... The first reason is obvious. It is remote and inconvenient for traffic access. Second, it might be due to the lack of inscriptions for the Yungang Grottoes. Perhaps there were inscriptions on the walls out of the grottos, like the description in Biography of Eminent Monks (Continued). But they disappeared without any trace, and thus, were ignored by Chinese inscription academe which focused more on calligraphic rubbings. Third, Chinese scholar-bureaucrats tended to repel different opinions, such as those of Zhu Yizun, who wrote a Narration on Yungang Buddha, saying the Yungang Grottoes should be neglected for a thousand years and more, and not worthy of praise by intelligent scholars." As a founder of the Zhexi Ci-poetry School in the early Qing Dynasty, Zhu Yizun, in the South, was as famous as Wang Shizhen in the North. So, Zhu's view was fairly representative.

Zhu, together with his friends, toured the Yungang Grottoes and authored the Narration on Yungang Buddha "on the oddness and grandness of the stone Buddha". The article is permeated with the superiority complex and arrogance of Han scholar-bureaucrats and full of veiled criticism and satires of the Tuoba's carvings in the Yungang Grottoes: "They believe it is an extreme presentation of wisdom but never realize it falls into extreme stupidity." Zhu's "superiority complex and arrogance" were popular Han chauvinism at the time. This social mood, stemming from China's long history and many other reasons, is a barrier hindering the development of the Chinese nation. During the Ming Dynasty, Italian missionary Matteo Ricci came to China. When he rolled out a world map and told Xu Guangqi that China lies in Asia, one of the world's five continents, Xu was dumbfounded: "How can it be? China is not in the center of the earth!" During the Qing Dynasty, the chauvinism was further developed. The Qing Empire, not contented with an ordinary title, cracked itself up as the Dynasty of Heaven, and its emperor named himself the son of Heaven. Apart from Korea, Viet Nam, Ryukyu and other subordinating countries, all other countries except the Dynasty of Heaven were seen as uncivilized. Matteo Ricci dressed in a Chinese scholar's suit.

The U.K. sent delegations in 1792 and 1816 to China to establish diplomatic relations, which ended unsuccessfully due to inconsistent courtesies. Chinese officials required the envoys to pay their respects to the Emperor by kneeling three times with two knees and bowing nine times. However, the envoys insisted that they would only kneel with one knee and only kiss the hand. In their visit in 1792, Chinese officials had a flexible and compromising solution: Hanging on a portrait of the British monarch behind the Chinese emperor to persuade the

envoys to follow Chinese courtesies. In 1840, another U.K. delegation visited China. This time, powerful warships and guns took the place of the previous friendly visits. Invasion took the place of communication. The Opium War broke out. Ironically, the powder in the British guns was invented in China. Yu Qiuyu made a Sino-western comparison for the period from 1773 to 1782. In this decade, Emperor Qianlong ordered Ji Xiaolan to pool national efforts to continue compiling the Si Ku Quan Shu (Complete Library in the Four Branches of Literature), pushing the project of which both the Court and literati were proud to complete in the 18 century. However, at the same time, Henri Rousseau and Voltaire enlightened the western world and the Watt steam engine roared in the first railways...What a sharp contrast! One country looked backward: collecting, sorting, recollecting and resorting. Another looked forward: creating, inventing, recreating and reinventing. "Actually, the contrast in this decade indicates the essence of the collision between Chinese and western civilizations throughout a long period," said Yu Qiuyu with great distress. th

Yungang Grottoes

Can the superiority and arrogance that marked Han chauvinism be the answer to the Joseph Needham Puzzle or the Weber Question? A new image of the Yungang Grottoes started to take shape amid the flying flags of the New China. Amazingly, the unprecedented and rampant Cultural Revolution never approached the Buddha in the Yungang Grottoes.

In 1973, Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai accompanied French President Georges Pompidou in a visit to the Yungang Grottoes, opening an epoch-making page in Yungang's history. The glorious smile of the Buddha in Yunggang Grottoes moved the world with its irresistible charm. Later, the Queen of the Netherlands, the Princess of Thailand and heads and VIPs from other states extended their itineraries to the foot of the Buddha in the Yungang Grottoes. Groups of Chinese and foreign scholars have swarmed to Yungang to experience "the history and life accumulated in the form of aesthetics". A new rush toward Yungang is booming in the oriental world... Whether it is a mystery or an enigma, a sentimental and earthshaking fact is that the Tuoba Xianbei nationality bequeathed us the Yungang Grottoes, a generous and rare world cultural heritage that refines and enriches our modern life with infinite historical and artistic enchantment. This fiery and intensive impression and feeling drove me to write down the following lines: It seemed that The venerable and mighty Xianbei nationality Left nothing except Yungang Grottoes, I mean. The Northern Wei, though quietly fading out a thousand years ago, Keeps everything because it keeps the eternity. That is Yungang Grottoes, I mean. "When poets conceive and thinkers think, they often have a broad world. In that space, each thing, each tree, each house, each mountain and each twitter of birds present various and remarkable existences," said Martin Heidegger philosophically.

Part of the Seven Standing Buddha Statues in the 11th Grotto.

CHAPTER II: THE SOUL OF THE YUNGANG GROTTOES

Quiet Flows the Don, I am fond of the name of the book. I was often moved by the connotative sentence: the turbid Rio de la Plata is slowly flowing. "Mongolia" in Mongolian originally means a permanent river. Everyday, when flowers and stars are asleep, a river is still awake and flowing quietly. This river is called history and is permanently fresh. The future seems to be a hard-won profoundness just because of the depth of history. Intelligent humans have created means and modes, such as tripod caldrons, household utensils, bamboo tablets and textiles, books, stone tablets and grottoes, to record their history and civilization, verifying the existence and extension of their lives.

Sacrifice Shrine Stone Carving of the Northern Wei.

Thus, these objects, carriers of history and civilization, became physical treasures of history, culture and art in addition to their natural functions. The Yungang Grottoes, a venerable and sacred book, not only vividly showcase the vicissitudes in human history, but also enable us to discover and appreciate our images. The difference is that the Yungang Grottoes are images instead of characters, carved in stones instead of printed on paper, and a museum standing in nature instead of in library or study. Architecture and carvings are not only the basis of the grottoes but also a benchmark for the level of civilization of a country. "No thought of human beings has not been expressed by architectural art," said Victor Hugo against the backdrop of Notre Dame de Paris. Sculpture, as one of the earliest artistic buds, has spread its vitality to all architecture. Grottoes are Buddhist temples carved in the cliffs along the river. Buddhist grottoes were first found in India. Chinese grottoes have long histories and civilization and include representative examples in Dunhuang, Yungang and Longmen. Relying on unique lithoid conditions and the political and historical background, the carvings of the Yungang Grottoes show distinct characteristics. The Dunhuang and Longmen grottoes were intermittently carved during a longer period covering several dynasties, and thus, branded with the marks of the dynasties. But, Yungang was a masterpiece created by the manpower and material resources of one nation throughout one dynasty. As a tangible expression of the nation's will, the Yungang Grottoes imply the Northern Wei Dynasty's enthusiasm for Buddhism and its great economic and cultural prosperity.

Moreover, thanks to the imperial organization of the project, the grottoes are reasonably and systematically arranged and all statues and grottoes are consistent in style and placed in good order. The 100-year feats, spiritual features, ideology and social customs of a dynasty were vividly miniaturized and carved on the rock walls on the emperor's direct instructions. Historian Huang Renyu argued that the Yungang Grottoes "are a museum for the exhibition of both fine and popular art" for they "keep the authentic record of social and economic history of the Northern Wei Dynasty... if these resplendent and magnificent Buddha statues were not enshrined in the wild grottoes but erected in metropolitan cities, they would have been ruined by wars long ago like most ancient buildings." Yungang is a treasure chest bequeathed by the Xianbei people. Yungang is an extant lithoid encyclopedia passed down by the Tuoba family. A banner from the battlefield hung in the National Museum of Afghanistan reminds people that a country remains alive only when its culture and history are alive. The people shuttle across the busy world and disseminate the legends of the grottoes and the Buddha worldwide, like the fragrance of fruits floating in the wind.

The upper part of the east wall in the 6th Grotto.

Looking up at the Kumara Heaven Grotto, Japanese painter Yoshinaga Sayuri was reluctant to leave and muttered: It is an ingenious combination of western and oriental art, and

even Greek sculptures and statues are not on a par with it. At the peculiar design in the 13 grotto representing a four-armed Hercules lifting the giant arm of the primary statue, a professor from the University of Cambridge said in spotty Chinese with popping eyes: "it is an aesthetic pearl and a gifted imagination of mechanics." th

From cutting to carving, science had been widely applied in the Yungang Grottoes. The project is the crystallization of science. Textural research explains the order in which the Yungang Grottoes were carved: from up to down, first excavating a ring channel with tools, then leveraging up the whole rock, and the leftover rocks were taken out from the grotto windows at the high and from the grotto doors at the low. The rocks exploited were Kumara in the west of the arch of the 8 Grotto. used in other buildings of the Northern Wei Dynasty. The Yungang Rocks vigorously bolster ranges of ornamented pavilions, platforms and buildings. The wall between the 5 and 6 grottoes is only one centimeter thick, just like a piece of paper. Both sides of this thin wall are enshrined with small Buddha statues. th

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Amid heartfelt applause and sighs, a comment impressed me: the Yungang Grottoes are a wonder comparable to the Great Wall. However, the initial intention, purpose and function for carving the Yungang Grottoes and building the Great Wall are totally different. When ascending the Great Wall, we often sigh over the zigzags of history. The bricks and tiles laid during the Qin Dynasty are not impregnable. They never warded off and will never ward off the trample of wars and the advance of history. Not long after Tuoba Tao, emperor Taiwu of the Northern Wei, came into power, his ministers advised him to "further reinforce and fortify the capital and cities". He smiled and refused the suggestion. "The ancients say virtues are more powerful than fortification. Helian Qugai built sturdy circumvallation with steamed soil, but I conquered him. Aren't the cities not sturdy?" asked the emperor in reply. In the middle period of the 15 century, the Ming Dynasty exerted all its effort to rebuild the Great Wall. Unfortunately, in front of the sweeping cavalries of the rising Jurchen in northeastern China, the Great Wall was just like a small bridge over a meandering stream. Nurhachi's troops effortlessly strode it over and marched into the vast inner land. th

Remembering the history, Emperor Kangxi stomped and sighed, "It is really useless to build the Great Wall." Of course, the historical and civilization value of the Great Wall will never be weakened despite of its failure in function.

Most extant sections of the Great Wall were built in the Ming Dynasty and extended to more than 5,000 km.

The Yungang Grottoes were the materialization of the psyche, spirit and willpower of a nation and a dynasty. The infinite thought, endless words and permanent soul of a dynasty were carved into the rocks in Yungang, presenting a colorful and lively world echoing with the human society. In front of Yungang Grottoes, it is not difficult for us to recognize the delight, pride and confidence of the Tuoba Xianbei, a soaring nationality sweeping mountains and prairies and establishing great feats and exploits. In the Book of Genesis, the Holy Bible says: "and God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness..." The Tuoba Xianbei nationality practiced in a contrary mode: they built the Buddha according to the image of their emperor. No doubt, this indicated that the Xianbei people were fearless practitioners. On a spring day, a youthful and robust Tuoba Jun, emperor Wencheng of the Northern Wei, proudly walked out of the Yong'an Palace, Pingcheng. Upon the emperor's presentation, monks and artisans knelt and cheered "long live". The emperor issued an oral decree to carve the rocks to build Buddha statues upon his image.

Carving Buddha statues according to emperor's image was the principle that injected liveliness into the Yungang Grottoes. "The principle" personified the Yungang Grottoes with the lively soul of the leader of the Tuoba family, the national hero of the Xianbei nationality, who was paid respect equal to the Buddha by the people. The emperor and the Buddha were seen as the same. Carving the Buddha statues was the phenomenon, while establishing the emperor's majesty the essence. The majestic and sacred Buddha statues convey and showcase the spirit, energy and strength of the emperor. The soul of the Yungang Grottoes refers to not only the Buddha statues which were carved based on the emperor's image but also the inclusiveness of the Tuoba family's evolution, the political situation of the Northern Wei Dynasty and the historical trends of nationality merge in these statues. The soul of the Yungang Grottoes finally developed as the soul of the Buddhismburgeoning Northern Wei Dynasty, when even common persons could erect statues for themselves. According to historical data, in the 19 year of the Taihe Period, seven women built Buddha statues for their husbands and kids. The Buddha statues unearthed in Qingzhou, Shandong, were first made in the Northern Wei. And the works of the Northern Wei are most representative, the largest in quantity and biggest in size. In particular, the three Buddha statues built by Han Xiaohua for her husband in the 2 year of Yong'an Period of Northern Wei were most complete and exquisite. th

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In early 2003, another Northern Wei grotto statue cluster was unveiled to the world in a village in Qinyuan County, Shanxi. Of the hundreds of statues, some are pondering, some are chanting poems, vividly telling Buddhist stories, representing the charm and soul of the Yungang Grottoes. Qiuci, one of the 36 kingdoms of the ancient Western Regions, is an important intermediate country for the eastward spread of the Buddhism. A mural in a Qiuci Grotto is a typical work for promoting the unlimited powers and benevolence of the Buddha. One day, a snake, a raven, a dove and a deer are listening to the Buddha for enlightenment. "What are you most afraid of?" asked the Buddha. "Being skinned is the most horrible," the snake replied first. "The most terrible thing for me is no one dies, and I'll be starved," the raven crowed. Then, the dove made a peck and answered, "I often cannot fall into sleep due to the fear to the hunter." ... At these words, the Buddha cleared his throat and enlightened them:"Life is full of suffering and misfortune. Being alive is painful. Do you want to release yourself from the agonies? The only way for extrication is to convert to Buddhism." The emperors of the Tuoba family summoned all mortal beings like the mighty Buddha: to

be my followers, I am the Buddha! I'll disseminate extensive benevolence and lead you to unlimited happiness and delight...

Internal view of the 5th Grotto built between 471 and 494.

Tuoba Xianbei, a populous, primitive, valiant and ambitious nationality rising from horseback, unified the vast north and moved the capital to Pingcheng (Today's Datong in Shanxi). Having a deep understanding of "thriving in calamity and perishing in soft living", the

nationality never eased and never stopped developing. Instead they borrowed advanced elements from other nations to remedy their inherent shortages. In particular, the civilization of Chinese nation enlightened the ideal and vision of the Northern Wei. They removed the old and built a new and improved state system with far-sightedness and powerful means, thus the overall national quality, ideology, politics and culture gradually matured like the sunflowers in autumn after the reform. How can thin and vulnerable paper carry such great mind and achievements? So, the Xianbei people naturally associated rocks and mountains, the cradles of their lives and best friends of them, with the work. Relying on fossil samples, we investigated the origin of human civilization and defined the Paleolithic and Neolithic ages. Boston University Astronomer Gerald Stanley Hawkins described the prehistoric Stonehenge in Scotland as "a neolithic timer". Swiss scientist Louis Agassiz argued that the earth suffered several glacier periods with the oyster shell fossil at the Alps as the cards in his hand. At the Andean Plateau, home to the world's highest fresh water lake Titicaca, there is a sun gate carved from a single block of huge rock. On September 21 each year, the first light of morning always accurately shines in through the center of the gate. Three of China's four classical masterworks are closely linked to stones. A Dream of Red Mansions was originally called The Story of the Stone. In Outlaws of the Marsh, the names, nicknames and corresponding constellations of the 108 Liangshan-based heroes and heroines were carved on a stone tablet. In the Journey to the West, the Monkey King who created a tremendous uproar in the heavenly palace was born from a fairy rock. Nanjing, an ancient capital for six dynasties i n Chinese history, was also called the Stone City.

The Bhiksu in the lower part of the east side of the south wall of the 19th Grotto.

Similarly, Zimbabwe, an ancient country in Africa, means "respected stone city" in Bantu. Xianbei people had a plain and intensive "stone complex". Carving stones to record events became a major means for Xianbei people to represent history and sentiments. Wherever they went, they carved their history on stones. Their early period was a history and civilization carved on stones. "At the beginning, the forefathers of the Northern Wei carved stones to make family temples. They specialized in carving techniques. So, when new emperors ascended the throne, grottoes and Buddha statues were carved in rocks near the capital for the emperors and empresses." Samuel Taylor Coleridge called the Gothic cathedral a "fossilized religion". So, the Yungang Grottoes could be regarded as fossilized Buddhism. The source of Xianbei nationality can be traced back to the troglodytic period in the Gaxian Cave at least. The Gaxian Cave, a fossil of Xianbei civilization, has three small buttonlike round holes on a horizontal line in the rock wall of the "lobby". At the junction of Shanxi and Inner Mongolia is a village called Shisanbian. Piles of rocks are scattered along the Changcheng Hill near the village and called "tombs for 12 widows" by the locals with many sorrowful and heroic stories spread there. On a Loess Hill in Gaojiapu Village west to the tombs are a dozen big stone mounds ranged from east to west. These stone mounds are similar to the "square-edged and four-cornered stone buildings" widely scattered in the area from Transbaikalia to the west of the Hulun Lake, which are both stone works created by the Xianbei people. With the prosperity of economy, politics and culture, the Tuoba family extended their scale and effort in stone carving to cleave mountains and carve grottoes and statues. A nationality born from mountains is destined to love mountains and stones through its life and forge an everlasting glory. According to the inscription in the Stele for Rebuilding the Grand Grotto Temple in Wuzhou Mountain in Western Capital of the Jin Dynasty: "One cannot realize great achievements without far-sighted consideration. Achievements cannot be permanently passed on if not great. Stones are the hardest goods, and mountains are the biggest stones. Mountains, penetrating to the high sky above and sticking to the heavy earth below, are as permanent as the heaven and the earth. So, the foregone people pious to Buddhism often shaped mountains into chambers to enshrine the carved stone Buddha statues."

View of Yungang

Wuzhou Mountain, dozens of kilometers to the west of Pingcheng, the capital of the Northern Wei, has neither reputation nor lofty appearance. However, its fluctuant contour gilds the sky with a graceful golden rim. It is called Yungang (Cloud Hill) because "the meandering hills look like a brush of blue clouds." Rodin concisely defined sculpture as carving off abundant parts from stones. Wuzhou Mountain is a natural wall of stone that carries history. The skillful artisans followed providence of the nature and cut off the abundant stones to represent the original look of history and art. So, every twinkle and smile of the Buddha, every petal and leave of the lotus, every move and wave of the flying fairy, every pluck and pull to the Pipa (lute) became clear and vivid amid the carving rhythm. The Shiku Temple in Lingyan, Wuzhou Mountain stretches dozens of kilometers from east to west, just like a land of Buddhism. A tale named Spring of a Thousand Teardrops is spread about Qiuci Grotto, saying: The Princess of Qiuci Kingdom fell in love with a stonemason. But the King forced the stonemason to carve 1,000 Buddha grottos in the mountain for marrying his daughter. The stonemason kept on carving day and night, while the princes kept on waiting in the palace. One night, the princess fled from the palace into the mountain. At dawn, she found the stonemason had exhausted himself in front of the 999 grotto. Painfully, the princess ascended to the top of the grotto and threw herself down. Then, the mountain sobbed, the plants cried, and the teardrops pooled into a permanent spring. th

Buddha's Light Road

The 2 grotto is also called "Stone Drum and Chilled Spring Cave"."Deep in the Clouds" was engraved to the west of the window on the cave's external wall. Over the characters is a stone chamber with a lintel inscribed"Green Cloud Cave". Today, water drops still seep through and drop down to the ground. According to legend, a stonemason found the stone was slightly humid when moving tools here. While carving, the stonemason felt a cool insect crawling on his neck and then found it was water drops dripping from the ceiling. It was sweet. The stonemason quickly chiseled and discovered the mouth of a spring. Then he shaped the stone into a drum, and the spring water fell on the drum day and night and gave a nice sound. Stonemasons also used the water to clean their eyes when injured by stone powder. And their eyes would be cured and brighter. nd

The Tuoba family had exceptional connections with Buddhism. The Vulture Peak, Griddhkuta in Sanskrit, located in India, was said to be the sacred place where Sakyamuni preached the sutras to the disciples. Stone grottoes and chambers were the lifelong homes for Xianbei people. From the Gaxian Grotto to the undiscovered Stone Chamber in Clouds recorded in historical documents, and then to the Yungang Grottoes, the Tuoba and Xianbei people gradually met with the Buddhism. Of course, the carving of the Yungang Grottoes is not only for expressing the will of the

Northern Wei Dynasty. It is also closely related with a "Buddhism destroying incident" and a "Buddhism promotion wave". Originating from India, Buddhism spread in western regions and then widely disseminated in China. According to the History of Northern Wei, Buddhism landed China in the period under the reign of Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty. According to the Legend of Western Regions, History of Late Han, Emperor Mingdi of the Han Dynasty dreamed an immortal, with a sunlight-colored neck and golden body, flying in front of his palace. Then he sent envoys to India for sutras and built White Horse Temple, China's first temple, in Luoyang. Liu Ying, the prince of Chu in the Eastern Han Dynasty, was the first prince who believed in Buddhism, making himself a typical sample for late emperors and princes. Tuoba Gui, Emperor Daowu of the Northern Wei, initiated the worship to the Buddha. He not only founded a country but also laid a sound basis for the boom and Chinesization of the Northern Wei from economic base to superstructure.

Contemplative Bodhisattva in the east wall of the back chamber in the 10th Grotto.

Inner view of the 18th Grotto built between 460 and 471.

