A beautiful Buddha statue in Maijishan hides a poignant love from 1600 years ago

The main Buddha statue of Cave 44 of Maijishan

Tianshui Maijishan Grottoes, located in Maiji District, Tianshui City, Gansu Province, is one of the four major grottoes in China, known as the "Oriental Sculpture Museum", with 194 existing niches, more than 7,800 clay sculptures and stone statues, and more than 1,000 square meters of murals. The grotto was built in Later Qin (384-417), daxing during the reign of Emperor Mingyuan and Emperor Taiwu of Northern Wei, and developed after Emperor Xiaowen's reign (477). The Maijishan Grottoes have gone through twelve dynasties and more than 1,600 years of wind and rain, and are famous for their exquisite clay sculptures.

Among them, Cave No. 44, excavated in the Western Wei Dynasty, is particularly eye-catching. The Buddha statue in the cave is serene and beautiful, smiling slightly, overlooking all sentient beings in a loving state, which makes the viewer moved. Who is she? There is no clear record in the grotto, but Grotto 43, which is a stone's throw away from her, once housed empress YiFushi of the Western Wei Dynasty, so it has been rumored that the Buddha statue in Cave 44 was sculpted according to the appearance of Yi Fushi. So what kind of person is Ephraim, and why did he leave this undefeated smile for a thousand years?

Empress of Western Wei: After her death, she became the most beautiful Buddha in Maijishan

The location of the Maijishan Grottoes is extremely steep, and most of them are carved into the cliffs. Cave 44 of the Maijishan Grottoes is one of the grottoes between the cliffs, excavated in the Western Wei Dynasty, a flat square cave, the front part collapsed in the earthquake, leaving only the back wall of the cave.

The main Buddha statue on the main wall of Cave 44 is the most outstanding statue in the MaijiShanxi Wei statue, the supreme work. There are now one Buddha, two bodhisattvas and one disciple in the cave. The main Buddha on the main wall is 1.60 meters high, with a high flesh bun with a right water vortex on his head, a monk's branch on the inside, a knot on the chest, a shoulder robe on the outside, and a half knot to sit on his knees. The flesh bun, chest and dress all have traces of painting, and the draped clothes covered in front of the Buddha seat have rounded lines, and the thickness of the texture is integrated with the flow of the lines, which is both varied and comfortable and natural, layered and rich in decorative interest. Shi Fearless and Willing Seal's hands, although slender and feminine, give people unlimited comfort and harmonious strength. A foot is revealed between the petal-like garments, round and holy, revealing the purity and untainted heart of the Buddha. The buddha's face is moderately square, and the eyebrows reveal a wise and deep aura. The bridge of the nose is high and straight, connected to the forehead, and there is a little bit of abundance in the clear bone.

The bodhisattvas on both sides of the main Buddha are exposed, wearing long skirts, the clothes and ornaments have a smooth sense of line, a strong sense of layering, and the expression of the two bodhisattvas is exquisite, beautiful and kind, and the main Buddha in the middle of the contrast, fresh, adding some grace and luxury.

The statue of the main Buddha has thin lips and small mouths, a smile, dignified and elegant, slightly overlooked, and amiable. In the mysterious smile, there is a state of great freedom without thought and no hanging, the slightly closed eyes have a hint of subtlety, the introverted expression hides a self-confidence, the face is compassionate and solemn, quiet and tolerant, reserved and indifferent.

Is there any unusual origin to this extremely beautiful Buddha statue?

Some experts believe that this statue of the main Buddha was originally created in honor of Empress Yifu of the Western Wei Dynasty. Yifu was the first empress to be crowned after Emperor Wen of Western Wei ascended the throne. It is said that she was beautiful in appearance, dignified and quiet, and her talents were outstanding, and at the age of 16, she was accepted as the concubine of Emperor Wen, and empress Yifu was frugal by nature and kind and generous. Unfortunately, her fate was tragic. A generation of empresses was first deposed and then ordered to commit suicide.

Emperor of the Troubled World: Tearfully give the beloved in his heart

Speaking of the abolition of the Western Wei empress Yifu, we have to talk about some historical events during the Northern Dynasty.

