Maijishan Buddha Kingdom: The Millennium Eastern Smile on the Cliff

When I arrived at the foot of Maijishan, I looked up to see a peak shaped like a wheat stack standing abruptly in the Qinling Mountains. The red sandstone cliffs were densely dotted with honeycomb-like niches, and the skywalks wound like ribbons between the cliffs. This sacred mountain, praised as the "Crown of Qin's Forests and Springs," revealed the spectacular "Maiji Misty Rain" in the drizzling rain, resembling an ink painting. Before the climb began, I saw a warning sign advising those with high blood pressure or low blood sugar to be cautious on the skywalk. Clutching my ticket, I joined the ranks of pilgrims. Stepping onto the suspended walkway, dozens of meters of abyss lay beneath my feet, each step quickening my heartbeat. The ancients praised this engineering marvel with the words, "Between the cliffs, carved stone Buddhas, thousands of niches and caves. Created by human hands, yet seeming divine." Locals even have a saying, "After chopping firewood in the southern mountains, build the Maiji cliff," reflecting the perilous effort of the original excavation. The Maijishan Grottoes were first built during the Later Qin period of the Sixteen Kingdoms. Over more than 1,600 years, through the Northern Wei, Western Wei, Northern Zhou, Sui, Tang, and other dynasties, they were carved and restored. Today, there are 221 niches, 10,632 statues, and nearly a thousand square meters of murals, ranking alongside the Mogao Caves, Yungang Grottoes, and Longmen Grottoes as one of China's four great grottoes. Walking on the narrow skywalk that only allows one person at a time, I couldn't help but admire the courage and wisdom of the ancient craftsmen. How did they complete such exquisite artistic creations on these sheer cliffs? Perhaps it was their unwavering faith that supported them in accomplishing this "seemingly divine" feat. Standing on the walkway, I closely admired these millennium-old artistic treasures. The seated Buddha in Cave 44 is called the "Eastern Venus" by the Japanese. Its serene face, with a slight smile at the corners of the mouth, reveals a smile transcending time and space. This expression, later known as the "Eastern Smile," is completely different from the solemn Buddha statues I had seen before. It brought me a sense of peace, comfort, and tolerance. In Cave 133, the "Cave of Ten Thousand Buddhas," I was overwhelmed by the countless Buddha images covering the walls. This heavenly cave, 5.8 meters high and 12.2 meters wide, is one of the largest niches in Maijishan. Its complex interior structure and rich statues create the spectacular scene of "Buddha images everywhere, flying apsaras on all four walls." In Cave 4, the "Scattered Flower Tower," Northern Zhou craftsmen innovatively combined shallow relief and murals with the "thin flesh sculpture" technique, making the flying apsaras' flowing robes vivid and lifelike. What impressed me most was Cave 127. This niche, carved during the Western Wei period, preserves about 99 square meters of exquisite murals, including one of the earliest and largest Western Pure Land transformations in Chinese grottoes. The scene is filled with numerous figures and magnificent architecture, with line drawings as delicate as silkworm threads, showcasing the outstanding achievements of early Buddhist transformation paintings. As I walked along the skywalk, I noticed the changes in artistic styles across different dynasties. Early Northern Wei statues show Central Asian Gandhara art characteristics, with tall and robust figures; late Northern Wei was influenced by Central Plains culture, presenting "delicate bones and clear images"; Western Wei statues tend to be full and upright; Northern Zhou is characterized by "round pearls and jade-like smoothness." This stylistic evolution vividly reflects the sinicization and nationalization of Buddhist art. I lingered for a long time before the Eastern Cliff Buddha (Cave 13). This 15.7-meter-tall stone clay sculpture Buddha from the Sui Dynasty is the largest Buddha in Maijishan. The main figure is Amitabha Buddha, flanked by Avalokiteshvara and Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattvas. The Buddha’s plump body and dignified expression display the grandeur of the Sui and Tang golden ages. Cave 43 made me reflect deeply. It is said to be the burial place of Empress Yifu, the former wife of Western Wei Emperor Wen. This beautiful and virtuous empress became a nun at Maijishan and finally rests here. The niche is designed like a hall-style cliff pavilion, perhaps related to this history. Standing before the cave, I seemed to see the image of an empress who gave up wealth and power to seek spiritual peace here. Among the grottoes, I saw a plaque inscribed with "Shi Wu Deng Deng" (There is no difference). These four characters, like a wise reminder, stand on the cliff. Looking up, there are Buddha images, distant layered mountains and forests, and your own heart and mind. This may be the greatest insight Maijishan Grottoes gave me: before the vast history and great art, all beings are equal and can attain enlightenment. On the way down, I met several researchers copying the art. They told me that Maijishan Grottoes preserve treasures of world clay sculpture art history from the 5th to 18th centuries, especially the clay sculptures from the Northern Wei and Northern Zhou periods, which are physical materials for studying the development and evolution of Chinese clay sculpture art. In 2014, Maijishan Grottoes were inscribed on the World Heritage List as part of the "Silk Road: the network of Chang’an-Tianshan Corridor." Looking back at Maijishan, I recalled the poem Du Fu wrote after visiting here: "Few monks remain in the wild temple, the mountain garden’s narrow paths rise high. Musk sleeps among stone bamboo, parrots peck golden peaches." Today, Maijishan is no longer the desolate scene of "few monks in a wild temple," but an art treasure attracting countless tourists and scholars. This spontaneous solo trip enriched my knowledge, broadened my horizons, and purified my soul. Standing before this millennium-old monument, I felt the profoundness of Chinese culture and the historical connotations of ethnic exchanges and integration. Maijishan Grottoes are not only an "Eastern Sculpture Gallery" but also a testament to the inclusiveness and continuity of Chinese civilization. This Buddha kingdom on the cliff, these millennium-old "Eastern Smiles," will continue to stand in the Qinling Mountains, telling the moving stories of cultural exchange and mutual learning along the Silk Road to the world.