Tuoba Gui was the posthumous child of Emperor Xianming. In the History of North and the History of Northern Wei, a mythical tale said:"Empress Xianming toured Yunze during migration. At night, she dreamed of a sun rising in her room. Waking up, she saw sunlight shine to the sky from the window. Then she felt pregnant. On the day when Tuoba Gui was born, the indoors suddenly gave light at the black night. His grandfather, Shiyijian was exceptionally surprised, issued amnesty and offered sacrifice to ancestors for notification." Behind the mythical tale it is the people's praise, respect and love to an exceptional leader. Tuoba Gui, "having been fond of the theories of the Yellow Emperor and Laozi, read lots of Buddhist sutras from his childhood". He captured Shanxi and Hebei, and moved the capital to Pingcheng. Then he sent out imperial decrees to worship the Buddha, build a five-storey Buddhist tower and temples in Griddhkuta and Sumeru and appoint Sramana Faguo as the Executive of Monks. Once seeds are planted, they will root and sprout freely. Tuoba Gui's worship of Buddhism was a profound seed for the carving of the Yungang temples and even the boom of Buddhism throughout the Northern Wei. Even when believing in religion, people cannot be exempted from the control and restriction of their conducts. In the case of collisions between belief and control, some public incidents may be triggered. Tuoba Tao, Emperor Wudi of the Northern Wei and grandson of Tuaoba Gui, completed the unification of the north. At the beginning, Tuoba Tao "promoted Buddhism and respected Sramana". Consistent with his grandfather's views, Tuoba Tao built towers, temples, Buddha statues and promoted temple economies and Buddhism festivals. Later, he recognized that Buddism diverted some subjects' worship and respect to him and temple economies severely impaired the national economy. He started to worry about that. Financial and material resources are necessary supports and provisions for his great ambition of unifying the north. The economy is the lifeline and the primary strength of all. Tuoba Tao had a deep understanding of this, and said to his attendants, "the economy is the base of a country." Then, Tuoba Tao was pondering over the future of the Xianbei nationality and the national religion of the country. After a period of bewilderment, hesitation, vacillation and comparison, he inclined to Taoism and was determined to open up a new space. In the 7 year of the Taiping Zhenjun Period, Tuoba Tao himself led the army to suppress the Gai Wu Uprising. In a temple on the way, he surprisingly discovered weapons like bows, arrows, spears and shields, accumulated properties and licentious conducts. He intuitively realized that the hard-won victory of Xianbei people was suffering an overwhelming threat. Meanwhile, he observantly recognized the opportunity for promoting Taoism and strangling th

Buddhism was approaching. As a true king building his name in the battlefields, Tuoba Tao swiftly swept away Buddhism. Countless towers and temples fell down, and numerous Buddha statues and sutras were burned. Thus, Tuoba Tao became the first in the history of Chinese Buddhism to revolt and exterminate Buddhism with power. The fall of Buddhism resulted in the rise of Taoism. Tuoba Tao's extermination of Buddhism and promotion to Taoism made the latter strong enough to contend with Confucianism and Buddhism. So, his intention emerged: exterminating Buddhism to promote Taoism and thus establish his own majesty. "The intention of the three persecutions to Buddhism by Emperor Taiwu of the Northern Wei, Emperor Wudi of the Northern Zhou and Emperor Wudi of the Tang is to compete with Taoism," Liang Qichao said. The "extermination of Buddhism" was a double-edged sword. The storm shrouded the dynamic Northern Wei with depression and isolation and silenced all the ministers with horrors and persecutions. This was inconsistent with the characteristics of the Xianbei people and unhelpful to the advance of the nationality. Moreover, within several years after the storm, the Northern Wei suffered many challenges. Venerable Minister Cui Hao was killed. Prince Tuoba Huang died strangely. Emperor Taiwu Tuoba Tao went mad without reason. Rumors were spread. People doubted these were retribution for the extermination of Buddhism. The imperial families were upset and trembling with fear. Thus, seven year later, Tuoba Jun, Emperor Wencheng of the Northern Wei, recklessly restored sutras and Buddhism upon his enthronement, which received wide support. It is not excessive to deem Emperor The Sitting Buddha in the 20 Grotto built between 460 and 471. Wencheng's restoration of the sutras and Buddhism and the follow-up carving of Tanyao Five Grottos as the original spark in China's Buddhism history. The prosperity of Buddhism described in "all the four hundred eighty temples from Southern Dynasties hide their towers amongst smoky blossoms and misty rain", the new unified pattern in the Sui Dynasty of Dhyana in North and argumentation in South, and the culmination of Buddhism in the Tang Dynasty are attributed to the virtue of Emperor th

Wencheng to some degree. But, the Emperor Taiwu's extermination to Buddhism should not be forgotten. Emperor Wencheng had cudgeled his brains for the promotion of Buddhism. He ordered the executor to carve grottoes and build statues based on the images of emperors. In fact, the promotion of Buddhism is the promotion of emperorship, thus exquisitely eliminating the collisions between Buddha and Emperor. The Xing'an Stone Statue even represented the black nevi on the face and feet of Tuoba Jun in scale. Later on, when hosting the project to carve five grottoes in Yungang (from the 16 to 20 grottoes today), Wuzhou Mountain, Sramana Executive Tanyao carved five major statues based on five Xianbei emperors, i.e. Emperor Daowu Tuoba Gui, Emperor Mingyuan Tuoba Si, Emperor Taiwu Tuoba Tao, Emperor Jingmu Tuoba Huang and Emperor Wencheng Tuoba Jun. th

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Emperors without exceptional courage and resourcefulness are often mediocre, while outstanding monarchs are always supernormal The portrait of Xianbei people. in thinking. Throughout the ages, all emperors that have won public praise either directed major cultural events, such as Alexander's Anabasis, the Code of Hammurabi and the Golden Years of Zhen'guan during the reign under Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, or created wonderful geographical sceneries, such as the Hanging Gardens of Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar, the Great Wall by Emperor Qinshihuang and the Grand Canal by Emperor Yangdi of the Sui Dynasty. Emperor Wencheng's concept of "syncretism between Emperorship and Buddhism", though evolving from China's traditional thinking of "syncretism and interaction between heaven and man", was more influential with a more clear-cut stand. Xiao He once gave advice to Liu Bang, "the Emperor deems the whole country as his home. So, grandness is necessary to build His majesty." Emperor Wencheng Tuoba Jun carved grottoes in Wuzhou Mountain and built statues for five emperors, pushing the "syncretism between heaven and man" concept to the ultimate and lifting the mightiness of emperor to an extreme high. Emperor Wencheng's concept of "syncretism between Emperorship and Buddhism" could be traced back to Emperor Daowu Tuoba Gui. Tuoba Gui's worship to Buddhism stemmed from his unique meditation and understanding

to Buddhism's "supportive function" to his imperial power. He invited Faguo, an accomplished monk, to the capital as the Buddhism's propagator to cooperate with him. Friedrich Nietzsche wrote "God is Dead (Gott ist tot)" a millennium after Emperor Wencheng's concept of "syncretism between Emperorship and Buddhism" emerged. Nietzsche's words are still quite sensational today. Then, why can't Faguo's historic slogan "the emperor is the Buddha alive "under the instruction of Tuoba Gui make "the heaven rain grains, the ghosts cry at night"? With his theoretical finding "one who can promote Buddhism is the emperor" in mind, Dignitary Faguo broke the traditional convention"Sramana don't worship emperors" prevalent since Eastern Jin, and poured out his ideas to the first emperor of the Northern Wei. Emperorship and Buddhism, relying on each other, reached a win-win solution. It seemed like that both sides inked their fingerprints on the "memorandum for the syncretism of Emperorship and Buddhism".

Warriors' Stone Carving of the Northern Wei.

This privity between the Sramana and the emperor has influenced the later generations like an undercurrent. According to Buddhist classic The Assembling of Five Lamps (Wu Deng Hui Yuan), Dignitary Fuhong of the Tang Dynasty affably said to the Emperor, "Your Majesty attends to numerous affairs everyday. You really have a Buddha's heart." It sounds like the words of Faguo. Obviously, Emperor Wencheng was wiser than his grandfather Tuoba Tao in balancing

emperorship and Buddhism. Dredging is more effective than damming. The principle for water control is the same for state governance. Numerous cases teach us poppy, though poisonous, can raise the dead; wine, though sweet, can kill the living. Upon his succession, Emperor Wencheng repeated the conduct of Emperor Taiwu. On the 2 year of Xing'an Period, he issued a decree to extol his painstaking for political affairs and the prosperity of his country and people since his enthronement, and promulgated a general pardon. As for his attitude to Buddhism, he had the wisdom and farsightedness of Tuoba Tao and succeeded his tradition with great respect. Thus, a grand blueprint to carve statues highlighting the "syncretism of emperorship and Buddhism" in Yungang, Wuzhou to promote the Northern Wei's great plans and visions was rolled out in his mind. nd

Any great thoughts and conducts cannot surpass historical conditions and restrictions. After generations of hard wars and expeditions, Tuoba families entered the civil administration period under the reign of Emperor Wencheng. The war clouds dissipated and the azure sky came back. The social productive force, most active and dynamic, achieved unprecedented development in the Iron Age. According to Kitchenware, History of the Northern Wei, Emperor Wencheng ordered the production of a set of gold dishes. The brilliant set consisted of 12 trays with diameter of 2.2 chi each, showcasing a prosperous and peaceful dynasty in its heyday. Everything, such as timing, wealth, materials, people and techniques, were ready, and the Tanyao Five Grottoes were to be carved. Su Bai's summary to this issue is full of archeological persuasion:"Pingcheng, the capital of the Northern Wei for nearly a century, and its peripheral had been both the political and cultural center of northern China since Emperor Daowu. Moreover, a great quantity of labor and enormous fortune requisitioned from northern China were pooled here. It is not coincident that ranges of grand structures were built... Pingcheng not only boasted sufficient labor, material resources, artisans, a profound Buddhism basis including rich experience in building temples and statues, but also had close exchanges with Buddhist kingdoms in western regions including the acceptance of Buddha statue drawings. Against such a backdrop, the imperial family of the Northern Wei, with the force of an emerging nationality, integrated eastern and western techniques and created a new grotto mode, which is natural and reasonable."

Statute of Tanyao.

Thus, Emperor Wencheng and Empress Feng, a pious Buddhist, jointly designed a threestep plan. Step one, making a stone statue for Emperor Wencheng. In the spring of Xing'an Period, Emperor Wencheng ordered Shixian, Executive of Monks, to lead the people to make a stone statue with a secret agreement between them. So, "When the statue was completed, black stones appeared on its face and feet, just like the black naevi on the Emperor's body. The people believed that it was moved by the emperor's piety." This step received striking effect and unified the people's view as following the Heaven's will to build statues for emperors. Step two, casting gold statues for five emperors. "In the fall of the first year of Xingguang Period, relevant departments were ordered to cast five 16-chi-tall standing Sakyamuni statues for the five emperors from Emperor Taizu in five grand temples, which consumed 250,000 jin pure gold." Step three, excavating Tanyao Five Grottoes. In the first year of Tai'an Period, five monks from Simhalauipa (today's Sri Lanka) arrived in Pingcheng with three Buddha images counterdrawn from kingdoms of Western Regions. The three images, having vivid effect like oil paintings, were reproduction of the Gandhara and Mathara art and offered model pattern for the Tanyao Five Grottoes.

Tanyao, a dignitary of the Western Regions, escaped and hid when Emperor Taiwu campaigned against Buddhism. But, "insisting on using Buddhist clothes and instruments all along", he had been expecting the end of the disaster of Buddhism and the arrival of the revival of Buddhism.

Inner view of the 18th Grotto built between 460 and 471.

Emperor Wencheng restored and promoted Buddhism. Upon the imperial decree to summon him, Tanyao packed his luggage and rode to the capital by night. Tanyao was not eager to pay respects to Emperor Wencheng. Instead, he went to Wuzhou Mountain, the holy land in his mind. At the sight of the golden clouds over the mountains, he thought of the Vulture Peak in India, the Sanwei Mountain in Dunhuang, his master Shixian, his predecessor Faguang and Dignitary Lezhun, the initiator of the Mogao Grottoes. From Emperor Taiwu's cruel extermination of Buddhism, he understood that Buddhism must comply with imperial power instead of fight against it or Buddhism will have no basis to develop, just like fur without a hide cannot grow. Suddenly Tanyao was enlightened, like being bathed in the Buddhism light and surrounded by thousands of lotus flowers. Putting his palms together, he silently pledged, "I will carve five grottoes to enshrine Buddha in the cliffs of Wuzhou Mountain to the west of Pingcheng." Images, even visualized through objects, are more wonderful than objects. Skillful craftsmen engaged in designing and carving Tanyao's five grottoes were very clear that the statues to be carved should vivify the emperors' bodies, appearances, souls and postures instead of copy the Buddhism images from Simhalauipa. To draw a tree, one should first think

like a tree, which is a well-known law for artists. The craftsmen devoted all their attention to studying the five emperors and injected their sensation and imagination into the works. Emperors are also people. Starting from this point, the craftsmen were skillful and imaginative in carving, like receiving fantastic supports. Image is the soul of Chinese characters and culture. The Book of Changes is a work that expresses meanings with images: "Observing the heaven, the earth, the birds, the beasts, the self and the objects, then Fuxi started delineating the Eight Diagrams to elaborate the virtues of immortals and emotions of everything in the universe." Translating the people's "image" to the object's "appearance", and observing the object's "appearance" to see the people's "image" is the artistic creation and aesthetic clue for carving the Buddha based on the emperor's image, the "soul of Yungang Grottoes". Western modernist Groom Helm and imagist Ezra Pound made indepth analysis of the "image". The former compared the "image" with the "visual chord" and the latter believed "an 'image' is that which presents an intellectual and emotional complex in an instant of time". So the statues in Yungang Grottoes are "chord" or "complex". Concepts disappeared and became lines; ideas vanished and became art. The loftiness, grandness and majesty of Yungang Grottoes are filled with affinity and kindness. If the enigmas of the Yungang Grottoes are deemed as the suspense for its beauty, the soul of the Yungang Grottoes will be the beauty of the essence of Yungang. Under the veil of the carving, it is the beauty of the soul, philosophy, symbolism and vicissitudes of Yungang Grottoes that shocks our mind. The Xianbei nationality and Northern Wei Dynasty are the source of the endless beauty. Inevitably, the statue style of the Tanyao Five Grottoes succeeded the carving tradition of Gandhara and Mathara in India. As for the grotto shape alone, the domes of Tanyao Five Grottoes are hooflike (the curve design may buffer horizontal wind force and contribute to building maximal area and space) and quite similar to Indian cottages. However, changes are also obvious, especially the magic originality of Xianbei people is added. "Buddhism was localized upon its entry into China," said British historian Arnold Joseph Toynbee on the Cambridge. French orientalist René Grousset continued Toynbee's words, "during the great journey beyond time and space, the Greekstyle Buddha sculpture was amended and finally turned to a Chinese-style Buddha... However, the remote Greek traces are still extant in the tall and straight shape and the

pattern of costumes."

Inner view of the 6th Grotto built between 471 and 494.

The 13.5-meter-tall standing statue in the 16 grotto weakened the Buddha's appearances but highlighted a typical pastoral style: the calm, heroic expression and posture showcase the demeanor of a Xianbei king; the flying ribbon with a bowknot on the chest, the plain felt mantle on the shoulders and the skirt tied on the waist represent the frigid prairie characteristics and the bold, free and playful characters of Xianbei people. th

The relief Nine Dragons Washing Bohisattva in the shrine under the central column for the 6 grotto is injected with intense Chinese concept. According to the original sutra, two dragons, "a warm and a cold, spray pure water to wash the Buddha". Volume I, Puyao Sutra, was translated with Chinese thinking and rewritten as: "nine dragons spray fragrant water to wash the Bohisattva". In traditional Chinese culture, nine is "the ultimate number in the world". The change from "two dragons" to "nine dragons" reflected the different cultures between two countries. According to the Taoist Peace Doctrine, "in the morning when Laozi was born, three suns rose in the east. After he was born, nine dragons spray divine water." th

The Sitting Buddha in the 17th Grotto built between 460 and 471.

In the period under the reign of Emperor Qinshihuang in China, Asoka set up Magadha, the unprecedented, unified empire in India. Later on, he was converted to Buddhism and adopted it as the state religion. Buddhism, the product of ancient India's Sramana, was founded by Siddhartha Gautama who was, after attaining the path, honored by Sakyamuni, the sage of the Sakya clan. Venues were needed to promote Buddhism. Grottoes were selected for this sacred mission. The Ajanta Caves, a grotto temple consisting of 27 rock carvings situated in central India, was the chosen place as it intensively represented Indian art. The Gandhara and Mathara art, engaged in carving Buddha and Bodhisattvas' statutes, seasoned Greek cultural elements to the dominant Indian style. Stone Buddha statues in Ajanta Caves looked like the simulation or even clone of Greek Apollo. Their costumes were also quite Greek. This is early source of the merge of oriental and western cultures. Gandhara, a kingdom in ancient India, is also a label for an art school. The Greeks governed the kingdom for 130 years. Mathara, a famous Indian city situated at a golden position integrating business, religion and art, had built indissoluble bonds with Persian and Greek cultures in carving. In the 4 century, when Tuoba unified the northern China, the newborn Gupta dynasty in India unified the country and merged Gandhara and Mathara arts to produce Gupta Art, a golden brand for Indian Classicalism. th

Gupta Art spread in two directions: one extended northwest to Les Grottoes de Bamiyan in Afghanistan, the other reached Chinese hinterland via Xinjiang then forwarded eastward to Korea and Japan. Nara, historical capital of Japan, was not only the oriental terminal of the Silk Road but also the Buddhism center of Japan and cradle of Japanese culture. The bronze sculpture of Sakyamuni enshrined in the Gold Hall is the earliest Buddha statue in Japan. The Five-story Tower, a world cultural heritage, in Hōryū-ji temple, Nara is just like a long shadow of Yungang stone towers.

Gandhara Art.

At that time, Emperor Wencheng of the Northern Wei Dynasty was planning to carve the Yungang Grottoes. So, it is no wonder that Gupta Art had some influence to the statues carved in Yungang Grottoes. Indian classical art even had some haunted marks to Chinese paintings after that period. The five grand and "contemporarily best" stone statues were the perfect unification of emperorship and Buddhism, like a touchable and vivid soul of Yungang Grottoes. Danner's appreciation of Greek sculptures seems like the evaluation to Tanyao Five Grottoes: "the body of heroes or deities shows the perfection degree of the firm strength... the martialism, the plain and lofty spirit and the clear and calm mood."

Leveraging the mightiness, majesty and power of the Buddha to strengthen the emperor's dignity, deity and sovereign, the wise Emperor Wencheng left an impressive touch in the history of Northern Wei and China. During the reign of Empress Feng and Emperor Xiaowen, the soul of Yungang initiated by Emperor Wencheng was further developed. The "dual-grotto statue carving" originated by Empress Feng to simplify the joint governance of Emperor and Empress, and the 5 and 6 grottoes carved for Emperor Xianwen and Empress Feng by Emperor Xiaowen, are the evolution of the soul of Yungang Grottoes. th

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After having an "elaborate onsite investigation" of the Yungang Grottoes, Yan Wenshu pointed out that "in the 18 grotto, the Sakyamuni statue is in the center, surrounded by ten disciples in the outer and the Bodhisattva the outermost. The layout assimilates Buddha to emperor Sravakayana and Bodhisattva to prime ministers... Mahayana sutra is followed for carving the statues in Yungang. So, according to the Buddhahyena-samadhisagara Sutra, these statues showcase the emperor's dignity by means of the Buddha's image." th

"Imitating the appearance and demeanor of the emperor is just a new trend to carve a Buddha," said Su Bai, after studying "the costumes of extant Buddha statues in the western world". After a pilgrimage to the Yungang Grottoes along the "route of aesthetics", aesthetician Li Zehou discovered that "the Buddha statue in the Yungang Grottoes is just a true reflection of the worldly emperor, even the black nevi on his face and feet are the same." In the early Qing Dynasty, at the sight of the dilapidated Yungang Grottoes, Xuanda Governor Tong Yangliang rebuilt a four-storey pavilion for the site and hung a tablet reading "Grand Buddha Pavilion" and a pair of meretricious couplets for it. A couplet later carved on the gate tower of Yungang indicates the soul of Yungang Grottoes to a certain degree: A great man between the heaven and earth, an impressive hero of past and present. It is really a vivid description to the Tuoba family. Datong (Pingcheng) has been a golden triangle for national assembly and cultural integration since ancient times. In the Northern Wei, waves of migrants swarmed to the city. After conquering a country, the emperors of the Northern Wei often took some captives back to the capital. When Emperor Taiwu defeated the Northern Liang, he moved 30,000 Liangzhou citizens to Pingcheng. Some 90,000 Gaoche captives built the Deer Garden under the reign of Tuoba Si. About 150,000 painters and masons from Liangzhou were involved in Emperor Wencheng's carving project of Yungang Grottoes. The teams building the palaces and halls in Pingcheng included "2,000 craftsmen" from Chang'an and "more than 100,000 artisans" from Shandong. Pingcheng was a populous city and had a population of more than one million in its heyday.

The name Datong appeared in the period under the reign of Emperor Wuzong of Tang Dynasty. The Tang Court established an army in the place, recruiting soldiers of different ancestries to build a harmonious"Datong Army". In the Liao Dynasty, Datong was used as the name for the prefecture and called Xijing as the auxiliary capital. Datong, as a holy land and cradle for national unity, is an eye-catching place to realize China's traditional vision of "the harmony of the country" and the world's ultimate goal of "the harmony of the world". Confucius originated the vision of "harmony of the country". He contributed all his life to outlining a Sun City in the minds of oriental people. The "harmony of the country" is the main theme of the Chinese nationality and the permanent belief of Chinese descendants.

The portrait of Bodhisattva in the east side of the south wall in the 18th Grotto.

Today's Datong.

Kang Youwei ran hither and thither to call for a happy community of "peace and harmony" and authored the resounding Book of Great Harmony. The final interpretation to the Three Principles of the People rendered by Dr. Sun Yat-sen was "to build a republic and realize harmony of the world". Mao Zedong ascended the Kunlun Mountain and energetically wrote down, "throughout the peaceful world, people cherish the same dream." The Yungang Grottoes are a grand monument witnessing the Xianbei nationality's unification of the north and the process of national unity. It is also a milestone in the journey of human beings toward harmony and the merging of global nationalities. A drop of sand and a piece of grass are far away from each other. However, sunshine and wind will shorten the distance between them. The Multicultural Planet: The Report of a UNESCO International Expert Group says "we are of the same species and a big family". The Chinese nation is mainly the descendants of farming culture, which features high stability and great inclusiveness. Many historical nomadic people find their final home in China. The merge of nomadic culture and farming culture has a quite deep historical relation.

According to Choose Life: A Dialogue Between Arnold Toynbee & Daisaku Ikeda, the unity of the world is to avoid the collective suicide of humankind. At this point, the most prepared among all nationalities is the Chinese nation which cultivates a unique thinking method over the past 2,000 years. "We hope that the people all over the world can meet here freely by 2000," this is the inscription on the Arch of Triumph in Paris. Nowadays, humankind has energetically appeared in the 21 century. st

"The river roars down to the east in surges, Whatever high mountains can't hold it back."

CHAPTER III: THE AFFECTION OF THE YUNGANG GROTTOES

Small streams turn into torrent and torrents run into the sea. This is the rule of nature. A unified multi-ethnic country is the result of a merging that resembles this process in the water. The Romance of the Three Kingdoms says the general trend under heaven is that "there is bound to be unification after prolonged division and division after prolonged unification". Every cycle of division and unification is part of history and a historical progress in a comparative sense. Following this mechanism, humans constantly move from one civilization to another. History refuses sectional reviews and analysis. The gallery of history has always and will forever prefer diverse colors. A person's blood is innately impressed by the collective memories of his or her ancestors. Certain lifestyles exist before a person is born and become the special environment and preconditions for a person's development. The world doesn't go against the nature of people, but represents the collective material creations and spiritual memories of social beings for generations. The trifle life experience of a single individual gathers with others and develops into an asset for the public. The invention of an individual, once recognized and accepted by the public, is kept as part of collective memories. As Karl Marx famously said: "Humans

create their own history. However, they don't create history either in the way they like or under the conditions they select, but based on the conditions passed down from the past." Hence, the intermarriage of different ethnic groups serves as the most intrinsic and profound force driving forward assimilation. The direct result of free marriage is that all ethnic groups are inseparable. The children of people from two ethnics groups actually represent a new group, no matter what ethnical group they identify with. Tuoba Xianbei merged into other ethnic groups during its expansion. Liwei, who was regarded as the pride of the Xianbei people, was the son of Jie Fen, Emperor Shengwu, and a Hun girl. Interestingly, the historical fact was gracefully adapted into a fairy tale in the Color Female Dancing Pottery Figure of the Northern Wei. Weishu. One day, Emperor Shengwu was walking in the field when a beauty came down from the heaven and said:"I'm a fairy and come here to look for my husband." She then made love with the emperor. Ready to return to the heavens the next day, the fairy made a date with the emperor to meet again the next year. When the day arrived, the fairy handed a son to Emperor Shengwu and said: "This is our son, and you'd better treat him nicely. He is supposed to succeed you as the new emperor when he grows up." The son was Emperor Liwei. There are a great many fairy tales about goddess marriages. On the central tower columns in the 37 , 48 and 6 grottoes of Yungang are engraved Buddhist stories including "Entering into the Embryo by Elephant" and "Birth Under the Arm". Sakyamuni was not the son of his father King Suddhodana but "the son of Buddha Nengren, who came down by a white elephant". After his mother Queen Maya took a bath, she "dreamed of a white elephant in the sky, which suddenly disappeared amid the music and songs." th

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"After ten months...Queen Maya saw a big tree named Free of Concerns with fragrant flowers and flourishing leaves. She lifted her right hand to pick them, while Sakyamuni was coming out slowly from her right arm."

Nv Xiu, the offspring of Zhuan Xu, the grandson of Yellow Emperor (Huangdi), swallowed the egg of a phoenix and gave birth to a son named Da Ye. Jiang Yuan, the first wife of Diku, the great-grandson of Yellow Emperor, followed the footprints of a giant and gave birth to Qi. The Scripture of the Great Peace deified Laozi by saying "Mother Xuanxu was expecting a real baby when she dreamed of magic things." Let's come back to the topic of intermarriage among different ethnic groups. To unite surrounding ethnic groups, the Han Dynasty took diverse measures that included the "peace-making marriage policy" developed by Liu Bang, Emperor Gaozu of Han. When fighting the Huns, Liu Bang was trapped in Mountain Baideng (20 km northeast of Yungang) for seven days. Later, both parties agreed on a cease-fire, with the Han party proposing a peace-making marriage as an olive branch. Liu Bang had intended to marry the prince to Chanyu, but his queen firmly disagreed. Emperor Gaozu had to send a daughter of his family instead to honor his words. During the reign of Emperor Yuan of the Han, Wang Zhaojun was married to Born from the Armpit, No.6 Grotto, created between 471-494, Chanyu. Staying at a small inn in Pingcheng on the Northern Wei Dynasty. the peace-making route for a night, she played the pipa passionately as if she was weeping and complaining when thinking of "no friends outside the Yangguan Pass". The inn was thus named "Pipa Laodian" (old pipa inn) and Liu Gongquan, a famous calligrapher of the Tang Dynasty, wrote "Pipa Laodian" on the plaque, which is presently collected in the Datong Museum.

Zhaojun Going Broad (part), by Gong Suran, a female artist of the Southern Song Dynasty, depicting the scene that Wang Zhaojun was married to the chief of the Huns during the reign of Emperor Yuandi, Western Han Dynasty.

Wang Zhaojun was previously a beautiful imperial concubine in the court of Han. But the emperor had to choose favorites relying on the portraits of painters because there were too many beauties in the court. Mao Yanshou, a painter who asked for bribes with paintings, was declined by Wang Zhaojun and thus made her look ugly in a portrait, which gave Wang Zhaojun no chance to stay with the emperor. When the Han and Huns were holding peace talks, Wang Zhaojun presented a petition to marry Chanyu. On the wedding day, Wang Zhaojun looked like a crescent emerging from the clouds, astonishing every pair of eyes. In particular, her glance full of bitterness and complaints almost made the emperor's spirit jump out of his body. Emperor Yuan flew into a rage and later had Mao Yanshou's head cut. As a fundamental national policy during the Han Dynasty, peacemaking had practical and far-reaching influence. The 16 states or kingdoms of the Five Hu accepted the Han culture in varying degrees while agreeing to peace. Hence, their ethnic leaders naturally had the blood of the Han people. This was why the head of the Huns, Liu Yuan, was surnamed Liu. According to Beishi, the Gaochang Ethnic Group in the Western Regions had "similar criminal customs as well as wedding and funeral practices as the Han people". During the Wei and Jin Dynasties, intermarriages between different ethnic groups were more popular. Emperors in Northern Wei Dynasty often sent princesses to the nations that it submitted itself to, which was not a copy of the peace-making policy of the Han Dynasty, but also a part of the conciliatory policy of Northern Wei Dynasty. For example, Emperor Taiwu Tuoba Tao once

married his sister Princess Wuwei to Juqu Mujian, King of Northern Liang. US sinologist John King Fairbank asserted that "Northern Wei was semi-Chinesized from the very beginning". The Tang people were a half-breed of Han and Xianbei people that represented Five Hu. As verified by modern historians, the blood of Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty was closer to that of the Xianbei. Zhangsun, mother of Emperor Gaozong and queen of Emperor Taizong Li Shimin, was the offspring of the brother of Tuoba Hong, Emperor Xianwen of Northern Wei. Wu Zetian's mother Yang was a relative of Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty, who was born in the Dugu family, which was a major clan in Xianbei ethnic group. In the Northern Zhou Dynasty, there was a Xianbei person named Dugu Xin, who married his first daughter to the emperor of Northern Zhou, the fourth daughter to the father of Emperor Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty and the seventh daughter to Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty. Yu Wenkai, an architect in the Sui Dynasty, Lu Fayan, the author of Qieyun, Zhangsun Wuji, the powerful prime minister in the early Tang Dynasty, Yuan Zhen, a poet in the middle Tang Dynasty and Yuan Haowen, an author who lived in the late Jin Dynasty and early Yuan Dynasty, were all offspring of Xianbei people. Besides the blood, Sui and Tang Dynasties both had intricate relations with Northern Wei. There has been considerable academic discussion of this intermixing. During exchanges, two or more ethnic groups lose their own features and melt into a new ethnic group and it is called merging. The process in which one of the ethnic groups melts its own features into another is called assimilation. Merging and assimilation are theoretic terms or concepts just defined in a relative sense. Unlike the idea that one-plus-one-equals-two, merging is not balanced or reciprocal. Unlike the idea of two-minus-one-equals-one, assimilation is not absolute or unconditional. Comprehensive assimilation will not exclude local merging, while all-round merging might also include assimilation in certain aspects.

Spring Outing of Lady Guoguo painted by an artist of the Tang Dynasty (Part, copied by an artist of the Song Dynasty), reproducing the dressed-up outing of Lady Guoguo and her attendants.

Queen Mother of the West.

History has always moved forward in a diverse and multilateral manner. If the merging of ethnic groups can be described as mutual assimilation, the history of the Chinese nation was created amid the coexistence and interweaving of the assimilation by the Han people and the assimilation by the Hu people. King Wuling of Zhao launched the famous reform campaign by advocating dressing in clothes of the Hu and teaching people to ride horses and shoot arrows, which broke through the dam of traditional forces, refreshed the military image of the Zhao Kingdom and helped Zhao swiftly leap among the Seven Powers of the Warring States Period. Based on Shiji• Liuguobiao, Wang Guowei made the judgment that "the clothes of the Hu people were first introduced by King Wuling of Zhao". The tomb of King Wuling of Zhao is located within Lingqiu County, Datong, about 160 km southeast of Yungang. From Mongxi Bitan (Dream Pool Essays) and Jiutangshu•Yufuzhi, we know that since the Northern Qi Dynasty, "stand collars", "narrow sleeves" and "short boots" have become clothes demonstrating the vitality of the Chinese nation. Xintangshu•Wuxingzhi described that vividly saying "both aristocrats and ordinary people favored the clothes and hats of Hu people during the Tianbao period. Women wore jewelry of the Hu people and clothes with narrow and small sleeves." The small buttons reflected the civilization of the times and the narrow cuffs demonstrated refreshed social customs. On the goods shelves of our daily life reflect this assimilation by the Hu people, such as Hu flaxes, Hu celeries, walnuts, pomegranates, grapes, tomatoes, Huqi and carrots. Nuzhen people took a monk from the Central Plains to Huiningfu, capital of Jin Dynasty, in the second year of the Tianhui period (1124). On the evening of the Lantern Festival, he made a big red lantern and hung it high up in the place where he stayed. Hearing of that, Emperor Taizong considered it a sign for rebellion among the Han and had the monk's head cut off. It was after the Jin people moved southward that the emperor knew that was a false alarm and followed the customs of Han people to celebrate the Lantern Festival. The Mongolians hadn't heard of the Lantern Festival before entering the Central Plains, but held celebrations with lanterns led by Emperor Yingzong of the Yuan Dynasty. Meanwhile, Jin people and Mongolians brought their folk customs like horse racing, lamb tussling, wrestling and arrow shooting to the Central Plains and let them grow there. This reflects the mutual assimilation between Han and Hu people. In his famous book named China, the Germany geographer Ferdinand von Riehthofen created the term "Silk Road", which was vivid and expressive. The Silk Road to the Western Regions and the Maritime Silk Road were both links that promoted two-way exchanges and mutual complementation between the ancient Chinese nation and the ethnic groups in Western Regions and those in surrounding areas. Zhang Qian was elected as the first special envoy to activate the link. The Western Regions was a land of beauty and magic. It was the common homeland and

stage for many ethnic groups including Qiang, Di, Huns, Xianbei, Turk, Qidan, Dangxiang, Tufan, Huihu and Monglians, as well as the sacred place for the introduction of Buddhism and Buddhist art into the East. In the second year of the Taikang period of the Western Jin Dynasty, as the tomb of King Xiang of Wei in the Warring States period was robbed, a remarkable book named Mu Tianzi Zhuan (Travels of Emperor Mu of the Zhou Dynasty) emerged, providing a window into the Western Regions outside the Central Plains. Emperor Mu of Zhou travelled around the Western Regions by eight strong horses, leaving a legend about exchanges among different ethnic groups that was even earlier than those created by Zhang Qian. The ancient Western Regions had plenty of grain, luxuriant plants and precious jade in spectacular mountains. In particular, the Kunlun Mountain and Xi Wangmu were praised by Lu Xun as the "most well-known by the world". Xi Wangmu was the name of the head of a matriarchal tribe living west of Congling (present Pamirs Plateau). The legend said Chang'e, out of curiosity, ate an elixir that Hou Yi got from Xi Wangmu, then became a fairy and flew into the moon. The magic Western Regions was a fair land as imagined by Emperor Mu of Zhou. Soon after ascending to the throne, he launched a great journey to the Western Regions, climbing the Tianshan Mountain and Kunlun Mountain and crossing marshlands. As verified by Gu Jiegang, the team departed from Luoyang, went through Yanmen Pass and Hetao before entering the Western Regions. Tribes along the routed warmly greeted the travelling group. "Emperor Mu of Zhou took Jiahe (a kind of grain) to grow it back in the Central Plains," while giving colorful gifts that symbolized the civilization of the Central Plains to the people they met. The last visit of Emperor Mu of Zhou was Yaochi (Heavenly Lake), where he and Xi Muwng fell in love. During their meeting, Xi Wangmu sang Baiyun Yao (A Tribute to the Clouds): "The cloud in the sky/flies out from the mountains/you come from the remote east/crossed mountains and waters along the way/may you a good health/when will you come back for a gathering". The song moved mountains and waters and threw the voices of all birds into the shade.

Qiuzi Ancient Town.

Emperor Mu of Zhou stood up to make a salute and sang with a rich voice: "I will go back to the Central Plains/to better implement the blueprint for governing Huaxia/and make all the people lead a happy life/ that will be the best gift to you/please wait for me patiently for three years/ we will review the happy days that we spend together today." Tang Dynasty poets Li He and Li Shangyin described the love between Emperor Mu of Zhou and Xi Wangmu in Yaohuayue and Yaochi. The interesting depiction of the story was even considered by some novel historians as the "origin of novels". The story of Xi Wangmu had similar implications as the Greek myth about the garden of golden apples. Xi Wangmu was later turned by Chinese artists into a noble young lady in a royal robe surrounded by two maidens (one of whom held a flower basket or a plate of magic peaches and the other carried a palm-leaf fan) and gracefully stepped into paintings, porcelains, copper wares and pendants. Loulan, Niya, Yutian, Qiuci and Gaochang in the Western Regions were all ancient kingdoms greatly influenced by Buddhist culture. Archaeological studies discovered that both the Central Plains and Western Regions saw Neolithic material relics from each other. The Sino-Japan Niya exploration team once unearthed a piece of colorful brocade of the Central Plains from the ancient tombs in Niya, the Pompeii city of the East. On the jewelry blue background with rich patterns were eight Han characters: Wu Xing Chu Dong Fang Li Zhong Guo. The concept of"Zhong Guo (China)" in ancient times was different from that of today, while "Wu Xing" referred to the five major

planets in the solar system. History cannot be discussed without mentioning geography, as history takes place in specific geographical areas. This is true of China and the Chinese nation. The historical geographer Tan Qixiang summarized the geography-based China in a very clear manner. During the Spring and Autumn period, states like Zhou, Jin, Zheng, Qi, Lu, Song and Wei in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River all called themselves "China" and viewed Qin, Chu, Wu and Yue as minorities. During the Qin and Han Dynasties, "China" included the lands of Qin and Chu States. People during the Eastern Jin Dynasty moved southward and regarded the Sixteen Kingdoms as minorities. During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, people from the Southern Dynasties contemptuously called the Northern Dynasty "Suolu" while the people in the Northern Dynasties cursed those of the Southern Dynasties as "Daoyi". During the Tang Dynasty, Li Yanshou compiled the histories of both the Southern and Northern Dynasties, which became part of China. The Song Dynasty saw history repeated as the Liao, Jin and Xia Dynasties were considered minorities again, which was not corrected until the Yuan Dynasty, when the Liao, Jin, Xia Dynasties were made as part of the great China along with the Song. The scope of China from the middle of the 18 century to 1840 represented the vast territory of China naturally shaped after thousands of years of development. th

Fresco of No.296 Grotto, Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, depicting scenes of businesspeople in trip on the Silk Road.

The unification of the country and merging of ethnic groups were the political ideals and moral emotions of the Chinese people from generation to generation. Legalists believed "national affairs were about people in all parts of the country but the supreme power of a country should be concentrated in the monarch". Mohists considered "unification of a country is for concentrated governance". Confucians preached "all the people belong to one family". From the very start the history of China was the fruit of the merging of ethnic groups, for example, the Xia Dynasty was based on both the Shang and Zhou Dynasties. The Xia Dynasty was the first country established in China's history, with the advanced civilization including material and spiritual civilization and combining the intrinsic forces of the people of both the Shang and Zhou Dynasties. The sociologist Fei Xiaotong said the Chinese nation is "integrated despite multiple origins", which evoked sympathy. The archaeologist Su Bingqi explained it in detail: "The Chinese nation does not originate from the same place as cultural and archaeological relics that have been found across the country from Northeast China to Hebei, and from Yunnan to Guangdong, Zhejiang, Hunan and Hubei, and even the Xia, Shang, Zhou and Qin Dynasties in the Central Plains had their respective histories of establishment. The concept of "China" was shaped during a process in which multiple branches of ancestors of the Chinese nation kept merging and restructuring." He also summarized that "taking roots in a 1-million-plus-year culture and a 10,000-plusyear civilization, China has 5,000 years of history as an ancient country and 2,000 years of history as a unified country." The merging and unity of different ethnic groups drove forward historical evolution. Every time a grand merging was completed, history would see a boom. For example, the mighty Han Dynasty appeared following the unification of the Qin Dynasty that ended the chaos of the Spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period. The powerful Sui and Tang Dynasties came after the Northern Wei Dynasty, which brought an end to hundreds of years of war in the Three Kingdoms period, Western Jin and Eastern Jin Dynasties as well as Southern and Northern Dynasties; the Yuan Dynasty was an exception, as it adopted the ethnic discrimination policy by classifying the Han people as the fourth class, which led to multiple social contradictions and the failure to make great achievements. During the Qing Dynasty, the ruler drew the lesson from the Yuan Dynasty, accepted the Han culture and established the regime shared by both Manchu and Han people, which brought about the Golden Age of Three Emperors.

A glazed pottery horse of the Northern Wei Dynasty.

Huang Renyu's views coincided with those of Zhou Liangxiao. China was politically unified in 221 BC. Unification was normal and division was abnormal afterwards. Even in long-term division, the will of the people tended to be unified. Even an imperial court in exile would pursue unification, undeniably was a miracle in the history of the world. The renowned emperor Ying Zheng said: "I'm the first emperor of China and the throne will be passed down from generation to generation." However, unification is followed by division and vice versa, a historical cycle that often slips into a trap as unification finally walks into dead ends and become the instrument used for feudal autocracy. Emperors whose wills were absolute laws that determined the fate of people controlled the country. When a society in such unification was an abyss of darkness, various sorts of uprisings by civilians and rebellions by feudal vassals would spring up, and the country would once again fall into the mire of division. The Three Kingdoms period, the Western Jin and Eastern Jin Dynasties and Southern and Northern Dynasties saw wars and division and became the gulch with the longest and widest crack in the history of China. The periods also featured fierce contention for hegemony and unification. But many of such efforts failed.

Bayanbulak Grassland of the Inner Mongolia.

Like a magic dark horse, the Tuoba people broke the deadlock, established the Northern Wei Dynasty and built the image of Xianbei Tuoba as a brave ethnic group with "tuiyin" spirit. "Tuiyin" was a Xianbei expression referring to wise people who were good thinkers, in particular tribe leaders. Unexpected stories took place in such a vivid and astonishing way, which were unbelievable but inevitable. That was the supreme realm of general philosophy and even art philosophy and life philosophy. Let's turn to Gaxian Cave, the "back yard" of the Tuoba people. Gaxian Cave is a natural cave in Elunchun in Daxing'anling Mountains (Daxianbei Mountains in ancient times), as ascertained by archaeologist Mi Wenping in July 1980. "Gaxian" meant the hometown in Xibo language. Elunchun people explained that with a myth. Once upon a time, there was a nine-headed monster that occupied a cave in Daxianbei Mountains and often left scratches on the happy life of Elunchun people. So, a young man named Gaxian led his fellow villagers into the mountains to seek justice from the monster. "You should know how many verdant mountains and green rivers are there in Daxianbei Mountains if you want to be the head of the cave,"Gaxian said to the nine-headed monster. "Nine hundred mountains and four hundred and fifty rivers," the monster replied conceitedly. The crowd laughed because even children know that there were 100 mountains and 50 rivers. The monster with nine heads had all the answers but multiplied the actual figures by nine. The monster was embarrassed and raised a huge bow to have a race with Gaxian. It shot three arrows at the falcon-like stone on top of the opposite mountain but all failed, as its 18 eyes just couldn't concentrate on one point. This set off roars of laughter among the villagers. Taking the bow and arrow, Gaxian aimed at the stone and succeeded every time, leaving round holes in the falcon-like stone. Suddenly, beams of golden sunshine passed through the holes and went directly into every eye of the monster like sharpened arrows. Hurt, the monster

roared and fled to the forests behind the cave, disappearing forever. The cave was named Gaxian Cave by Elunchun people. In reality, Gaxian Cave is the historical remains of a stone room of early Xianbei people. Gaxian Cave resembles a magic tortoise carrying sheer cliffs. The cave can accommodate thousands of people and has smaller caves inside. The dust layer inside Gaxian Cave is 1.5m thick, made up of two cultural stratums, a Neolithic cultural stratum and chipped stone cultural stratum. When the Huns that dominated the grassland were divided because of internal conflict, the Tuoba Xianbei people who had long lived in the areas around Gaxian Cave emerged out of the mountains to look at the external world. The leader, called "Tuiyin", secretly sent peopleo out of the mountains and then decided to lead his fellow men to a better homeland in the south. The move evoked disputes among the villagers. The Tuoba people kneeled down in front of Gaxian Cave and held a sacrificial ceremony. Afterwards, they marched southward.

Yungang.

As the forests gradually developed into the background behind them and shimmering big lakes and green grassland became a reality even more beautiful than any dream. The Xianbei people, both old and young, were exited, intoxicated and joyful and cheered, sang and danced. This shocked the birds, the deer and the horses. Hulunbuir Pasture Land has always been the "cradle of most of the nomadic peoples in China's history: Xianbei people, Qidan people, Nuzhen people and Mongolians, who spent the youth of their histories (there)", said Jian Bozan. The grassland is also the origin of nomad.

The first step of Xianbei's move southward was arduous, timeconsuming and thrilling. As a historic leap forward, it was unexpected and resembled a silent thunderclap in the sky of China's history. Tuoba's move southward was more than a historic choice and a turning point. It was the step of the Xianbei people from Gaxian Cave to the political, economic and cultural stage of China that initiated a new era as well as magnificent histories of both Xianbei and Chinese people. Gaxian Cave, which accomplished its mission of breeding an extraordinary ethnic group, was filled with an enormous sense of loss for the departure of the Tuoba people, and finally developed into the historical remains and a mystery deep into the history. Tuoba never returned. They fought and gained like hungry eagles and freed leopards along the north-to-south route from Gaxian Cave, the Yungang Grottoes and the Longmen Grottoes, which I prefer to compare to three statues that successively supported the primitive tribe, slave empire and feudal dynasty of the Tuoba people.

Ancient relief image of Huangdi.

Fates were absolutely not passive divination but a mysterious force that often flashes in your life journey and makes you unable to say no.

When lost and upset on the grassland, the Tuoba people encountered a magic beast with a horse-like body and cattle-like voice that led them out of their dilemma. Thanks to the guidance and encouragement of the beast, an incarnation of ideal and hopes, they passed through high mountains and deep valleys and conquered numerous hardships and difficulties. They finally settled down at the foot of the Yinshan Mountain, which bordered the Central Plains. On the mountain-top opposite Yungang is an ancient beacon tower, which was once carried by the high mountains like a torch, lighting up ancient battlefields flashing with knives and swords. Banners, bows, drums as well as faces of Tuoba warriors were dyed red by the beacon fire. Qiang flutes and Pipa sounded more tragic and solemn, accompanying the dances in the fire. Xianbei was an ethnic group who repaid kindness with kindness. They kept in mind the

magic beast that offered them help and carved it on the lintel of the 10 grotto. Research shows that the beast was actually a milu deer known as "Four Beasts in One" and reputed as the "boat of the forests" and "boat of the grassland". th

Xianbei people carved the birch trees that once benefited them in Daxianbei Mountains on the grottoes of Yungang. As memories eroded over time, Gaxian Cave finally faded from the minds of Tuoba people, who looked perplexed and blank when asked about their ancestors and homeland. The feeling of having nowhere to find their roots was painful and untruthful. Therefore, they got to know the importance and necessity of searching for their roots. Continuous successes in the move southward made the Xianbei people not only geographically shorten their distance with the Han people but also psychologically prefer the advanced culture of the Han people. Centering on the search for roots, the Tuoba people ingeniously associated their origin with the Yellow Emperor and then launched a campaign of learning from the Han people. Weishu•Xuji explicitly explained the origin of Tuoba Xianbei at the very start: "The Yellow Emperor once had 25 sons, who were distributed in either Central Plains or remote areas to expand borders. His son named Changyi was sent to the land in the north where Daxianbei Mountains were located, and this was how the name of the ethnic group came from."

Mausoleum of Huangdi.

Why were they called Tuoba? "The Yellow Emperor was made the head for his respect for earth. People in the north called earth 'tuo'" and their offspring "ba" and "tuoba" became the name of the people. Why was that unknown to the world? "The offspring of the Yellow Emperor controlled the vast land north of Youzhou, where they lived by herding and hunting. They had no written words but carved characters on wood, which was passed down from generation to generation." Moreover, "they had no exchanges with the people in the south, so they were not recorded in the written history." Justified both ideologically and theoretically, they were more assured and felt no longer humble when riding horses through the roads in Han areas. Tuoba first changed the title of the dynasty into "Wei", for "Wei" was once the name of "powerful kingdoms in Central Plains" – first a kingdom among the seven powers in the Warring States period that occupied the Central Plains and later the kingdom established by Caocao that unified the Yellow River basin and confronted Wu and Shu Kingdoms. Tuoba held an ascending ceremony in Pingcheng, following practices for emperors of the Han people in the Central Plains. The music and dances were those in the Huangshi. Yellow was put at the center of the five colors as the Han people respected the earth, which was yellow and represented the original and lucky color of life. In the Northern Wei Dynasty, a big number of feudal scholar-officials of Han were introduced into imperial management, and the whole country entered a transition period featuring "one country, two systems", i.e. feudal administration typical of dynasties in the Central Plains and traditional ways of ruling by Xianbei people. Afterwards, any legislation was based on practices of the Han people. Subsequently, Qidan followed the mode, launching the policy of separate ruling over Qidan and Han people. The Jin Kingdom established by the Nuzhen people adopted the Meng'an Mengke system (a military unit) for Northern tribes and the state-and-county system for the Han people in the Central Plains. Every emperor of the Northern Wei Dynasty left records about sacrifices in temples built for the Yellow Emperor, Yao and Shun when ascending the throne. The sacrificial ceremony was an unwritten rule in the autocratic monarchy of the Northern Wei. The Tuoba decided to make the Han an example and the Yellow Emperor their ancestor, as all of those who claimed to be kings—from Maodun, head of the Huns, to Yuan Hao, founder of Daxia Kingdom—generally submitted themselves to the rule of Han emperors in the hope of being conferred titles. They also kept the kingdom names and laws consistent with those adopted in the Central Plains. Kublai, Emperor Shizu of the Yuan Dynasty, "followed laws of the Han Dynasty" although he despised and guarded against the Han. This reflected the power of traditional Chinese

culture and the strong cohesion of Chinese civilization and revealed the recognition of all Chinese people inside and outside the Great Wall towards farming civilization.

Stele of Condolence of Emperor Xiaowen of the Wei Dynasty to Bigan.

Qian Zhongshu said: "The Han people called themselves Chinese and called Xianbei people a minority. Xianbei people called themselves Chinese and the Rouran a minority." Shaping of the same psychology owed to the Yellow Emperor, who ingeniously arranged satellite kingdoms around a centralized authority and sent his offspring to each to govern. This laid the foundation for the extensive recognition of the Yellow Emperor as the ancestor and Chinese people. Emperor Taiwu Tuoba Tao often read books of the Han people after dinners or at midnight. Or he would light tobacco made in the Central Plains, appreciating the Han characters and grasping the meanings between lines. After a long time, he found mistakes that hampered expression of the real meanings. Then, he gathered a number of Han scholars in the second year of the Shiguang Period and had them create more than 1,000 Chinese characters. The Chinese language became the mother tongue of the Tuoba people. What and how Tuoba Tao created Chinese characters somewhat revealed the secret about Tuoba's early entry

into the "half-Chinesized" state. Language is the outer form of ideas, the "geological stratum" of a nation's civilization as well as the final symbol of a nation. It was because the relative independence of respective language that the Han, Manchu, Mongolian, Hui and Tibetan people gained a foothold in the forest of all ethnic groups. In his Zhongguoren Shigang (History Outline of Chinese), Bo Yang mentioned Chu Kingdom, which "accepted the square characters of the Han people... and merged with the Han people because of the unification of characters."

Square inkstone with stone carving of the Northern Wei Dynasty.

What violated conventional logic was that the wise and insightful Tuoba people willingly replaced their own Xianbei language with that of the Han. So, it was natural that the Tuoba people later were completely assimilated by the Han. With his facial expression indicating his divine right, Emperor Taiwu Tuoba Tao looked solemn when changing the reign title as "Taiping Zhenjun", which further evolved into the extreme behavior of suppressing Buddhism and advocating Taoism seven years later. Emperor Xiaowen finalized assimilation by the Han culture by changing the surname of Xianbei as "Yuan", which might be sourced from Yijing. "Yuan" referred to the origin and start of the cosmos. Tuoba Hong, Emperor Xiaowen, moved the capital of the Northern Wei Dynasty to the south, which became a focus of disputes. The motive of moving southward was developed long

ago. In Yecheng, Tuoba Gui "thought of making the place capital of the dynasty when looking around"; Emperor Mingyuan also had plans to move the capital to Yecheng. Moving the capital to Luoyang not only was consistent with the ambition of the Tuoba people that "benefiting the whole China and appeasing people across the country", but also was the inevitable road for Tuoba people to be included into the direct descendants of the Yellow Emperor.

Herds on the grassland.

Surrounded by three rivers, Luoyang boasted superior geographical conditions. Moreover, it was backed by Mangshan Mountani and faced Luoshui River, which was in strict line with the "fengshui" criteria for selection of a capital site. Emperor Pingwang of the Zhou Dynasty once moved the capital here. The Eastern Han Dynasty had been based in Luoyang for nearly 200 years. Cao Wei did not really gain an upper edge over Shu and Han with an imposing manner till it moved the capital to Luoyang. Of course, the rise and fall of a dynasty were not necessarily related to the move of the capital. Time always flew. Tuoba Tao who had become emperor didn't appear surprised or excited when learning that Gaxian Cave, the temple of his ancestors, had been found. Instead of going there in person, he sent others and hastily carved some words of blessing in Han characters, which were later recorded in the Weishu and served as evidence that Gaxian Cave was the stone temple of the ancestors of the Xianbei people. Tuoba Tao just couldn't concentrate his mind on Gaxian Cave, as he was making painstaking efforts to prove the Tuoba people shared the origin of the Han. Without complaints and regrets, the Gaxian Cave would be a prayer for the Tuoba Xianbei people forever.

The grassland is home to milk. The Xianbei people worried that if not protected or expanded, their own "cheese (here refer to benefit)" would fly away or have a corner missing one morning when they wake up. The world has never seen a "cheese" absolutely safe, this could be seen as a rule of cheese? Undeniably, the Xianbei people had a less developed civilization than the Han people due to restrictions by geographical environment and living customs. But it is praiseworthy that the Xianbei people traditionally were the least conservative and confined by the trifle formalities while the most creative and the boldest to be pioneers. This coincides with the well-known view in the western historical world: The tougher the environment, the stronger the positive force that stimulates the growth of civilization is. The leader that led the Tuoba people out of the Gaxian Cave was Tuiyin I, and the one who led them move southward was called Tuiyin II."Tuiyin" was a respectful name with spiritual significance in the history and life of the Xianbei people. It meant "deep research" or "those who conduct research". Driven by the "tuiyin" spirit, the Tuoba people expanded their borders while actively learning from the strengths of others, particularly the essence of the Han culture. Rather than replacing farming civilization with nomadic civilization, they merged both civilizations and ethnic groups and thus unified the northern areas. The Tuoba people grasped the pulse of agriculture-based China, taking a path for the feudal Northern Wei Dynasty that featured a developing agriculture and administering a big agricultural country – from the distribution of fields based on the number of household population at the early stage to the "land equalization system" during the Taihe period. An ethnic group that combines merits of both grassland people and the Han people in the Central Plains was one with the highest rate of success. The Tuoba people served as the typical example. The Xianbei people believed that the ultimate power that determined the fate of everything was the effort of people. Tuoba Tao was well read in ancient Chinese military tactics, particularly Liu Tao, a book on the art of war written by Jiang Ziya. Every time soldiers set off for battle, he would tell them about the Muye Battle between the Zhou and Shang Dynasties. King Wu of the Zhou Dynasty led tens of thousands of soldiers to fight against the 700,000-strong army of King Zhou of the Shang Dynasty, and finally triumphed. This became a significant turning point for the founding of the Zhou Dynasty. "Game theory" is a major theory in economics that was successfully used by the Xianbei, represented by the Tuoba people, a long time ago.

Front yard of No.7 &8 Grottoes, taken by Yungang Grottoes Investigation Team of Institute of Oriental Studies at the University of Kyoto (1941).

Innovation is the soul of a nation and the Tuoba people delighted in innovation from the founding of the Northern Wei Dynasty to the construction of Yungang Grottoes and further to the Taihe Reform. There were no fences, passes or barriers but roads and bridges leading to ideals ahead of them. "Shattered flowers after a gust of horse hoofs resemble butterflies that are the souls of flowers struggling to rise from the ground and chasing the horse hoofs leaving away." This was the way Xianbei people explained sincerity and persistence in their glossary. When they held their heads high and said no to difficulties and failures, fortune and success would come in succession. The influence of the "tuiyin" spirit released has not been and will never be confined at any time. Vital and passionate, Xianbei people activated the cells and optimized the gene and quality of the Han people like getting fresh blood. But Xianbei people claimed loudly that they were originally the offspring of the Yellow Emperor. Since Xianbei people were an indispensable part of the Chinese nation, the Yungang Grottoes built by Tuoba Xianbei people were naturally the pride and wealth shared by all the descendants of the Yellow Emperor. In fact, those who contributed to the great project also included skilled craftsmen from northern ethnic groups (like Xiliang) and local Han ethnic group, and even monks from the Western Regions in addition to the Xianbei people. The Yungang Grottoes were results of the wisdom of multiple ethnic groups and the

material evidence of the merging of multiple ethnic groups. Of course, Tuoba Xianbei people were the main builder, initiator and organizer, and the purpose and theme of the move were about the affection for Yungang, which was the inner core of the will and spirit of the Northern Wei Dynasty. At this very moment, the ode by Jorge Luis Borges was once again lingering in my mind: The motherland doesn't mean all to everybody but to us all/May the bright, clean and mysterious flame burn in you and me forever. When awakened by the great grottoes, I feel my heart beat fast and my soul impacted by shame, as we were so weak when it came to appreciating and protecting the great works of the Xianbei people. "Located in Datong, Shanxi Province, the Yungang Grottoes were great Buddhist artworks from the Northern Wei Dynasty. But in modern times over 1,000 years later, they were only seen in historical accounts and the location was unknown to the Chinese people... In 1903, the grottoes were discovered by the Japanese Ito Chuta in Shanxi. Afterwards, they were studied, illustrated and widely introduced by the French artist édouard Chavannes, and thus gained worldwide reputation as the greatest art of Japan. In the words of Mr. Feng Zikai this "really upset all of us".

Shantang Shuidian of Yungang Grottoes.

What particularly makes us sad and angry is that the miracle created by the Xianbei people couldn't even be protected and defended by the later generations. Instead, many of the precious stone statues were robbed by foreign powers and have been collected in the museums in Japan and western countries to this day.

The missing sacred statues in the Yungang Grottoes resemble huge scars that hurt the heart of every descendant of the Yellow Emperor. Every time I come here, I seem to hear voiceless cries and face interrogation of every pair of sharp eyes. I feel extremely upset and indignant. The Yungang Grottoes were listed among the World Cultural Heritage—the good news came from Helsinki, capital of Finland, on a snowy winter night at the end of 2001. The 1,000year Yungang embraced another spring full of vigor and vitality, which should have cheered up the ancestors of the Xianbei people up in heaven.

CHAPTER IV: LIGHT OF THE YUNGANG GROTTOES

remarkable historical drama must consist of a number of historical scenes behind which are active historical figures directed by the invisible hand of civilization. Civilizations change the world and shape history in a subtle way, like constant drips of water wear away at stone. Mankind creates civilization and is shaped by civilization at the same time.

A

No. 10 Grotto, Lotus and Flying Apsaras created between 471 and 494, the Northern Wei Dynasty.

In Chinese, the word wen ming (civilization) first appeared in the Yijing (I Ching, or The Book of Changes) of the Zhou Dynasty (c.1600BC-221BC). It was a new concept coined by the two characters Wen and Ming. It is a mistake to think that Chinese civilization and the Chinese state came into being at the same time. Civilization started when human society emerged. Civilization declared its existence when the first signs of mankind arose. The civilization we are proud of today will, perhaps, be classified some day as cultural heritage by future generations. The state emerged at some historical stage as a product of civilization, much like records with knots and the practice of drilling wood to make fire. Mankind discovered and used these things. Thus, the nation is a substantive concept and functions as meaningful means of identification. It is also difficult to agree with Lewis H. Morgan who divided the colorful and diversified progresses of human society into three stages: Savagery, barbarism, and civilization. Barbarism and civilization are two sides of a coin, just like the opposite colors of black and white that exist in human nature. When barbarism died out, the human being became civilized and human society evolved into civilization.

Accompanying the rolling wheels of the times, new concepts emerged one after another: Material civilization, spiritual civilization, political civilization, scientific and technological civilization, information civilization, ecological civilization, green civilization and more. Generally, a nation must have created a civilization of its own characteristics. Civilization is dynamic and evolving, historically. The fusion of the civilizations of different nations does not mean the fusion of these nations, but a nation fusing different ethic groups must have a civilization with elements brought by these ethnic groups in the process of fusion. Chinese civilization is great, with multiple sources and branches, like a garden with a great variety of colorful flowers or a sky with a great number of blinking stars. Beautiful Taiwan has been recorded in the Records of Special Land and Water Species in Linhai more than 1700 years ago. From the huge stone architecture and delicate jade articles left by Puyuma, we can vaguely see the lovely complexion of the Jade Tribe Tribe from the Neolithic period. In Hong Kong—the Oriental Pearl with blooming Bauhinia, Lei Cheng Uk Han Tomb and the Tai Wan Jade Yazhang tell stories of folk exchanges between the Pearl River Delta and central China more than 3,000 years ago. The ancient temples built with corallites, stone carved goddess statues and beautiful tales as charming as the red coral in Xisha Islands stir the wistfully ripples to the ancient people to develop the islands and carve out the maritime Silk Road. The remains of the ancient Guge Kingdom in Ngari, Tibet Autonomous Region, the Buddhist murals in the White Palace and the Red Palace, the sunshine, the snow-capped mountains, Hada, barley wine, the Potala Palace and the Jokhang Monastery, together create the dreamlike scenery of the snow-covered plateau; the copperware in Erdos, as shining as a copper mirror, lit the memories of the Hun.

Pamirs.

Unique and self-contained, China was like a myth cradled in the eastern part of Eurasia, with her presence extending from the Pamirs and Himalayas on the west to the vast ocean on the east and the luxuriant tropical rain forest on the south. In the fertile land, a civilization of agriculture was created, best represented by the Yangshao Culture and the Longshan Culture. The Civilization Effect is interactive and the Chinese agricultural civilization borrowed

know-how of bronze metallurgy and equestrianism from the west, pottery making, jade and ivory carving and silk weaving and embroidery from the east and the south, among others, while exporting its own knowledge to other civilizations. In the eyes of the western peoples, China was the home of china, instead of wheat or broomcorn. A number of civilizations have emerged throughout history, and many fell and vanished in the long river of history. On the contrary, Chinese civilization has continued and evolved for 5,000 years, showing a strong vitality. An important factor behind this is that Chinese civilization has fused cultures from different ethic groups from time to time. One of the most important was the northern nomad which injected fresh blood and brought the backbone of civilization from the grasslands best represented by the eagle and steed to Chinese civilization when the Chinese agricultural civilization started to wither.

Color pottery horses of the Northern Wei Dynasty.

Throughout history there have been at least five invasions from nomads and most lasted three to four hundreds years: The Huns in the Qin (221BC-206BC) and Han (206BC-220AD) dynasties, the turmoil the Five Northern Minorities caused in Central China during the Wei Kingdom (220-265) and Jin Dynasty (265-420), the raid of the Turks and Tubo in the Sui (581618) and Tang (618-907) dynasties, the intrusion of Khitan and Nuzhen in the Five Dynasties (907-960) and Song Dynasty (the Northern Song, 960-1127, and Southern Song Dynasty, 11271279), and the aggression of Mongol and Manchu during the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. An important cause of the warfare was to grab the living resources. Cai Wenji was captured by the Huns during the turmoil of the late Han Dynasty and her emotional lyric Eighteen Songs of A Nomad Flute tell of her endless love for her hometown and vividly describe the civilization and living conditions of the nomads. The history of the ancient Chinese was basically a fight between nomads and agricultural

people for living space. Warfare often leads to a radical fusion of civilizations. The fighting between the nomads and the Han in the central China was a series of internal conflict of the Chinese nation and the sovereignty of China has never changed. Maybe because of the trauma of war in people's memory, or pride or arrogance of the Han nationality, the interpretation of the Chinese people of China was limited to the agricultural civilization along the Yellow River and the Yangtze River. The green grassland civilization, as a source of the grand Chinese civilization, and the outstanding contribution made by the nomads to the Chinese civilization, were biased. In front of the Tomb of Huo Qubing, a famous general of the Western Han Dynasty, there is a stone carving named A Horse Stepping on A Hun Soldier, which is a traditional portrayal of the attitude of traditional culture of the Han.

Horse lassoing.

If the angle of view is changed to that of the horse-bound nomads, a novel and charming 5000-year history and civilization of the Chinese nation emerges. The horse embodies the sun in many civilizations and religions and draws the chariot of victory. The horse on the Ashoka Pillar is one of the four holy animals. In China, the horse is the symbol of masculinity, bravery, power and speed and the head of the six domestic animals. The mare delivers a foal from a standing position. Instead of licking the newborn, the mare first makes a noise to startle it to run. When the foal grows, the stallion or the mare will kick or bite it to drive it away and force it to be independent in a changing world. The horse

dies in a solemn way. Sick or wounded, it manages to stand straight and maintain its dignity until the last minute of its life before falling down abruptly like a chopped tree. There was a special breed of horses in the Western Regions named Han Xue Ma (blood sweating horse or Ferghana Horse) that could cover a thousand li in a single day and sweat a red, blood-like liquid as it galloped along. Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty became obsessed with the horse and sent emissaries to buy the horse. Though sitting on the emperor's throne, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty did not forget the six steeds that had accompanied him through many battles and ordered stonecutters to make stone reliefs of the steeds in front of his mausoleum, the imposing Six Steeds of the Zhao Mausoleum. There was also a saying in the ancient philosophy of China that "a white horse is not a horse". The horse also has a sweet and human side and is crowned as a righteous animal, just like in the poem "the horse looks back and is reluctant to part his master". The horse of Emperor Wencheng of the North Wei Dynasty recognized Monk Tanyao and took him to the emperor by holding his cloth tail. The reliefs Kneeing White Horse before Sakyamuni in No. 6 Grotto of Yungang describes the touching scene that Sakyamuni parts with his horse Kanthaka. The importance of the horse in people's life can be seen in road names: Yilu (post road), Yizhan (post house) and Malu (literally horse road, street). The Chinese character Yi, i.e. post horse, is a really poetic word. The Cuiyunlang Post Road Ruins in the north Sichuan Province is like a galloping horse with very tall cypress trees on both sides. There are ruins of a post house in the shape of a yurt at the post road of the Western Regions. Pitifully, Yi has nearly disappeared in the daily life of the Chinese people, but Japan has kept many names in the Metro line stations of Tokyo such as Shinbashi, Akabane Station, Kawanishi Station... The horse made such a great contribution to the Tuobas' road to the throne. However, Xianbei was not the first nation on the horseback. Some believe the first nation to jump on the back of a horse were the Huns in the east and others believe it was the people living in the grassland by the Aegean Sea more than 3,800 years ago. From the moment man jumped on the back of the horse, the sky, the grassland, the rivers, the birds, the animals, the butterflies, the bees, everything around man changed. The picture of a man riding on a horse is as beautiful as the sun shining over the waves of the sea. "The noblest conquest of man is to have gained the friendship of the horse." It was an epoch-making historical event when man jumped on the back of the horse and demonstrated the ability of discovery, recognition, conformity, use and rein of nature. It meant people could jump from the ground to realize their dreams to fly.

Flying Apsaras on the western wall of No.34 Grotto.

If the first speed increase for humans was the move from crawling to walking upright, riding on the horse back could be counted as the second, followed by the development of the automobile, aircraft and spaceflight. The clear clops accelerated the rhythm of history and the simple moves of the horses are a beautiful dance. Slow down. Man must find and maintain a suitable speed as unlimited acceleration will make life a component of the speed and toss away the intrinsic pleasure and meaning of life. "Chasing the sun" or "flying to the moon" is the speed of the scientific realm, but daily life has rhythm compatible to that of heartbeats. These are two different speeds, just like the speed of the waterfall and the river. The saying "slow down and we will go faster" is like the Chinese saying "haste makes waste". The quick success obtained in the way to draining the pond to get all fishes will undoubtedly invite angry revenge of nature and leave a liability to be repaid by later generations. Running along the expressway or surfing on the Internet not only makes the world more accessible, but also shortens people's lives. Some people hurry along the road, neglecting beautiful scenes on both sides; or become obsessed with fame or fortune, not knowing the fragrance of leisure. Many people yearn for the age of the carriage, the poetry time. The speed of a horse-driven carriage is in harmony with the rhythm of the inner voice of man and life. Amid the leisurely and melodious sound of the wheels, scholars in the Tang and Song dynasties wrote numerous beautiful poems and lyrics while Mozart composed brilliant

music. The opening in the woods, the zigzag lane in the countryside, the gentle singing of the nightingale, a crescent, willowy branches, a small bridge, a clear spring, a sparse plum blossom and light shadows... all echo to the leisurely speed of the carriage, just like sweet milk. Despite 1,500 years of rains and winds, the Yungang Grottoes have maintained their charms. They are worthy of our respect and appreciation. The superficial attitude is the proof of our fickle soul. The unlimited acceleration is worrying; the irresponsible doubt and repulsion only reflect our numbness. In the territory of China, there were two different historic rhythms: the rhythm of the plow and cattle of the Han in central China and the speed of running steeds of the nomads in the grassland. On one side was the leisure and idleness reflected in the verses "in the dreamy shades of apricot flowers, singing and playing the flute till dawn"; and on the other was bustling scene described in the verses "the steed runs against the strong wind and suddenly stands on its hind legs; the goshawk scuds to catch a hare". What a long course for the Han to transfer from the slavery system to the feudalism while the nomads in the grassland realized this historical evolution with only several slight whips. The nomads in the north imparted equestrianism unreservedly to the Han people in central China. From them the Han learned that the horse could be ridden to increase their speed and save their strength. After learning to ride, the Han opened up an ancient communications network: the postal system, in 49, the Eastern Han Dynasty and the Xianbei Tribal Alliance exchanged "post heralds". The "post road network" of the Tang Dynasty extended in all directions to cover the country. Military documents and imperial edicts were delivered on horses. Horses even delivered lichis for Yang Yuhuan, beloved concubine of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty. Stirrups created by Chinese people spread to Europe and kicked off a medieval knight era dotted by the romance of the knight on a horse rescuing suffering maidens. Nomads in north China created and enjoyed a long-established grassland civilization. The Yinshan Mountain Rock Painting – the thousand-kilometer long outdoor gallery seems like a world in the eyes of children. It was painted with the brush-pencil of children and took us back to the youth of humanity. The rock painting was created over a large time span, from the Neolithic age, the Bronze Age and from the 6 to the 19 century, all of which covered hunting, herding, sacrifice, recreation, as colorful as the grassland. The Hun, Turkic, Uighur, Dangxiang, Mongol and other nomads left their fingerprints on the rock. th

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Painting of Fu Xi and Nu Wa, unearthed in Turpan, Xinjiang.

There is an ancient myth in China about a dragon horse that carried a map that told the story about the birth of Chinese civilization. A village named Leihe in Mengjin County, Henan Province has a temple built in the fourth year of the reign of Emperor Huaidi of the Jin Dynasty called Temple of the Map-carrying Dragon Horse. In the Book of Han: Biography of Kong Anguo, there is a description: "A dragon horse is the vital spirit of Heaven and Earth. As a being its shape consists of a horse's body, yet it has dragon scales. Therefore it is called 'dragon horse'. Its height is eight chi and five cun. A true dragon horse has wings at its sides and walks upon the water without sinking. If a holy man is on the throne it comes out of the mist of the Meng River, carrying a map on its back." The river from which the dragon horse emerged was the Tu River, which was connected with the Yellow River in the ancient times. Unveiling the rules of evolution in the universe and human relations by using the map carried by the dragon horse and the Yin and Yang system started the 5,000-year civilization of the Chinese people. In 1983, the cover of the test issue of International Social Science Journal sponsored by UNESCO was a portrait of Fu Xi (the Heavenly Sovereign) and Nu Wa (a goddess of Chinese mythology): Both of them have the body of a snake and the head of a man, with the sun above their heads, the moon between the tails and stars dotted the rest space. The double helix structure of the DNA molecule discovered is very similar to the picture of the twined Fu Xi and Nu Wa unearthed in Turpan. Before the kings of the Qin Kingdom united the six large kingdoms, there were some other small kingdoms in addition to the seven largest ones. Baidi founded the Zhongshan Kingdom, the nomads of the north grassland. The kingdom was first named Xianyu and then renamed to Zhongshan. In about the 7 Century BC, the Baidi people lived in the grassland moved southwards. Lord Huan of the Qi counterchecked the migration and the Baidi stopped and established the regime in central China. The regime lasted several centuries and "jointly executed the edicts of the king of the Zhou Dynasty with Han, Zhao, Wei, Yan and other kingdoms" and won appraisal from the kings of the Zhou Dynasty. The Baidi people introduced the technique and process of making milk wine to central China and made wine with grain. The unearthed Zhongshan Wine is one of the earliest wine relics of the world. The Baidi people not only brought wine, but also borrowed the administration system of the central kingdoms. th

The Baidi were undoubtedly the first nomad to come to central China and accomplished much, followed by the Huns, Turks, Xianbei, Khitan, Jurchen and Mongols. The nomads all had courage and uprightness, but did not lack belief in their superiority. Xianbei under the reign of the Tuobas was not only the eagle of the grassland, but also served as a link between the Huns and the Mongol in the history of nomads. In addition to the Baidi, the Huns and Donghu were the two large nomad groups in northern China. Wuhuan, Xianbei, Rouran, Khitan and Mongol belonged to the Donghu. "Donghu lives on the east of the Huns and thus is named Donghu," says Sima Qian in the

Records of the Grand Historian. The Hun was a nomad with enigmatic attraction that left a lasting footprint in the history of China that can only be recognized by tales. The Hun were a threat to the central nation for a long time and the intrusion and resistance between both sides accounted for quite a large proportion of the history of China and added a colorful chapter to the great book of China. The frequent intrusion of the Huns led to the Great Wall of the Qing Dynasty. The Hun originated in the Yinshan Mountains and the Inner Mongolia grassland. The reign of Khan Modu was the peak time of the Hun. He headed his troops to raid the Western Regions and conquered the 36 kingdoms there and united dozens of nations in north China. The logo on their flag was a black wolf, so the Hun got the reputation of the Wolf God. The Huns controlled a spacious territory where there was green grassland from Liaohe River on the east, to the Pamir on the west, from the Great Wall on the south to the Baikal on the north. In the middle of the first century, fractions in the ruling group led to divisions between north and south. The south Huns submitted to the Han Dynasty, and the north Huns moved westward and became the ancestor of Hungary and others. The Huns found the glory lost in the orient and peoples of different colors submitted to "the Whip of God". Hungary had issued such an official edict: A nation must have its roots and its roots were the Hun from Middle Asia. It was their honor to have the Huns as ancestors as they had created miracles across Eurasia. The famous national poet of Hungary Sandor Petofi once sang emotionally: "How did our distant ancestors establish the country by the abundant Danube after covering the long distance." The Mongol originated from the area east to Argun River and west to the Greater Khingan and lived a nomadic life with the "carriage and white tent as home". They would believe that they were the offspring of the wolf and the white deer rather than the truth. According to the Secret History of Mongols, the brave and swift wolf and the beautiful white deer gave birth to the ancestor of Mongols. Temujin excelled in the chaos of fighting among tribes and united the Mongolia Plateau with swords and wisdom. He created Mongolia and was elected Khan—Genghis Khan. The valiant Mongol swept the Western Xia, conquered the Jin and replaced the Southern Song Dynasty to unite China. The flags of Genghis Khan could be seen in most parts of Asia and half Europe. Whenever Genghis Khan was mentioned, historian Arnold Toynbee could not check his impulse to note: It was Genghis Khan who connected the west with the east and the different civilizations and broke the status of static separation. Orient Lee, a historian in Taiwan, reminded us when talking about Xianbei that "the name of Xianbei had existed in the Han Dynasty; when the nation was collectively named Donghu, they lived in northeast China, earlier than the Shang and Zhou dynasties." Xianbei, under the reign of the Tuobas, occupied the grassland when the Huns moved westward. Without any handover procedure, the two nations reigned over the grassland in sequence, just like a successful diplomatic event. The rest, more than 100,000 Huns living in

north Mongolia, called themselves Xianbei and joined the growing Tuobas.

A Dragon-horse Carrying a Map.

The Mongol and Xianbei came from the same cradle and according to Orient Lee, Mongol in the official historical records of China was Mongol Shiwei. Shiwei, according to French sinologist Paul Pelliot, has the same pronunciation and meaning as Xianbei but a different translation. Genghis Khan was the Proud Son of Heaven, so was Modu Khan, Tuoba Gui, Tuoba Tao and Tuoba Hong. The green grassland where the tercel and the steed ran freely created many outstanding generals. Just as described in the poem "thousands cups of milk wine intoxicate no man, tenyear old Huns could ride", drinking and riding were the strength of the Huns and Chinese people could not compare in terms of horse breeding or equestrian skills. The strengths of the Huns were shared by other nomads. If the horse and the dragon were the symbols of grassland civilization and agricultural civilization, respectively, the myth of the "map-carrying dragon horse" and "the vigor of the dragon horse" not only unveiled the primitive and natural fusion, but also delivered the genetic information of the Chinese civilization. It is imaginable what magnificent color and novel power it would create the fusion of the two blood systems and civilizations! The Chinese people are not only the descendents of the dragon, but also the horse and the dragon horse civilization is the root of the Chinese people. The nomads that rose and fell in the grassland wrote their own civilization to some extent.

Xianbei under the reign of the Tuobas unified north China and made the green nomad civilization the representative of north China. When the North Wei Dynasty and the Southern Dynasties stood in a stalemate, the situation reflected not only the conflict of the regime, more importantly, the difference, collision and subtle attraction between the green grassland civilization and the golden agricultural civilization.

A quiet and peaceful village.

The formation of any civilization could not be separated from two aspects. One is geography. Each place has its own way to support its inhabitants and accordingly a civilization. The other is humanity. "National character probably a great deal depends upon the character of dominant individuals who happen to emerge at a formative period," said Bertrand Russell. The profound effect of the environment to a nation and an individual is as important as it is to the plant. To fully understand a nation, one must study its environment. The Han civilization is a combination of the agricultural meteorology of the Yellow River drainage area and Confucianism, with its over-flexible and energy-insufficient characters that make one think of long and loose silk robes and the wide belt and folk paintings described in Wang Jian's poem (Tang Dynasty): The crows of the roosters are penetrating the sheet of rain; Winding stone trails are leading down to the bamboo-engulfed creek; Peasant women are inviting each other to select the finest silkworms for the coming

season; And someone is leisurely gazing on the gardenia flowers blooming in the courtyard. Abiding by the essence of Han civilization, nearly all Han people followed the same pattern from generation to generation and put their dreams in the self-sufficient, gentle and cultivated temperament, and lived with patience, courtesy, honesty and sincerity while praying for a good life in peace and contentment. The Xianbei civilization originated in the mountains, forests, rivers and grasslands and was deeply affected by an individual like Confucius from the time before Emperor "Mao". Though we can not depict the contours of the emperor, he must have been like a torch uniting, guiding and encouraging Xianbei people generation after generation to victory after victory.

Scene of Greater Khingan.

Xianbei people changed their habitat by following the changes of the grassland and the seasons and had little concept of home, in contrast to agricultural civilizations that had so many cares. They vividly interpreted general concepts such as passion, frankness, braveness, ebullience, bravery and boldness with body language. Without a home, they could settle anywhere and there was no property they did not hesitate to seize or fight for. The large-scale migration of the nomads across the farming world dominated Eurasia.

The duet of peaceful exchanges and violent conflicts was broken and the resounding battle drum overshadowed the peaceful music of the violin. In 375, the Huns launched an attack on the Ostrogoths in the Don River and triggered a 200-year long migration by European people. In 410, the Visigoths captured Rome and shook the Roman Empire. In 476, the Roman general Odoacer launched a mutiny and deposed the last emperor of the Western Roman Empire and the slavery system of the Western Roman Empire died. European civilization started a new evolutionary process. When the wind blows, nobody can change its direction and it is wise to adjust one's position and attitude precisely and timely. That is what the Xianbei people did under the reign of the Tuobas: They echoed to the beats of the world's tide. The Grand Xianbei Mountains of ancient times coincided with today's Grand Khingan Mountains and the Argun River, from which Xianbei got its name. Xianbei, in the language of Donghu, meant "auspicious sign". The nation was good at "capturing domestic animals and riding" and "lives by the grassland and moves following seasonal changes." In the early 4 century, the Dai Kingdom founded by the Tuobas in today's north Shanxi Province and Inner Mongolia was annihilated by Fu Jian of the Earlier Qin Kingdom. th

The nation came back in 386, like the rebirth of the phoenix, and wrote a song of life like the wild grass: "No prairie fire can destroy the grass; it shoots up again with the spring breeze blows". In 439, it unified the nations in north China and became the first feudal dynasty founded by a minority, confronting the Southern Dynasties. This time we will not examine the faint light of civilization created by the remote ancestors of the Xianbei before Christ, but will look at the civilization created in the Grand Khingan Mountains after the first southward migration. The Weishu: Preface (the History of Wei) recorded the prosperity of the Tuobas. "(It) rules 36 kingdoms, including 99 popular surnames and overawes the north China with nobody obedient." The "99 popular surnames" was seen as the original source of China's hundred family names. Historian Tang Changru supposed that the 99 family names and the Tuoba added up to the "hundred family names", the original meaning of "Bai Xing", which means "common people" today. During the time of Emperor Shenyuan (whose name was Liwei), Xianbei civilization prospered in north China. The Tuobas moved the capital to Pingcheng, and completed the third migration. Accordingly, the Xianbei came to their heyday and influenced a large area. Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty, who had military expertise, made a historical review and outlined his expectations. The deep mountains and forests along Oroqen was home to the Hulunbeir Grassland, from where civilization emerged. Emperor Xiaowen determined to plant sunflowers, Jacobinia carnea and peony in the grassland in Pingcheng and Luoyang and make Luoyang the capital of flowers so that the beautiful dreams of the Tuobas

and the prosperous life of the Xianbei people could grow like the beautiful peony. The Tuobas cast the eyes upon the future and vied for the throne in Central China to realize a blueprint of a larger territory from Luoyang. The successful settlement of the Tuobas in Luoyang meant the Xianbei had completed the fourth southward migration and experienced hunting civilization, nomadic civilization, animal husbandry civilization and farming civilization as well as a hunting economy, nomadic economy, livestock economy, plundering economy, tributary economy and the coexistence of nomadic, livestock, plundering, tributary, temple and farming and other social and economic forms, reflecting the national evolution of the Xianbei.

Fengxian 64-55.9, Luoyang Longmen Grottoes.

The development and fusion of the civilizations has its own unique rules and followed its own inherent regularity to discard the old and take in the new. Different civilizations converged or collided. The advanced civilization always attracts the backward civilization and makes it subject to the inherent force of historical logic. National fusion is actually an upgrade of the original productivity and production to the more advanced level of productivity and production, thought Ma Changshou when he reviewed the history of the Southern Dynasties and the Northern Dynasties. Reviewing the history of the civilization, I am not used to use aggressive words like "conquer", "conflict" and "confrontation". On the contrary, Samuel Huntington seemed particularly fervent about these words in The Clash of Civilizations and the Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order, but he neglected to examine fusion among civilizations and deviated from historical facts. When two civilizations meet they follow their rules to mutually integrate and penetrate, which does not change by the will of a nation and any intervene against the rule only receive

the feedback "input error". Just like as Samuel Huntington said: "Cultural fads have been transmitted from civilization to civilization throughout history. Innovations in one civilization are regularly taken up by other civilizations." Su Bingqi put it in plain and simple words. The closed doors were just the subjective wishes of feudal rulers and the open physical, cultural and spiritual exchanges among folks were never strangled by the closeddoor policy. The fusion of civilization and national assimilation could not happen overnight and in the lengthy progress two civilizations interact and one replaces another at a costly price. The three ancestors of the Northern Wei Dynasty – Yilu, Shiyijian and Tuoba Gui – were killed by their sons. The cause of the tragedies was the conflict between the forces of Sinicization and anti-Sinicization. "This is the place suitable for military action and cannot be ruled by the achievements in culture and education. I believe it will be very difficult to change social traditions," said Emperor Xiaowen. Tuoba Liwei's eldest son Tuoba Shamohan once lived in Luoyang as the prince of the nation. Shamohan was obsessed with the mysterious Han civilization and naturally took back Han culture with him. However, he was regarded as a heretic and put to death by a force scrupulously abiding by nomad civilization. Empress Dowager Feng who looked after state affairs during the reigns of two emperors made aggressive reforms during the Taihe period, the reign title of Emperor Xiaowen and caused incessant crisis. Emperor Xiaowen decisively changed his family name of Xianbei to the Chinese family name"Yuan", not only showing bold vision and foresight but astounding the world with impressive strength. Emperor Wendi was not killed by his son but sent his son Yuan Xun to the guillotine, giving his push to Sinicize a baptism of blood and fire. The replacement of Xianbei language, surnames and costumes with Chinese ones and intermarriage of Xianbei and Han and other policies are symbols of the deep fusion of nations, the successful implementation of the reform plans such as the Equal-field System, the official salary system and "three-level local administration system" indicated the material transform of the Northern Wei Dynasty from the nomad civilization to the agricultural civilization. Several hundred years of warfare from the Wei and Jin Dynasties devastated Central China. People had to abandon their homes and moved south of the Yangtze River and Han civilization became fragmented. The Northern Wei rescued Han civilization from the brink of rupture and decline and integrated their wisdom and innovation to make the civilization grow and prosper. Boyang praised of this section of history: "The split ended in the 6 century... the Chinese people with fresh blood of the ethnic groups rose again to give full play to their ability and created the second prime age of China." th

The Northern Wei Dynasty served as a connecting link between the preceding and the following and gradually healed the wounds of war and the territory entered a period of peace and prosperity. The Qi Min Yao Shu (Main Techniques for the Welfare of the People) record, the nearly extinct water mill and the water power trip-hammer for husking rice in the Western Jin Dynasty were reproduced and left a melodious ballad in the countryside. Farmers who planted peonies, orchids and gardenias were too busy in the hot season and had to have "more than one hundreds boys and girls help them out". The high density of population in the specific period is a symbol of social prosperity. In the early 6 century, the population of the Northern Wei was twice the total of the Western Jin during Taihe – the reign title of Emperor Wudi (Sima Yan). th

From the Northern Wei Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty, over one thousand years did not eliminate the struggle between the north and A Disciple of No.18 Grotto. the south and "pride and prejudice". In the concept of the north, the grassland and the area north to the Great Wall have been included, making us to recall the great achievements the Tuobas of the Northern Wei Dynasty made. The Yungang Grottos reflected the trend of fusion of the nomad civilization and the agricultural civilization from the specifications of the grottos to the countenance, figure and carving technique. The Tanyao Five Grottos of the early period have obvious features of the Tuobas: The yurtshaped ceiling; the plump face of figures of Buddha, straight nose and sunken and deep eyes, broad shoulders and thick close-fitting felt robe and the cutting features straight lines and sharp angles. In the cross-legged sitting position in No.17 Grotto or the majestically standing position in No. 16 Grotto, the figures of Buddha reflect the ambition of the emperors of the early Northern Wei to realize their dreams after ascending to the throne. The figures in the middle period were carved during the reign of Taihe when Empress Dowager Feng ruled the county. The Taihe Reform was a welcome rain and national fusion showed a state of harmony.

There is a stone inscription on the eastern wall of No.11 Grotto recording the facts in the seventh year of Taihe. Some 54 devout men and women donated funds to "carve 95 stone figures of Buddha" for the blessing of Emperor Wendi, Empress Dowager Feng, their forefathers and friends and neighbors. On the east die of No.17 Grotto there is also a small stone inscription saying that a nun named Huiding collected money to carve three figures of Sakyamuni, Prabhutaratna and Maitreya and wished the merit would benefit everyone. The deeds of figure carving and inscriptions in Chinese bring us back to the time of Taihe to witness the Sinicization and national fusion. The grottos of Yungang carved during that time were square with back and front chambers and groups of figures. As Zhou Yiliang concluded:"The carved halls of the Yungang Grottos are identical to the palaces of A Standing Buddha Statue, No.16 Grotto, created between 460 and 471, the Northern Wei Dynasty. the central China from the Han Dynasty, not the Indian style". The patterns of honeysuckle and lotus on both sides of the grottos or the door head look like the carvings from the Monuments of Sanchi, India. But if you compare carefully, you can find the smooth patterns have innovative patterns of birds and animals and lotus. The figures have a slightly longer face, with eyes in the shape of a fine moon, half-arc eyebrows, plump nose wings and slightly upward-carved corners at the mouth. The dress was loose with wide belts, like the costume of the Han scholar bureaucrats. The flying Apsaras shaped bun and loose flying apsaras styled robe were just the popular hairstyle and costume of the Southern Dynasties.

Inscription on Nun Tan Mei's Donation for the Statue Creation in No.20 Grotto of Yungang Grottoes.

Though Buddhism archaeologist Su Bai has different views on the time of the adoption of new costumes in the Yungang Grottos from Japanese scholar Nagahiro Toshio, they share the same opinion on the fact that the figures of Buddha "had changed to the costume of the Han style" in the second period. The four octagonal stone pillars in the Five Han Grottos (No.9No.13) are obviously the implantation of architecture style since the Han Dynasty. The high hat and long belt has traditionally been regarded as typical Chinese costume. The figures in the late period echoed the period before the Emperor resettled the capital to Luoyang and the period after resettlement. The figures feature thin but vital faces, peaceful but lively expressions: The appearance of the Han people. Even the costume of Bodhisattva was the common clothes of the Han people. The features of Xianbei and the northern minority faded out and Han features became dominant. The way of

cutting changed from straight lines to the round broach. A head statue of Bodhisattva of the Yungang Grottos stranded in the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts with a large bun, slender face, slightly closed eyes, was a representative work of that period. Su Bai is an authority in Chinese archeological circles and Li Keran and Cai Yi are famous estheticians in China. Their authoritative research about Yungang's adoption of sculpture arts of India and Greece and their innovative development is also the description of the shift of the grassland civilization and the agricultural civilization and the national fusion. They share similar opinions as seen below. Cai Yi: The carvings of the Yungang Grottos are really a miracle of Chinese fine arts history. The grottos feature a long history, a large scale and sophisticated craftsmanship. From this aspect, the grottos are second to none in China, and incomparable in the world as a splendid treasure of the artistic relics of China.

Statue of a female performer on the southern wall of No.8 Grotto.

Li Keran: Yes. We felt a little disappointed when we arrived in Yungang and saw the cliffs that are not tall at all. But when we came to the grottos, we could not help but exclaiming. Though a hurried visit to the grottos, I was overwhelmed by the designs of the figures. No matter the size of the grotto, the walls, ceiling, the reveals of the windows and doors are densely equipped with figures. The more complicated arrangement of the figures, the more precise structure of the designs, and the figures echo to each other to create a harmonious atmosphere, like a grand symphony.

Su Bai: The great works of Yungang are not only the cream of Buddhist art in China, but also a masterpiece of world cultural history. From the aspect of archaeology, the Yungang Grottos are the earliest large grotto groups east of Xinjiang and were created by the imperial family of the Northern Wei Dynasty by pooling the techniques, manpower and material resources. The new mode of creation and development naturally became the model of the grottos in the Northern Wei Dynasty.... It was unmatched by any other grottos in terms of the wide range and the lasting influence of the Yungang Grottos. Therefore, Yungang Grottos takes a very important position in the early grottos of the east and the research to Yungang is key to the research of oriental grottos to a large extent. Cai Yi: The carving of the Yungang Grottos can be summarized in two styles. The first is the full-moon round face, close-fitting scantily clad drapery, round and stout body, the complicated structure and convex reliefs reflect the influence of Gupta art. However, the sculptors of the Northern Wei Dynasty did not imitate Gupta art simply, but integrated the benefiting foreign techniques to the fine traditions of our national arts on the basis of reflecting the realities and spiritual requirements of that time and created the national arts. The second is that the face of the figures is not the full moon shape, but the elliptical shape, like a duck's egg, and the general figures are not stout but slender, which is not the style of Gupta art but the traditional art of China. From the fresco in the tombs of the Han Dynasty and the Admonitions Scroll by Gu Kaizhi we can see this style. The attitude of Flying Apsaras and the shape of the long skirt longuette and the streamers are the same style of the bayadere at the fresco of Tonggou Nihon Buyo Tomb developed from the painting of the Han Dynasty. Naturally, this style was identical to the reality and aesthetics of the Han, but different from the Indian style. The figures of Buddha and Bodhisattva look kind and grandeur, amiable and respectable. The flying Apsaras is full of the fluttering leisure, not the vibrant joy. Undoubtedly these are not the elements of India, but the original concept of our ancestors about the goodness. Li Keran: Though the Buddhism art came from India, the ancient artists did not take the art wholly without understanding, but absorbed the useful elements and integrated into the national artistic traditions and the realities of that time to make new development of the national culture. Specifically, the figures of Yungang can be divided into the roundness type and the dignity type. No. 1, No. 2, No. 6 to No. 13 grottos belong to the former type, while No. 5, No. 14 and the rest belong to the latter type: The roundness of the features, the curved soft lines and warm and happy sentiment. The figures of Buddhism are normally stout with a big head and short body, thin clothes – all obvious elements of Indian art. The dignity type features acute angles and planes in the simple and round figures, slender face, thick cloth pleats and majestic and solemn countenance, leaving an impression of loftiness and peace, basically inheriting and developing the style of the stone carving of the Han Dynasty. The patterns of fire and other patterns in particular carved on the flat reliefs, associating it with the reliefs on the walls of the Wu Liang Shrine. The long robe of the Flying Apsaras came from the stone carving of the Han Dynasty, according to Liang Sicheng.

Comparison of two groups of statues, Statues of No. 9 Grotto "Karma for Two Brothers Becoming Monks"; Sitting Buddha Statue of No.2 Wing Grotto of No.19 Grotto, created between 460 and 471.

Su Bai: The figures of the first phase feature wide cheeks, short necks, broad shoulders and stout chests, though close to the figures of Buddhism of the early days along the Pamir, Gansu and the area east to Gansu. However, the figures look more robust. Mr. Cai's opinion of "the second style" and Mr. Li Keran's on "the dignity type" are just what I would say about the figures of the new clothes and the shape and technique of the new style. Actually, these were not created in Pingcheng, but from the Southern Dynasties. Let's take the loose robe and wide belt for example. From the imprinted painting bricks of the seven sages of the bamboo grove (Ruan Ji, Ji Kang, Shan Tao, Liu Ling, Ruan Xian, Xiang Xiu, Wang Rong and Rong Qiqi) discovered in the tombs from the Eastern Jin Dynasty to Southern Qi in Nanjing, we can see that were the dresses of the upper level of the Southern Dynasties. With the Sinicization

measures of the ruling Tuobas of the Northern Wei, the artisans of the Northern Wei Dynasty referred to the design of the Southern Dynasties. For example, not only the figures of Buddhism in No. 6 Grotto had the new cloth system, but the other images and the figures of Bodhisattva and the celestial being had changed to the Han styled clothes, which obviously reflects the facts that the emperor granted the Han styled clothes to the officials, echoing to the cloth system reform implemented from the 10 year to the 19 year during the reign title Taihe. th

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A column base with stone carving of the Northern Wei Dynasty.

.... The founding and development of the Northern Wei Dynasty was no less than a miracle and an important transition in the history of China. The history of China changed forever the direction and accelerated the evolution. The Xianbei of the Tuobas was an interesting poetic nation. From 386 to 534, the Xianbei reign lasted for 149 years, more than 100 years longer than the following Sui Dynasty. Though they did not unify China like the Qin or Tang dynasties, the Tuobas ruled half the country and the nomad civilization created by the Xianbei people with wisdom and bravery were prosperous in the northern territory and the Yellow River drainage area of China. By relocating the capital to Luoyang and conquering central China, the Tuobas integrated everything, including the green nomad civilization into the golden agricultural civilization of the Han and elevated Chinese civilization to a new high. Reviewing the Sinicization process of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Xianbei people

drew an arc of "peaceful evolution" by following the trend of the world and giving up theirs. The Xianbei people gradually retreated behind the scenes without a curtain call and were gone with wind to become unknown to most people in the historical stage of China. Normally the most common things are the most valuable. However, a paradox of life is that people tend to neglect and make light of common things, just like wild flowers blossoming all the time don't have a name while the sago cycas and the broad-leaved epiphyllum which seldom blossom or blossom just like a flash in the pan attract all eyes. The first valuable gift from the sun to the earth is the soil of life. I don't know what is more important than the sunlight, air and water. Grass is the most common plant, but it makes up the spacious grassland. The common people in feudal society were often called "Cao Min" (vulgar people), which is actually the contempt to a strong force. The Xianbei people left an endless echo on the whispering wall of China's history with distinct personality and characters, but did not receive due attention from the historical circle of China. In some historical records and teaching materials, the Northern Wei Dynasty was included in the title of the Southern and the Northern Dynasties, only mentioning the Reforms of Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty and the Uprising of Six Towns. There were many dynasties and a great number of emperors in the history of China, but what we are familiar with are no more than the Qin, Han, Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties and of the emperors we can remember no more than Qinshihuang and Wudi of the Han Dynasty, Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, Taizu of the Song Dynasty and Genghis Khan of the Yuan Dynasty. The book 5000-Year History of China on my table jumps from the Qin and Han dynasties to the Sui and Tang and does not mention the Northern Wei Dynasty at all. Li Daoyuan, who wrote the Commentary on the Waterways Classic was included at the end of the Three Kingdoms, which is improper. All these facts make us recall Zhu Yizun and his Narration of Yungang Buddha, and the strong intractable feeling of Han in history. People write history while history records people. Who can clean up the cloud of doubt and make a just and fair judgment when history is in confusion? The Xianbei people bravely integrated the traditions and robust green nomad civilization into the Han nationality without remorse, played the role of a connecting link between the past and the future with strong political, economic and cultural aggregation and built a solid foundation for the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty. If listening to the symphony of the Tang Dynasty, you will clearly hear the melodious flute of the Northern Wei Dynasty. "On the one hand the cultural exchanges and fusion between the north and the south enabled the traditional culture of the Han and Wei (the Northern Dynasties) and the new voices of the Qi and Liang (the Southern Dynasties) to learn from each other and get rid of the stale and bring forth the fresh. On the other hand, foreign trade and transport was developed. The Silk Road not only introduced the market of Western merchants, but also customs, costume, music, fine arts and religions from other countries. The milk wine, foreign female singers,

foreign hat and foreign music... were quite popular in Chang'an. That was the unprecedented exchange and fusion.... That was the social atmosphere and ideological foundation for the creation of the Sound of the Prosperous Tang Dynasty," said Li Zehou. His comment from the aspect of aesthetics can be regarded as praise to the Xianbei people.

Yungang.

The Northern Wei Dynasty has a history as long as that of the Yungang Grottos. The grottos have evolved along with changes in the politics, economy and culture of the Northern Wei Dynasty. They are the records of the Sinicization of the Northern Wei Dynasty and wordless interpretation of the fusion between the green nomad civilization and the golden agricultural civilization. To better discover the Yungang Grottos, you have to pay a visit in person, view the figures and listen to the whistle of the wind.

CHAPTER V: FALL OF THE YUNGANG GROTTOES

The emperor and the empress were a couple during feudal society. Relying on her special position in the imperial family, the empress often had a complicated relation with the throne and made the chaotic relations of concubines more bizarre and motley. The first emperor of the Northern Wei Dynasty Tuoba Gui preferred the throne to the sweet love and decisively abolished the thousand-year-old tradition of the Xianbei people of abdicating and handing over the crown from the elder brother to the younger one and replaced it with a new system of a crown prince used by the Han and followed the lead of Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty in setting up an iron and cruel rule: The natural mother of the crown prince had to be put to death.

Tuoba Gui.

When forcing his favorite concubine Liu, mother of Emperor Mingdi to suicide, Tuoba Gui said: "In the past when Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty determined to establish the crown prince, he put the mother of the crown prince to death, aiming at preventing the mother and the consort clan from participating in the state affairs and upsetting the country. I should follow his steps and make decisions for the long reign of the Tuobas." The iron rule of Tuoba Gui, despite a scorching intention and an extreme means, did not undermine the root at all. Because the crown prince lost his mother in his infancy, a nanny had to be selected and a freak phenomena of the nanny intervening in state affairs emerged, which had never occurred before or after in the history of China. There are many Buddhist stories about the crown price in the Yungang Grottoes, reflecting the new father-to-son crown inheritance of the Tuobas. The interesting story Nursing by Aunt does not seem to be quoted from Buddhist sutras, but from the fact that nannies raised the crown price in the Northern Wei Dynasty. The interference of the empress or the concubine in state affairs was a special supplement to the patriarchy and a knot in China's monarchic system that could not be unknotted. On the one hand, the Confucian order of morality and the traditional sense of order that defined men as superior to women would definitely repel and guard against interference by the empress or concubine. On the other hand, the initial role of the "empress" was often defined as the queen

mother of the crown prince in the country ruled by the standards of filial piety, which implied the possibility of the queen mother presiding over state affairs. The consort had to face more obstacles to intervene in state affairs, resort to cruel violence and abnormal plots and the consort clan.

Back home on the back of elephant, the 6th Grotto (471-494 AD).

Sitting Buddha statues on the North Wall of the 9th Grotto.

Empress Dowager Feng was said to be "born in Chang'an and when she was born there was divine light in the room". She was the granddaughter of King Feng Wentong of the Northern Yan Kingdom. She was robbed to the imperial palace when Emperor Taiwu of the Northern Wei Dynasty conquered the Northern Yan Kingdom. Bright and curious, Feng was selected concubine only second to empress by Emperor Wencheng when she was 10 years old. Pretty and intelligent, Feng became empress of Emperor Wencheng four years later. Feng's aunt Feng Zhaoyi (the name was a rank name for concubines) was good at handling relations and Emperor Wencheng's nanny Empress Dowager Chang favored Feng. The Tuobas did not pay much attention to background when selecting concubines or officials. All these conditions helped Feng ascend to the height of power. Her aunt and Empress Dowager Chang became role models for Feng in her life in the imperial palace. Dramatically, when Feng was still a concubine, Emperor Wencheng's other concubine Li gave birth to the crown prince (i.e. Emperor Xianwen Tuoba Hong) and was put to death by the iron rule. The same month Li was put to death, Feng ascended to the seat of empress. The tragedy and the promotion of these two women were like two sides of a gamble of life. Empress Dowager Feng was clearer than anybody else that she had had a near escape. It was a pity not having given birth to the crown prince, but it was lucky not to become a sacrifice of the iron rule. In the shadow of the iron rule, the concubines of the imperial palace flinched, "all pray for each other to give birth to a prince or princess, not the crown prince." Emperor Wencheng entrusted custody of the crown prince to Empress Dowager Feng, indicating the absolute trust the emperor had in her and actually handed over a key to the door of the supreme power of the Northern Wei Dynasty. Of course this should be attributed to historical changes. No one would know Tuoba Gui's life would come to an end when he was only 23 years old. And nobody would believe Empress Dowager Feng would carry on the behest of her husband and become influential on the political stage of the Northern Wei Dynasty. Empress Dowager Feng and Emperor Wencheng loved each other through 10 years of marriage. She was not only affectionate to the crown prince with motherly love, but offered insights in state affairs. Influenced by Empress Dowager Feng, Emperor Wencheng and Crown Prince Hong received edifying nurturing from Han culture. Considering the disadvantages brought by Emperor Taiwu from ousting Buddhism, Emperor Wencheng intended to rejuvenate it. Empress Dowager Feng, who had cherished a feeling of great reverence for Buddhism, supported him with great enthusiasm and helped him draft an edict to that effect. The faith of the Northern Wei Dynasty was remodeled from the time of Emperor

Wencheng and Express Dowager Feng. Empress Dowager Feng followed Emperor Wencheng in an excursion and reached Wuzhou Mountain. The fine spirit of the universe concentrated on the mountain impressed them both. The verdant cypresses and pine trees on the cliff set off a blossoming peach tree. Emperor Wencheng was excited: "Please wait here my empress, I will pluck one for you." With that, he climbed the mountain and went into the woods like a swift eagle. The sudden move shocked his attendants. At that moment, a chipper reply came from the woods: "Do you still remember my empress I took a lead in the hunting game last time."

Full view of Yungang Grottoes photo by the Survey Group of the Oriental Institute of Kyoto University during their visit to Yungang from 1939 to 1945.

Presenting the peach flowers to Empress Dowager Feng, Emperor Wencheng was radiant with joy: "Empress, when I climbed the mountain I had an idea. I believe Wuzhou Mountain would be the best place to build Buddha temples." Empress Dowager Feng was very happy on hearing this and echoed him: "Your majesty is so wise. Wuzhou Mountain is really the spiritual mountain of our country!" .... When it was getting late, Emperor Wencheng and Empress Dowager Feng left Wuzhou Mountain reluctantly and came back with the attendants. When the emperor's carriage arrived at the city gate, it stopped. Emperor Wencheng and Empress Dowager Feng lifted the curtain and saw a horse stopping a monk by his cassock. Empress Dowager Feng said with sudden inspiration: "Your Majesty, a horse is good at recognizing a good man. The monk has a simple style and seems to have the light of Buddha...." The monk was Tanyao who had come to the capital upon an edict of the emperor. Latter when Monk Taoyao presided over the carving of the five grottos, Empress Dowager Feng accompanied Emperor Wencheng to inspect the progress and brought the carving of the Yungang Grottos to their peak during the Taihe period. Unfortunately Emperor Wencheng died young. Sadness nearly killed Empress Dowager Feng and destroyed her wisdom. According to custom," all the clothes and apparatus used by

the emperor were burnt" three days after the death of Emperor Wencheng. Seeing the flame, Empress Dowager Feng came to the brink of collapse and jumped on the fire. Two eunuchs rescued her in time and Empress Dowager Feng "came to herself after a long time". Fortunately, only part of her clothes and a strand of hair had caught fire and she was not hurt. The die-for-love move not only took the funeral to a climax of mourning but made Empress Dowager Feng the star of a story passed on with approval in and out of the palace. For Feng, it was a spiritual nirvana. After the funeral, the 12-year old Crown Prince Hong ascended to the throne. But the carnage of rebellion confronted him. Prime Minister Yi Hun openly killed the dissidents by taking advantage of the inexperience of the emperor and planned to usurp the throne. It never came to Yi Hun's mind that his plot would be cracked by th 24-year old Empress Dowager Feng. Empress Dowager Empress Dowager Feng. Feng hid her ligh under a bushel in daily life and in eye's of Yi Hun, she was just the nanny of the crown prince and not included in the mustkill list. Empress Dowager Feng lacked political experience but, despite having witnessed bloodsoaked palace incidents, she had never experienced a life-and-death battle at such a close distance. Her wish to look after the young emperor and retain the throne of the Northern Wei to comfort her husband's soul gave her the courage and strength like Nu Wa had to match the hole of the sky and Jingwei to fill up the sea. It is hard to distinguish talent from mediocrity in daily life, but at critical times, the differences between them are just like those between ice and fire. Only at the critical moment can one see the brilliance of a hero. She convened several important ministers and conferred her countermeasures. At the vital moment when Yi Hun was approaching to the emperor, the troops of Empress Dowager Feng appeared suddenly and killed Yi Hun, his family and clan. Cracking down on Yi Hun's rebellion showed the strong determination, intelligence and

qualities of an iron handed empress and made her the biggest winner. Emperor Xianwen was grateful to his nanny and respected her Empress Dowager. From the top to the bottom, everybody was impressed and intimidated by the wisdom, good judgment and resolution of Empress Dowager Feng and widely spread her stories. The political building of Empress Dowager Feng had a solid foundation.

Nirgrantha statue on the South Wall of the 9th Grotto.

Empress Dowager Feng assisted Tuoba Hong in governing the country for more than a year and quickly cleaned out the shadow of Yi Hun's rebellion. The stagnant national economy showed signs of recovery and the country had stable governance and people in harmony. At the time, a concubine of Emperor Xianwen gave birth to the crown prince Tuoba Hong and was put to death as a sacrifice to the iron rule. Empress Dowager Feng took the hands of Emperor Xianwen and said: "Hong, heroes are cultivated from childhood. Your father made great achievements in a young age. He ascended the throne at your age. Now my grandson Hong will be under my custody of me and you will take care of the state affairs in person."

View of Yungang 3: Outer view of the 9th and 10th Grottoes.

Empress Dowager Feng had an indescribable smile on her face. The step away from affairs of state was a very tactical move that reflected her political maturity. Emperor Xianwen was grown up and had a strong force headed by his uncle Tuoba Zigui behind him. If she did not quit from state affairs she would be stuck in the mud and her position of nanny of the crown taken by someone else. Empress Dowager Feng was very clear on how important it was to act as nanny of the crown prince. Getting custody of the crown prince was a trump card in the stage of power. In the less than two years as regent, Empress Dowager Feng made great contributions, adhering to the last will of Emperor Wencheng and carving new grottos adjacent to Tanyao Five Grottos, which are the twin-grottos in the middle, No.7-8, No.9-10, No.5-6, No.1-2 and the Triple Grottos No. 11-12-13. ... Early on in the grotto carving, Emperor Wencheng decided on the theme of the grottos, "Yungang Soul" and that "the figures look like the emperor". While fully reflecting the edict of Emperor Wencheng, Empress Dowager Feng made bold and profound innovations on the meaning of Yungang Soul. Empress Dowager Feng's homeland in the Northern Yan Kingdom was "the prosperous place of Triratna" and the Fengs were a clan that upheld Buddhism. Samyuktabhidharma-

hrdaya-sastra: Column 6, written by Empress Dowager Feng's brother Feng Xi, which was coded No. 996 by Aurel Stein, was cheand Taoists a way out, recorded in therished in the British Museum. Her two nieces (daughters of Feng Xi), influenced by family tradition, cut their hair and became nuns. Empress Dowager Feng gave the monks and Taoists a way out, recorded in the History of Southern Qi – Biography of Captives of Wei, "In the 3 year of the Taihe Period (479), Taoist Faxiu rebelled, but was discovered... Duke Xianyang wanted to kill all Taoists, but Empress Dowager Feng did not permit it." rd

Sudatta statue on the West Wall of the 9th Grotto.

The figures of Buddha during the period when Empress Dowager Feng governed state affairs had an obvious tendency towards more female characters, best represented by the Six Beauties in No. 7 Grotto, the figures of the providers. The pioneering work of feminization of the Buddha figures broke the monotone of only male figures in the grottos and was a profound reform to the art of grotto carving. Empress Dowager Feng recorded the regent facts on the rocks. Several groups of grottos are done in the "Empress Dowager Feng Mode" – twin-grottos and Sakyamuni and Prabhutaratna sitting face to face. There are nearly 400 sites with the two figures of Buddha sitting side by side, creating an incomparable spectacle in the history of grottos home and abroad.

Su Bai believed "it was a product of the special political situation to carve the grouping grottos". Huifu Temple Monument of the Northern Wei, and Bianzheng Theory (Bian Zheng Lun) collectively named Empress Dowager Feng and the emperor "two saints" or "two emperors". The subject matter and content of the Yungang Grottos were diversified with more social realistic implication after the Empress Dowager Feng era. Su Bai noted: "The imported Buddhist grotto art started significant orientalization during that time in northern China. The reason behind the changes of course shall be attributed to Emperor Xiaowen's Chinesization efforts. But did Feng's tradition of the Northern Yan upholding Buddhism play a role in the process?" From Wu Zetian of the Tang Dynasty, you can see some colors of Empress Dowager Feng. The Two Emperors version during Empress Dowager Feng's period was reproduced in the period of Wu Zetian. Emperor Gaozong was called Holy Emperor while Wu Zetian was called Holy Empress, collectively Two Emperors. The famous figure of Vairocana in Fengxian Temple of Longmen has the inscription: "Empress Wu donated 20,000 guan from her dress-up money." The figure had obvious female features and "broad forehead and cheek", which coincided with the looks of Wu Zetian, from which we can see some colors of Empress Dowager Feng. In the Qing Dynasty Empress Dowager Cixi added a new explanation to the tradition of "ruling from behind the curtain" created by Empress Dowager Feng. Emperor Xianwen was "bright, foresighted, brave and sensible when he was young". He headed troops to suppress the south, conquer Rouran in the north and pacify Qingzhou in the east and made great achievements. Soon after becoming independent in the administration of the state, Emperor Xianwen developed different opinions from those of Empress Dowager Feng. But while she retreated to the background, Empress Dowager Feng was still the core of power. Emperor Xianwen saw the intangible resistance and pressure in the eyes of his ministers or their memorials to him, which upset him. To extricate himself, Emperor Xianwen often locked himself in the Yanfang Buddhist Abode of Chongguang Hall and Luye Garden "dressed in plain clothes and a yellow hat, abiding by the precepts and chanting sutras." His uncle Tuoba Zitui–then Duke Jingzhao – who coveted the throne, took advantage of the disagreement between him and his nanny and tried every possible way to estrange them and acquire the crown.

Kishimojin statue on the South Wall of the 9th Grotto: the best weapon is not sword or halberd but to destroy the enemy.

Young and inexperienced, Emperor Wendi could not resist the flattering words of his uncle and planned to decree the demise edict and beheaded Li Yi, the favorite lover of his empress mother. Empress Dowager Feng doted on lovers and the History of Wei chided her for "improper behavior". Ray Huang made an objective and fair comment on Empress Dowager Feng, saying that almost all talented women in China's history suffered attacks for their private life. Women's liberation is a natural measure of social development. Although the male chauvinism that protected the hereditary sovereignty and symbolized the prosperity of the royal families was comprehensible under the feudal monarchy, it contained a strong desire for possession and dominance over the females. There were more than 10,000 women in the imperial harem of Emperor Qinshihuang of Qin Dynasty and about 40,000 in that of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty. By contrast, women were in a tragic world. Even the empresses might bear bad names whenever they did anything beyond the limitations. Instead of gratitude, Emperor Xianwen returned the love and care of Empress Dowager Feng with hate. Empress Dowager Feng became broken-hearted. At the same time, she became aware of that the abdication of the throne by Emperor Xianwen would be as disastrous as the disturbance caused by Yi Hun. So she decisively resumed power by taking advantage of her position, prestige and influence in the court. With her support, Tuoba Hong (Emperor Xiaowen) came to power.

Emperor Xianwen originally wanted to abdicate the throne to his uncle Tuoba Zitui, but failed and became a retired emperor at the age of 18. Even so, he was not resigned and tried to interfere with governmental affairs under the instigation of Tuoba Zitui and other officials, threatening Empress Dowager Feng and Emperor Xiaowen. Anger grew between him and Empress Dowager Feng.

View of Yungang A.

The best way to protect oneself is to kill the enemy. After a long competition for power, Empress Dowager Feng understood the rules of the game well. She ordered a reliable servant to poison the food of Emperor Xianwen and kill him. He was then only 23 years old. Then, the adherents of the young emperor were killed. In feudal society, it happened frequently that some royal family members might kill other members to obtain power. But Empress Dowager Feng must have been very forlorn and had some complicated feelings, as if there was a silent stone on her heart. Emperor Xianwen was once a baby who smiled at her and slept happily in her arms. He was once naughty and cried, like other boys. At that time, humanity might have bloomed like a poppy as red as blood. Empress Dowager Feng held the hand of five-year-old Emperor Xianwen and led him to the throne. How could such a boy manage State affairs? All such affairs, whether important or trivial, were reported to the empress dowager, who was courageous and resolute and tempered justice with mercy so that she won domestic and foreign attention. On the stage of the Northern Wei Dynasty, the great woman drew the curtain on a new era. Time produced the heroine, and the heroine promoted the development of the time.

From the moment Tuoba Gui established the Northern Wei Dynasty to that when Empress Dowager Feng held power for the second time, the Northern Wei Dynasty went through more than 70 years. Slavery and feudalism coexisted, even though the latter had shown great tendency for change. Cultural conflict and integration among different nationalities occurred. However, the Han culture held a dominant position. Conflicts among different nationalities, societies and rulers appeared, like staggered stones left on the riverbed after the tide. The conflict between the radicals that advocated a feudal mode and the conservatives that stuck to tribal alliances were increasingly intensified so that internal disorder was caused. The flag of the Northern Wei Dynasty was in constant danger.

Pottery Guard of Honor of the Northern Wei Dynasty.

Although the policies implemented early to disperse the tribes and encourage people to settle down and develop agriculture enabled the country to prosper, such policies incubated many factions set up as separatist regimes. Some local officials expanded their power and contended with the supreme rulers and rode roughshod over the common people by force or trickery. "The powerful and rich people could own the mountains and rivers, while the poor despaired of failing to obtain a plot of land," notes a record of the social situation at the time. Such disadvantages and problems were also frequently shown in the operation of the feudal social systems since the Han and Jin period.

When acting as regent for the second time, Empress Dowager Feng issued an imperial decree to appoint good men and able men to office in flexible ways. Even the trusted followers of Emperor Xianwen were appointed according to their abilities. Great efforts were made to temper justice with mercy. It shows the generosity, political accomplishment and excellent skills for ruling a country of the ruler. This strategy of using flexible management became common among Han Dynasty emperors. After winning popular support, Empress Dowager Feng led Emperor Xiaowen and various reformist officials on an inspection tour of different regions to learn about the life of the common people. Based on that tour, she developed a clear strategy to adopt the Han system and lightened and the "lamp" of Taihe Reform, which not only lit up the Northern Wei Dynasty but also left an ever burning flame in the history of China. That's why Empress Dowager Feng was admired and respected. Empress Dowager Feng simplified the principles for governing the country by cutting out the superfluous, following that "wealth is the fund for the rulers to rule their countries and enable the common people to live a stable and happy life" and "the development of a country relys on the people, while the people rely on food". Therefore, land and people became the focus of the reform which included a system to distribute land by family members to change the mode of production; salaries for officials to eradicate corruption and punish corrupted officials severely; a centralized three-rank official system and green channels to adopt the Han system and a ban against marriage between people of the same surname. Empress Dowager Feng issued these orders to adopt a new system and developed relevant laws and punishment methods. History as a Mirror notes that a number of corrupt officials, including the governors of Qinzhou and Yongzhou as well as the general of Chang'an, had defied the law. Some of them were put to death, while some were exiled. Tuoba Tianci and Tuoba Zhen, sons of Prince Tuoba Huang, were accused of corruption through misuse of the law. Empress Dowager Feng interrogated them in person and then, regardless of the intercession of the ministers, ordered that their titles be taken away and they be barred from holding office. She also ordered the dismissal and punishment of Lu Wenzu, who accepted bribes for Tuoba Zhen and attempted to cover up the crime. As a result, officials across the country were struck with awe.

Pottery ox cart of coloured patterns of the Northern Wei Dynasty.

Sometimes, history can be similar in a shocking way so that we may be confused about time and space. An old "record" may appear in any page of any newspaper in the world, as fresh as a fish that was just taken out of water. Not only can flowers bloom, the mind and thought can too. Not only does the sun and balloons rise, stones and the soul can too. Of course, the soul may fall down. How awful would this be! I would like to call history "yesterday" instead of "ancient times"."Yesterday" is a flower that came into bloom and withered with the wind of "today". Every historical figure has left his or her shadow on the land. Reading the history of the Northern Wei Dynasty, we feel that Empress Dowager Feng and Emperor Xiaowen are close to us and have left their fingerprint and temperature on the sleeve of the giant Buddha of Yungang. Albert Einstein had such unconventional and humorous words to say:"People like us, who believe in physics, know that the distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion." The Taihe Reform broke out of frame of the overall introduction of the Han system. It abandoned the common view to make overall reforms without distinguishing whether they were applicable or not. It opened a new way by using the failure of the Shang and Zhou Dynasties for reference and avoiding the drawbacks of the Qin and Han Dynasties and created a new era for the Northern Wei Dynasty. Since the Qin Dynasty, craftsmen had belonged to a social class that was even lower than

the common people so that former emperors ordered a ban on marriage between craftsmen and common people. However, Empress Dowager Feng changed the order to expand freedom for marriage and jobs. This reform melted the frozen industrial and commercial development and established a precedent for loosing the control of craftsmen. The social productivity of the Northern Wei Dynasty was greatly released. The "flower" of the ideological and political work must bear plump economic "fruit". The Taihe Reform was like the life-giving spring breeze and rain. From Congling (Pamirs) to Daqin (the ancient Chinese name for the Roman Empire), prosperous agricultural and husbandry development were seen. As recorded: "Yunzhongchuan (now Xin County, Shanxi) covers 200 li from east to west and more than 100 li from north to south. Emperor Xiaowen. In early autumn of each year, it is full of horses. Luoyang become a trade center, attracting many merchants from many cities all over the world." The tax revenues of the Northern Wei Dynasty grew rapidly, which enabled it to build its strength and its citizens who did farm work in spring and summer to live and work in peace and contentment. The three-rank official system enabled the Northern Wei Dynasty to impose centralized rule. The system to distribute land by family members, as a brand-new feudal land system, a milestone in Chinese agricultural history, was adopted by the Northern Qi Dynasty, the Northern Zhou Dynasty and Sui and Tang Dynasties for more than 300 years. The Taihe Reform was a multilevel and comprehensive reform covering a wide range of fields, including politics, military, economy, ritual, law, religion, culture and custom. It summarized the process that the Tuoba dynasty had followed to adopt Han systems and underscored the influence of Han culture on the nomadic people in the north. It was also a good platform for the Northern Wei Dynasty to step into the Era of Luoyang, a natural result of the successful adoption of Han systems. By means of the Taihe Reform, the Northern Wei Dynasty finished the last leap from tribe to a feudal dynasty. What's more, the Taihe Reform played an important role in rectifying, repairing and improving the "road" to a mature feudal system.

Historian Huang Renyu highly praised the Taihe Reform after making a profound analysis on it. He said the organizational systems of the Sui and Tang Dynasties could be traced back to the Northern Qi Dynasty and the Northern Zhou Dynasty and then to the Tuoba family of the Northern Wei Dynasty. Especially, the system to distribute land by family members has direct impact on the historical development of China, laying a good economic foundation for the stable development of the ancient society and serving as a driver for the social development and evolution of China. When classifying the First Empires (Qin and Han Dynasties) and the Second Empires (Sui, Tang and Song Dynasties), Huang Renyu used the system to distribute land by family members as one of the criteria. Some scholars considered the Taihe Reform to be one of the three great feudal social reforms of China. The other two reforms were the Reform of Shang Yang in the Spring and Autumn and Warring-states Period and the Reform of Zhang Juzheng in the Ming Dynasty. Some scholars even attributed the success of the Chinese legal system with integrated law and rite to the Taihe Reform. Empress Dowager Feng must have been very happy to see the country was prosperous and the people were at peace. Empress Dowager Feng had been accustomed to reading and pursuing her ambitions since she was very young. She was clearly aware of how important education was for people and the society. She ordered schools be built around the country to promote Han culture. In addition, the Ballads for Admonishment and the Imperial Mandates she wrote for Emperor Xiaowen were used as teaching materials in these schools. Though having to attend to numerous affairs every day, Empress Dowager Feng was deeply concerned about the Yungang Grottoes project. She and Emperor Xiaowen often visited the Grotto Temple (Shi Ku Si) in Wuzhou Mountain to pray or redeem a vow to a god. Every time, they brought food and clothes to the craftsmen and monks.

Yungang Tower.

Mingtang built in the Eastern Han Dynasty.

There were a great number of monks, who recited Buddhist scriptures loudly. Tolls sounded in the morning, while drums sounded in the evening. Therefore, the temple became a holy place for people to pay their respect to Buddha. If one sheep leaps over the ditch, all the rest will follow. The concern of Empress Dowager Feng about Yungang, like wind for fire, promoted the establishment of temples. Poet Zhu Yizun (Qing Dynasty) said: "In the middle of the Taihe period, there were 6,478 temples nationwide." Of these temples, the Xuankong Temple in Mount Heng (Shanxi), there were the Jueshan Temple in Lingqiu (Datong) and the Jinhe Temple at the junction of the Wei County and Zhuolu County of Hebei province. While building the Lingyan Temple in Yungang, Empress Dowager Feng ordered that great manpower and financial investment be made to build palaces to set up an imperial city to show the power of the era and the magnificence of the royal family. Therefore, architecture represents the achievements of the Taihe Reform. Many grand palaces were built, including the Qibao Yong'an Hall, Taihe Hall, Anchang Hall, Kunde Liuhe Hall, Qianxiang Liuhe Hall and Taiji Hall as well as a number of other halls, rooms and doorways. Architecture expresses the thoughts, concepts and substance of a time. In her final days, Empress Dowager Feng discussed with Emperor Xiaowen the plans for two significant buildings.

The Hanging Temple 6.

In the 10 Year of Taihe Period, the order to build the Mingtang (Hall of Light) was issued. The idea was to build it into a building comparable to those of the Shang and Zhou Dynasties. The hall made a landmark building manifesting the adoption of the Han system. th

The Taoist Temple was relocated and renamed Chongxu Temple to support the national integration and unification and the syncretism of Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism. Many dynasties had Mingtang, a traditional architecture for emperors to issue government decrees and worship gods and ancestors. The Mingtang established in Chang'an under the order of Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty was a world-famous project of the Han Dynasty. Mingtang features a round roof and square body, implying harmony between heaven and people. As a style, Mingtang has special political and social meanings. The Chongxu Temple at the foot of Mount Heng (Shanxi) and between the cliffs of Cuiping Mountain in the west of Jin Long Kou, was skillfully built based on the rocks and the half suspended beam, with caves on cliffs, hanging towers and corridor and trestle road in the air. It was the most precipitous and ingenious building in the world, like a blooming lotus among the clouds or a tercel hovering the sky. The temple is also called Hanging Temple. It has attracted the attention of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and may be inscribed on the World Heritage List.

A Latin proverb says that late autumn is the most beautiful season. In her later years, Empress Dowager Feng lived a simple and thrifty life. She simplified her diet and treated servants kindly. There is one story to this effect. Once, a dragonfly was found in the porridge she was eating. Emperor Xiaowen was very angry and the chef kneeled down to beg for pardon. However, Empress Dowager Feng just smiled and said that the dragonfly must have wanted to taste the porridge because it was so delicious. The story spread quickly. As she stepped down from power, Empress Dowager Feng changed into a philanthropic and kind person. People often use blue flame to describe high degree of professional proficiency. However, it seems to be not enough to describe a person's highest level of consciousness, which should be intangible, colorless and silent. The light of the Taihe Reform and the virtue and charm of Empress Dowager Feng, like a "bouquet of wine" in the "cellar" of Pingcheng, spread widely throughout the Southern Dynasties and attracted many scholars from the south to the north who spread southern culture. For example, Liu Xiaobiao, who was famous for annotating the New Accounts of Old Episodes (Shi Shuo Xin Yu), travelled thousands of miles to Pingcheng and made a remarkable contribution to the translation of Buddhist scriptures in the Yungang Grottoes.

Seven standing Buddha statues on the South Wall of the 13th Grotto.

From a descendant of a conquered nation and a daughter of a demoted official to empress and then empress dowager, Empress Dowager Feng finally got supreme power over the Northern Wei Dynasty. Throughout the period under the reign of Emperor Wencheng, Emperor Xianwen and Emperor Xiaowen, Empress Dowager Feng first participated in government and political affairs and then acted as regent. The perilous peak reveals a boundless and grand scenery. Standing on the peak of power, she enjoyed all the best scenery of the palace and the country. She was like a great painter, who intelligently and freely painted a picture of a country with the painting brush of power and the ink stone of the palace. Although Empress Dowager Feng was a descendant of the Han people, she never thought to transfer the Northern Wei Dynasty under her control to the Southern Dynasties. Instead, she tried her best to lead the Xianbei people towards a civilized and flourishing development. When she first got the seal of the Northern Wei Dynasty from Emperor Xianwen, she once thought about dethroning Emperor Xianwen and becoming queen. She even had a plan. However, unexpected obstructions and the risk forced her to adjust and turn from confrontation to flanking tactics. She started to influence the Xianbei people with the Han culture by first influencing Emperor Xiaowen. The Taihe Reform was one of her masterworks. The Phase II statues of the Yungang Grottoes are one of her masterworks and even the great

achievements made by Emperor Xiaowen should be attributed to her. With a comprehensive understanding of Chinese civilization and the spirit of the Han people, Empress Dowager Feng wrote the Ballads for Admonishment (more than 300 chapters) and the Imperial Mandates (18 chapters) to teach Emperor Xiaowen and push her ideals and thoughts into his mind. The reign of Emperor Xiaowen was like a game of chess, each move naturally reflected the influence of Empress Dowager Feng.

Buddha statue on the right of a pair of sitting Buddha statues on the North Wall of the 10th Grotto.

For Empress Dowager Feng, Pingcheng was a blessed place and her second hometown. She selected a graveyard in Fang Hill with deep woods, tall bamboos and excellent landscape, even though she was young at the time. Empress Dowager Feng didn't want to be buried in the Golden Cemetery (Jinling) in Yunzhong after her death. She did not want to leave the land to which she devoted all her wisdom and efforts. She wanted to continue to see Emperor Xiaowen to make more achievements and consolidate the Northern Wei Dynasty influenced by the Han culture. A river may never be higher than its source. However, it is a fact that the river can enjoy the magnificent views and splendid life along the banks, but the source can not. Usually, it is not what to pursue (such as power or money) but how it is pursued (the purpose or means) that plays a decisive role. Attitude is most important. Napoleon frankly and heatedly said: "I love power. But it is as an artist that I love it. I love it as a musician loves his violin, to draw out its sounds and chords and harmonies." In September of 490, a year of good harvest, the legendary and brilliant life of Empress Dowager Feng came to an end in the Taihe Hall of Pingcheng. She was buried at Fang Hill after a simple and thrifty funeral held according to her will. The ordinary people who remembered the kindness of the empress dowager with gratitude, mourned her in different ways. History and memory were generated by time, which is marked by seasons, minutes and seconds. However, different people have different understanding of time. Confucius considered time to be a river that is going away. Jorge Luis Borges thought it consisted of day and night, with day being like a string, simple and easy to understand and night like a ball of string, complicated and intertwined. J.D.Salinger considered time to be the corner of a wall, which connects two sides. In A Brief History of Time, Stephen Hawking says there is a limited but boundless fourdimensional space-time, which is similar to the surface of the earth but with two more dimensions. I once had negative perception of time. Nature only has four seasons, which take turns boringly. The sky only takes stars up and down every day. The sun and the moon have been following the same tracks for thousands of years. However, I finally learnt that time is not our opponent but our friend and the relationship between people and time is like that between people and nature. Time and space provide a platform for people to live and conduct activities. They help people make history. An individual's micro life is like a breeze. Everything is changing and everything is forgotten. However, an individual's life can be as long as the heaven and earth. People will never die and all death is transition and transformation for regeneration. Life is eternal. If we compare time to an infinite ivy, the micro life and memory of human being should be a green leaf that never withers and falls as that in O. Henry's work, and human civilization

is an ever blooming flower of life. Time may pour scorn on the imitation and supposition of the clock, but will appreciate that people give special meaning and significance of time to life. The Yungang Grottoes have the same function, namely making an artistic record of time for more than 1,500 years. What's more, they are still a warm nest and palace for time today. Emperor Xiaowen granted the posthumous title "Wenming" to Empress Dowager Feng. Wenming means civilization, reflecting the life of Empress Dowager Feng. It is a pity that no one knows the whole name of the great woman and this cannot be verified by historical materials. Temples and palaces surround Fang Hill, 25 kilometers north of Datong, Shanxi. Among them is the Grotto Temple, which presented a splendid sight. There was a lake under the foot of the Fang Hill called "Ling Quan Chi". In spring, white poplars surrounded the embankment and the water was light and bright, described by Li Daoyuan as "clear and bright as a round mirror". Empress Dowager Feng and Emperor Xiaowen often visited the place to ride horses, hunt or entertain guests, boat and recite poems with the courtiers. Joy overflowed. There was a vast grassland at the top of the hill with a small plant called "Di Jiao Jiao", with small lavender flowers that sent their fragrance a hundred miles so that they are called Bai Li Xiang (thyme). This plant was mentioned in Li Shizhen's Compendium of Materia Medica (Ben Cao Gang Mu). Local people called it "Tai Hou Xiang". Thyme flowers are fragrant and of great medical value. In the Qing Dynasty, it was presented to the royal family as tribute. I once put some thyme flowers in a book. A few of months later, when I opened the book and the room was filled with the fragrance of the flowers. However, today, the "Ling Quan Chi" has disappeared. It is miles wide from east to west. The Zhenchuan Fortress and Desheng Fortress guard the eastern and western sides of the hill. They were two passes of the Great Wall of the Ming Dynasty. Two branches of the Yu River – Yinma River and Wanquan River – wrap it like two silver silks. Standing at Yonggu Mausoleum of Empress Dowager Feng, people feel as if they are in another world with a panoramic view of Pingcheng.

Yonggu Mausoleum on the Fangshan Hill as one of the Key Cultural Relics under State Protection.

Bodhisattva statue on the West Wall of the 6th Grotto.

Wannian Hall, originally built as coffin chamber for Emperor Xiaowen, is not far away from Yonggu Mausoleum. Today, the uncared-for graves still exist. However, the gravestones have been damaged, and are desolate and mournful.

As a small hill, Fang Hill seems to be grand and elegant due to the Yonggu Mausoleum. When there was a power vacuum, Empress Dowager Feng walked out of the imperial harem and stepped onto the altar of politics. Her political achievements extended the power of women that had been constrained. She was the first woman reformer in the history of China. In terms of political contributions and personal wisdom, she overshadowed many emperors. Even the Empress Lu, Empress Wu Zetian and Empress Dowager Cixi before and after her could not match her. Emperor Xiaowen was filial. He took over the Taihe Reform and lighted the "path" from Pingcheng to Luoyang. He fulfilled the will of Empress Dowager Feng to adopt the Han system. He ordered the construction of No.6 Grotto into the Grotto of the Mother of Sakyamuni (Fo Mu Dong), to commemorate her. The decision to relocate the capital in Luoyang to realize the integration of Xianbei and Han cultures was a brilliant scheme by Empress Dowager Feng. So, before putting the scheme into practice, Emperor Xiaowen visited the Yonggu Mausoleum and knelt on the grave of Empress Dowager Feng. Both Yungang and Dunhuang have thousands of Buddha caves. Yungang has more than 24,000 Thousand-Buddha statues. According to Buddhism, the world of Buddhists has triple ko, with three phases and Inside view of the Grottoes: the 6 Grotto built between 471 and in each of which a thousand people become 494. Buddhas. The Fable Collection of Stories about Buddhists (Za Bao Zang Jing) includes a story about Lu Nu, seen as the origin of the Thousand-Buddha statues. It is a story about love. th

On the upstream of the Heng River, the concubine of the king gave birth to a child with birth defects. The jealous queen said it was inauspicious and ordered the baby be put into a wood case and then put the case with the baby in the river. Another king picked it up downstream and found a baby in it. The king adopted the baby and brought him up. The baby named "Qianxiaoer" grew up to be a brave man, who won all wars in which he took part. One day, he went on an expedition against the upstream state. The upstream king looked anxious and flurried. The concubine knew the reason and got up on the gate tower to talk with Qianxiaoer.

She said: "You are my son. Why are you so traitorous?" The son said, "Who are you? Cloud is my mother." The mother said, "If you don't believe, open your mouth." The mother stroked her breast and made the milk fall into the mouth of the son. The son then kneeled down to his mother and put his weapons aside. The war was avoided. The story reminds me of a cartoon. A little boy was peeing on a fuse of a bomb marked "war" under his feet, which is extinguished. The boy ended a terrible war as easily as deleting an unwanted word. Both the story and the cartoon mentioned have something in common with Empress Dowager Feng, especially in terms of maternity, kindness and purity. It's said that, an anxious male can be as quiet as a leaf in front of a woman. Although there are many veiled criticisms of Empress Dowager Feng, it can not be denied that, to some extent, the reign in the Taihe Period was sourced from maternity. Buddhism, Taoism or Confucianism lead to the same end, since essentially they teach and enlighten people and even society to be kind, uncomplicated and friendly. A homeland with such people is a holy land of morality for the first and last humans. To safeguard the home and holy land is our mission and responsibility. The Yungang Grottoes imply that in the most obvious and profound way. The grand and luxurious Grotto of the Mother of Sakyamuni symbolizes the image of Empress Dowager Feng as a national model for women.

CHAPTER VI: RHYTHMS OF THE YUNGANG GROTTOES

he Xianbei people (an ancient nationality in China) always surprised their contemporaries in a peculiar way. Even though we may exclaim over the lack of documentary records on the Northern Wei Dynasty, we can find the Monumental Calligraphy of the Northern Wei Dynasty and the Yuefu Poems of the Northern Dynasties, are two evergreen trees in this story.

T

Calligraphy is an ancient Chinese art. Famous modern calligrapher Shen Yinmo said calligraphy was as glorious as drawing though without colors and as melodious as music but without sound. Even Picasso, admiringly, said that he would be a calligrapher and not a painter had he been born in China. Xiong Bingming, a scholar and sculptor visiting France, proudly said that "Chinese calligraphy is a kind of art mixed with philosophy and design art, like sculpture and painting, which make up Western art. It is more concrete and figurative than philosophy but more abstract and symbolic than painting and sculpture. The core of Chinese culture is philosophy, while at the center of the core is Chinese calligraphy, where the Chinese soul is located."

Traditional Chinese writing tools.

Part of the Inscription on the Statue made in the 7th Year of the Taihe Period on the East Wall of the 11th Grotto.

Calligraphic works in the Wei and Jin Period were charming and splendid. Strategist Cao Cao always had his favourite calligraphic works hung in his tent so that he could take a little time off during wars to appreciate them. In the Northern Wei Dynasty, calligraphy hit a peak. Chinese calligraphy, which features strength in grace, originated from a harmonious integration of agricultural civilization and is a symbol of the Chinese spirit, in which the Xianbei spirit is highlighted. The monumental calligraphic works of the Northern Wei Dynasty were usually written with angular strokes, showing distinct edges and corners in the characters but not any sophistication. The strokes are not constrained but of the proper length; they seem irregular but are actually rule-based, random but prudent. The works are written with firm strokes, powerful and bold. The Xianbei people created monumental calligraphy that integrated its own writing styles into the writing of the Han nationality so that the works seem quite different from other scripts. In the Palace of Goddess Nuwa in She County, Hebei, there is a rare treasure, namely the Buddhist sutras carved on a cliff made during the Northern Qi Dynasty. Most of the work is in the style of the Monumental Calligraphy of the Northern Wei Dynasty. During the Northern Wei Dynasty, when people paid high respect to Buddhas, monumental inscriptions were very popular. The enthusiasm to leave the inscriptions on the stone is reflected between the lines. The most representative work may be the Monumental Inscription in the Huifu Temple, which is also called Monument for Building Three-Storey Pagoda. The solid monument is of regular size, reflecting the real social conditions of the Northern Wei Dynasty, which had grand prospects and was in the ascendant. Kang Youwei, a politician and philosopher of the late Qing Dynasty, believed that the calligraphic works of the Northern Dynasties had ten characteristics. Talking about the Monumental Calligraphy of the Northern Wei Dynasty without mentioning the Inscription Written in the Seventh Year of Taihe under the Reign of Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty (AD 483) in the No.11 Yungang Grottoes is like stepping into a garden full of peculiar fragrance without knowledge about where it comes from. It is a rare work with profound meaning made in the early Northern Wei Dynasty. Modern calligrapher Yu Youren loves the monumental calligraphic works of the Northern Wei Dynasty that manifest militarism, straightforwardness and unconstraint. Author Wang Zengqi once recalled his childhood when he started to learn chirography as a primary school student. He said: "My father gave me a book of copies of The Monumental Inscriptions about

Zhang Menglong and said, 'The monumental chirography would be the best. It is full of strength'. Then, during a quite long time, I learnt this kind of chirography. Paper made from straws must be used, since it is rough and thick. It gave me life-long benefits. Even now, you can find some traces in my writing."

Rubbings of the Monumental Inscriptions about Zhang Menglong of the Northern Wei Dynasty.

The Monumental Inscriptions about Zhang Menglong were made in the Third Year of Zhengguang under the Reign of Emperor Xiaoming of the Northern Wei Dynasty (522). (The original monument is in the Temple of Confucius in Qufu.) It is said that many literary artists including Feng Zikai imitated it. What vitality and influence the Monumental Chirography of the Northern Wei Dynasty has! The brush is one of the four treasures of study (writing, brush, ink and ink stone) in China. It is said that Meng Tian, a general of the Qin Dynasty, invented it. When the troops of the Qin Dynasty camped in the frontier juncture of Suide to defend against the Xiongnu people (an ancient nationality), the north wind blew day and night, like the devil's song, making officers and soldiers feel depressed. One day, Meng Tian saw a group of goats walking, with their beards quivering up and down. Then, he got a good idea. He asked soldiers to cut off some beard from the goats and tie it up in a rod and then scrape off the black ash at the bottom of their pans with knives and mix it with water. And so, the earliest writing brushes and ink were made. The hair of weasels, goats and rabbits can be used to make writing brushes. Among them, goat hair is the best. For the Xianbei

people, who used to live a nomadic life, goat hair was the most familiar material. They created the art of monumental chirography by perfectly connecting soft goat hair and hard stone. Again, the Monumental Calligraphy of the Northern Wei Dynasty clearly shows the process of integration of the nomadic civilization of the Xianbei people with the agricultural civilization of the Han people. As a person's handwriting reflects his or her personalities, the Monumental Calligraphy of the Northern Wei Dynasty reflects the characteristics of the Xianbei people.

Glazed pottery warriors and horses of the Northern Wei Dynasty.

Like the Yungang Grottoes, the Monumental Calligraphy of the Northern Wei Dynasty is a great work. In other words, it is the Yungang Grottoes in a calligraphic form. Is the Yungang Grottoes a huge "monument", which enlightens Chinese calligraphy with infinite subtleties? There are many grottoes in North China, just like there are many cliffs in South China. I once visited the underwater museum of the tablets in the Three Gorges area: the Stone of Intelligence (Ling Shi) of Chongqing, the Dragon-spine Stone (Longji Shi) of Yunyang, the Dragon-bed Stone (Longchuang Shi) of Fengdu, the Spring-welcoming Stone (Yingchun Shi) of Ba County, the Lotus Stone (Lianhua Shi) of Jiangjin, and, especially, the inscriptions of Huang Tingjian, Zhu Ang and Wang Shizhen and the White Crane Ridge Inscription (Baiheliang), which is a circular engraving in the shape of a carp. They reminded me of the Yungang Grottoes. It is hard to tell what associations and stream of consciousness are based on. However, I

would like to imagine that time took the romantic charm of the Yungang Grottoes to the ends of the earth, in the clouds and water. The folk songs of the Northern Dynasties are not only a "beautiful exotic flower" in the garden of Chinese literature, but also a fresh breath from the northern nationalities. Most of these songs are the drum-and-horn songs from the Liang period (Liang gujiao hengchui qu) as recorded in the Collection of Poems of Yuefu. It is a kind of military music played on horseback with drums and horns. People of the norther nationalities wrote the lyrics, mostly the Xianbei. "Valiant fighters need good horses, while good horses can be only harnessed by valiant fighters." "Herd horses should be herded on vast grassland and good grass nourishes the horses." "A deer cries when it wants high grass and people feel down because of a missing home." "The wind takes the leaves off the trees on high hilltops thousands miles away. When can we go back home?" Slight homesickness penetrated the bright, optimistic and unconstrained military life. The brave and resourceful Tuoba family had many affectionate and righteous members. The poem Li Bo's Sister reflects the Xianbei culture in the life of the Han people by describing the ways the sister dressed up and her heroic bearing. Cultural inheritance and influence among different nationalities are always manifested during two-way selection and communication. The folk songs of the Xianbei people were partly translated into Chinese and partly written in Chinese after Emperor Xiaowen ordered Chinese be spoken and poems be written in Chinese rather than the Xianbei language. Emperor Xiaowen was deeply influenced by his grandmother, Empress Dowager Feng. He was proficient in Chinese and loved literature and was a good poet. Once, when writing poems with his courtiers, the emperor sang like this: "The sun lights up all the places except the southern dynasties", which indicated his ambition to unify the south and north. Encouraged by him, courtiers itched to express their lofty aspirations through their poems. The most famous folk songs of the Northern Dynasties are The Ode to the Chile Prairie (Chile Ge) and The Ballad of Mulan (Mulan Ci). The Ode to the Chile Prairie and The Ballad of Mulan, which tell stories with verses of different length and integrity, are similar to the Monumental Calligraphy of the Northern Wei Dynasty. The Ode to the Chile Prairie originated during the war between Gao Huan, the first emperor of the Eastern Wei Dynasty who was of Han nationality but deeply influenced by the Xianbei culture, and Yuwen Tai, a well-known Xianbei general in the Northern Wei Dynasty who supported integration. They went to the war at Yubi. An arrow injured Gao Huan. To

encourage officers and soldiers, Gao Huan ordered General Hu Lujin to sing The Ode to the Chile Prairie. The other officers and soldiers followed, and the sound resounded throughout the mountains.

The Ode to the Chile Prairie.

The History of Wei of the Northern Dynasties said that, The Ode to the Chile Prairie was originated from the Chile people, a northern nationality living a nomadic life as the Xianbei people did and loving singing songs. The ancestors of the Chile people are the nephews of the Xiongnu people. It's said that Chanyu (leader) of the Xiongnu people had two daughters, who were extremely beautiful so that Chanyu said they could not marry any person except for the god. Then, Chanyu built a high earth terrace in the north and let his daughters wait on the terrace for the god. Three years later, the god had not yet come. Although the wife of Chanyu suggested he take their daughters back, Chanyu refused. Another year passed, a wolf came and cried at the terrace day and night. The wolf dug a

hole in the foundation of the terrace to live in. The younger sister said: "The wolf must be sent by the god to marry us. I will marry him". Regardless of the efforts of her elder sister to dissuade her, the younger sister married the wolf. They had many offspring, who were the ancestors of the Chile people. The wolf liked crying as much as the Chile people liked singing. This must be a connection for the formulation of the legend. In the National Museum of Rome, there is a bronze statue of a shewolf suckling two human infants, the sons of a king whom the wolves had saved from trouble. Later, the two men established Rome in the place where the she-wolf had saved them. In the well-known American film Dances with Wolves, there was a wolf who befriended the hero. The story is quite affecting. I once wrote a mini novel named Wild Wolf, which also put in a good word for wolves. In addition, there is a popular Chinese song named The Northern Wolf. The lyrics go like this: "I am a wolf from the north, walking on the vast wilderness. Bitter wind is blowing, and yellow sand is flowing slowly. The only thing I can do is to cry with clenched teeth in the cold, just for the beautiful grassland in the legend." The Han people dislike the wolf and worship the legendary dragon instead. The contrast between the dragon and wolf reflects the great difference between the "people on the horse back" and the farming people in terms of symbolism, courage and uprightness. "And in the evening, the goats and cows come down and home," says The Book of Odes, which slowly pans a countryside scene in the inland of the central plain. The Ode to the Chile Prairie: The Cloudy-Mountains lie, See the Chille-River pass by, Like a big dome is the sky Covering the prairie nigh. The lofty sky is deeply blue, The vast wildness not seen through, The wind lowering grass in green, Sheep and cattle are easily seen. The lines lead us into a boundless and unaffected scene of grassland beyond the Great Wall, showing the profound vitality of a nomadic life based on hunting that flourished on grass and well-nourished sheep. The Ode to the Chile Prairie is about mountains, rivers, sky and wild lands. It is a song of wind, grass, cows and sheep. It is like the stone carving, with a vast but not desolate

background and a clear and affecting theme. The theme is pure and natural, with open and bright artistic conception. "The wind blowing grass in green, sheep and cattle are easily seen." It is an inspired verse, a reproduction of the real scene on the grassland. Hu Shih thought the folk songs of the Northern Dynasties was a type of heroic literature of the northern nationalities, and The Ode to the Chile Prairie is the most representative one. He said: "The verse of 'the wind blowing grass in green, sheep and cattle are easily seen' is inspired. How simple it is. How unflappable it is." Undoubtedly, the Xianbei people are the most eligible people to be the hosts in the scenario provided by The Ode to the Chile Prairie. It is the ecological environment that cultivates the unique personalities of the Xianbei people. The Ballad of Mulan is not so much about the story of a girl called Mulan that takes military service for her father as it is the story of the great cause of the battle-scarred Xianbei people. The heroine Mulan is an embodiment, a symbol and an outstanding representative of the Xianbei people and shows the noble feelings of the Xianbei people who experienced many hard journeys. Meanwhile, the story provides a new artistic perspective to interpres the spiritual world of the nationality. Cao Daoheng, who has read a great number of ancient Chinese poems, says that there are no characters in any Han poem as valiant and brave as Mulan. The Ballad of Mulan sings the praises of Mulan for guarding her country without any consideration for honors and wealth and creates an image of a

A picture to The Ballad of Mulan.

northern lady who is unsophisticated and noble. It also shows the militarism of the northern minorities.

Fan Wenlan had this startling words: "The Northern Dynasties have The Ballad of Mulan, the best of all the poems in both the Southern and Northern Dynasties." Hu Shih said that after a deeper exploration, "The Ballad of Mulan is about a heroine taking the military service for her father. It may be the best work of the northern popular literature." In 1995 and 1996, the Relic Park of Mingtang (Hall of Light) from the Taihe Period of the Northern Wei Dynasty in the southern part of Datong was set up. It was to this hall that Mulan had come back and met with the emperor. Mingtang is the name of a group of buildings as well as the name a specific hall. In addition to being the place where emperors worshipped their ancestors and met with officials, the hall was also significant and valuable for multiple reasons, including granting honors, as Emperor Xiaowen did for Mulan.

Terra-Cotta female musician figurines of the Northern Wei Dynasty.

Facing the relics of Mingtang, it is hard to imagine the original structure. Architectures with round domes are hardly rare around the world, such as the Pantheon, St Peter's Basilica and the Chiesa del Redentore in Venice. The Xianbei people seemed to be sentimentally attached to things of round shape, such as the lotus-shaped yurts that were their homes when they lived a nomadic life on the grassland.

According to astrologers and astronomers, a forecast for a lunar eclipse in the 12 year of Taiping Zhenjun (451) is the earliest forecast of lunar eclipse ever made in China. The Mingtang is also a planetarium. On the round dome that symbolizes the heaven, there are some light green silks and burlap cloth with jades, which symbolize the constellations. th

In February 1974, an ancient tomb from the Wei Dynasty was found in Luoyang. There were more than 300 "stars" on the dome. A shining blue "galaxy" runs from south to north as a copy of the stellar map in Mingtang. According to History as a Mirror, it was in Mingtang that Emperor Xiaowen made the decision to relocate the capital in Luoyang based on divination and issued the Initiative to Relocate the Capital. How romantic and lively it would be to stand inside the relics of Mingtang and read loudly The Ballad of Mulan. Ladies of the Northern Wei Dynasty, like Mulan, were as competitive and capable as men, having profound influence on the ladies of the central plain and the later generations. Music was an indispensable part of the life of the Xianbei people. Dancing and singing were in their customs. People danced and sang everywhere, on the pasture or the battlefield. They always carried weapons and musical instruments on their backs. To them, hunting and wars were like singing and dancing. Tuoba Gui ordered the relocation of the capital in Pingcheng and follow the example of Han emperors to establish an official system, rank officials, regulate tonalities and harmonize melodies. On the first day of the first month of the lunar year, people sang the Zhen Ren Dai Ge, which consisted of 150 chapters and told the story of the Xianbei people. It was a solemn and magnificent scene. The governmental music department was formally established during the Taihe period, when Empress Dowager Feng acted as a regent. Many philosophers considered music as sacred and independent. Arthur Schopenhauer devoutly said: "Music is not a decoration to the world. It itself is a world."

Dances and songs of the Northern Wei Dynasty called the Cave of Music.

However, many politicians compared music to an extremely sensitive nerve of society.

Empress Dowager Feng once issued a decree: "The former emperors used music as a way to maintain harmony and correct customs. Songs that are indelicate should not be allowed in the court." Then emperor Xiaowen said: "Music can move the heaven and earth and harmonize the Yin and Yang. Duets can improve the function of music to a higher level." The Book of Music in The Book of Rites (Li Ji•Yue Ji) said: "All the music came from the heart of people. Emotions were expressed by sound, which became music when organized in some order. Therefore, the music of a time of national peace and order is peaceful and pleasing, reflecting the political tolerance and harmony. The music of a turbulent time is full of sadness and anger, since the people were in hardship. Music and politics are the same in some way." "The development of the Yungang Grottoes and the Dunhuang frescoes of the Tang Dynasty, like the development of music, poetry and art, was related to Buddhism," said Nan Huai-Chin, a contemporary scholar. The music of the Northern Wei Dynasty was closely connected to Buddhism, they acted as a foil for each other. In Pingcheng (now Datong), which was the axis for the integration of different nationalities, there were a great variety of musical instruments from the southern and northern nationalities. Some were even from the Western Regions and India. The No. 12 Grotto makes a panoramic record of the dances and music of the Northern Wei Dynasty along with the carvings: Percussion instruments, plucked string instruments and wind instruments, making the grotto an exhibition hall of music. The "grotto of music" includes two rooms. The outer room has a square ceiling, with ten pictures of blooming lotuses. On the ceiling, there are round and protruding relieves of six dancers and musicians. The person in the middle without any musical instruments in hand seems to be the bandmaster. On the walls around, there are many celestial dancers and musicians. Each of them have their own duties, singing, dancing or playing musical instruments, that are remarkably true to life. A moment can be eternal. In the grotto, how can we not be baptized by the holy music of the Northern Wei Dynasty? How inspiring the flying apsaras is? The novel A Record of Buddhist Temples in Luoyang (Luoyang Qielan Ji) tells a story about the beautiful lady Yanzi, who was a wife of Prince Gaoyang and was good at the Dance of Phoenix in Fire. There was another lady named Xu Yuehua, who was good at playing the song of the Dance of Phoenix in Fire with konghou (an ancient plucked stringed instrument). The dance was handed down to the Tang Dynasty and was very popular. The Zhezhi Dance for two people of the Tang Dynasty is not only a feast for the eyes of the visitors, but also a purifier of the soul. In the stone carving, two girls are dancing in the lotus stamens with their sleeves stretching out as if they were fanning the fragrance and

holiness into the hearts and dreams of the visitors. The Dance of Rainbow Skirts and Feather Robes (Ni Chang Yu Yi Wu) of the Tang Dynasty originated in the Qiuci (an ancient state) song, called The Song of Brahman and introduced by Tuoba Gui to the Western Regions after winning the war against Liangzhou. Cen Shen, a famous poet of Tang Dynasty, once visited Liangzhou. One night, he wrote a poem after hearing a pipa (a plucked string instrument with a fretted fingerboard) song that made him feel like bathing in the moonlight. The poem goes like this: "One hundred thousand households in Liangzhou that covers seven li, half can play Pipa." (The li is a Chinese unit of length, equal to about half a kilometer). Another poet, Du Mu, sketched the "city of music" (Liangzhou) based on his imagination: "Only the dance and songs of Liangzhou can attract all the idlers" (indicating the rulers at that time). A poem of Bai Juyi says: "There are numerous dances and songs, but the Ni Chang dance is my favorite." He also described the beautiful Qiuci dance in his poem The Huxuan Dancer: "Whirling girls, whirling girls; heart answers strings; hand answers drum; when strings and drum resound together; both of her sleeves lift high; and she drifts in twirls like circling snow; dancing the spinning tumbleweed." Besides, there are also the Qiuci Song, Yutian Song, Xiliang Song and Shule Song in Yungang, which are exceedingly fascinating and charming. The Jian Wu (a kind of dance) and Ruan Wu (a kind of dance) evolved from the basis of Buddhism and the drama-like dances accompanied by music put on a joint performance at Yungang and enriched the state art of the central plain with a new form of art. Wang Guowei wrote in his A Study on Dramas of the Song and Yuan Dynasties, which laid a foundation for the study of the history of the Chinese drama and consisted of songs and dances named Bo Tou, the most representative drama of all those introduced from the Western Countries to China. On the extraordinary "land", "gorgeous flowers" must have a strong growth. It is a hard fact that the calligraphy, folk songs and poems are treasures of the Chinese art. The Essential Skills to Benefit the People (Qi Min Yao Shu) by Jia Sixie, the A Record of Buddhist Temples in Luoyang by Yang Xuanzhi and the Commentary on the Waterways Classic (Shui Jing Zhu) are all important historical documents that benefit the people from generation to generation. The Essential Skills to Benefit the People summarizes the agricultural skills of the ancient Yellow River basin. When making corrections, annotations and interpreting A Record of Buddhist Temples in Luoyang, Zhou Zhenpu cited part of the Preface of the Revised Version of A Record of Buddhist Temples in Luoyang by Wu Ruozhun (Qing Dynasty): "Yang Xuanzhi expressed his feelings about the times by telling stories about the temples in Luoyang. Specific descriptions of the reasons for the political turmoil, the art, culture and historical sites related, the location of gardens and bridges, the oddities among the people and the exotic customs of the were made

so that it can be used as a supplement to the historical record of the Northern Wei Dynasty and reference for studying on the history of the Tuoba Family."

World Cultural Heritage — Yungang Grottoes.

The Commentary on the Waterways Classic, which is the first monograph on the river system of China, boasts an outstanding literary structure. Mao Zedong had the following comments on the book: "I think the author of the Commentary on the Waterways Classic must be a great man. He must have visited many places before writing the book. Otherwise, how could he finish such a great work, which is not only a book about science but also is a literature." In addition to the individual capabilities of these authors, the unified and relatively stable social environment, the monastic architectures that sprung up like mushrooms and the agricultural development under the system to distribute land by family members, which encouraged farming and silkworm breeding, were all indispensable conditions for the great works. Like the Yungang Grottoes, these works are products of the Northern Wei Dynasty with great geographic and national integration and cultural development. The Commentary on the Waterways Classic also tells us: "The Yellow River and the Yangtze River, running down from the Bayan Har Mountain in the east of the huge Kunlun Mountains and the Tanggula Mountain, have been nursing the Chinese and have never stopped and been cut off by any wars." Where is he? Who knows?

However, certainly, he sunk. A star fell down the desolate Space: The Space turns to be desolate...... — Friedrich Nietzsche Yes. No one doubts that the Northern Wei Dynasty is a bright star in the history of China. The star has never fallen. The Yungang Grottoes, which have shone like the sun and the moon for more than 1,500 years, continue to show its glory and charm. Furthermore, I would like to say, the immortal Yungang Grottoes, which are common wealth of the people, are like a star rising from hands of the Xianbei. They lighted our enthusiasm toward life as well as the spiritual flame, setting off the fantastic atmosphere of the Northern Wei Dynasty and leading us to unlimited thoughts and dreams.

CIP --2013.6 ISBN978-7-5085-2538-9 … … … CIP2013122031

…

31B7 100088 8610-820059278610-82007837 www.cicc.org.cn 201361

K879.22-49

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Editor-in-chief: Ren Qifa Planner: Jing Xiaomin, Gao Yanguo Editor: Zhang Meijing Assistant Editor: Jiang Chao

Design Manager: Yan Zhijie Cover Designer: Xu Chi Layout by: Wang Weifeng Designer: Beijing Kingsight Culture & Art Co., ltd

YUNGANG GROTTOES AND NORTHERN WEI It is a history book on stone. — Luo Zhewen

It is a book with extensive, profound, novel and unique features, covering literature, historical science, Buddhism, philosophy, aesthetics and architecture. — Cao Daoheng

The profound connotation and insightful points of view call for deep thought, while the excellent descriptions are so intoxicating, making it hard for readers to stop reading. — Lai Xinxia