In 534, the Northern Wei regime split into Eastern Wei and Western Wei. Yuan Baoju, with the support of Yuwen Tai (丞相宇文泰), became the first emperor of Western Wei, known in history as "Emperor Wen of Western Wei", and established the capital Chang'an. His grandfather was Tuoba Hong, the famous Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei in history.

Yuan Baoju had a virtuous and beautiful concubine, who was also his cousin, Yi Fushi. Before Yuan Baoju became emperor, this was an enviable pair of immortal couples. Yi Fu was born into a famous family, she was the favorite daughter of the King of Qinghai, and her mother was Princess Huaiyang, the fourth daughter of Emperor Xiaowen of Wei, a princess born with a golden spoon, born with a national color and a noble temperament.

Yi Fushi is 3 years younger than Yuan Baoju, and the two are very affectionate. Therefore, after Yuan Baoju ascended the throne, he immediately made Yi Fushi the queen, at the age of 26. The couple had a deep affection and should have grown old with a white head. It was unpredictable that this "queen" seat had become the beginning of her nightmare...

In the last year of the Northern Wei Dynasty, Yuwen Tai killed Emperor Xiaowu and established Yuan Baoju as emperor, that is, Emperor Wen of Wei, and established Western Wei. Another northern Wei vassal, Gao Huan, made Yuan Shanjian emperor, the Wei Xiaojing Emperor, and Eastern Wei began. Eastern Wei and Western Wei attacked each other, beating you to death, but they could not distinguish between victory and defeat. At this time, Rouran in the north was very strong, and for the equally matched Eastern wei, Rouran's attitude was crucial. Whoever rouran supports, he can survive, otherwise, he will have to destroy the country. Eastern Wei took the lead and married Rouran. When Western Wei saw that it was not good, he also hurried to make peace.

Yuwen Tai held the power of Western Wei, and Emperor Wen of Wei was just a puppet. Yuwen Tai persuaded Yuan Baoju to marry the Ruoran chieftain Analu and marry Analu's daughter Yujiulu and make her empress.

However, Empress Yifu's xianliang Shude and Emperor Wen had been in love with Emperor Wen for several years, and the husband and wife had deep feelings, and Emperor Wen was very embarrassed. But under the pressure of survival, he had no choice. What's more, the helmsman of Western Wei was not him, but Yuwen Tai, the chancellor.

In the end, Yuan Baoju deposed Empress Yifu and ordered her to cut her hair as a nun and replace her with the 14-year-old Yu Jiulu clan as her queen. Yi Fushi understood the great righteousness, calmly waited, for the sake of the overall situation, resolutely decided to seek perfection, but fate was particularly ruthless to Yi Fushi, and finally, she received an edict from Yuan Baoju to let her commit suicide. In the sixth year of the reign of the Emperor, Hefri committed suicide at the age of 31.

After Yi Fushi's death, Emperor Wen excavated a stone niche in Maijishan to bury her. Legend has it that when the coffin was stored, two auspicious clouds drifted into the stone niche, one disappeared, and the other floated out, and later this stone niche was called the Silent Tomb. It is now Cave 43, and the cave where the coffin of Ephesus is stored is still there. The main Buddha of Cave No. 44 is said to have been molded in the form of Ephraim. Later, when crown prince Yuan Qin ascended the throne, he moved his mother's coffin out and buried it with Emperor Wen at Yongling, Shaanxi.

Princess Rouran: Forced to die not long after the queen died in childbirth

The person who forced Emperor Wen of Wei to give death to the Yifu clan was none other than Princess Yu Jiulu of Rouran. What's going on here?

It turned out that the new empress, Yu Jiulu, was the eldest daughter of the Rouran chief Analu, and she was jealous and jealous. Because Emperor Wen of Wei and Yi Fushi had a strong relationship, although he made Yu Jiulu empress instead, Emperor Wen of Wei did not love her. Therefore, Yi Fushi, who had already cut his hair to become a nun and lived in Chang'an, naturally became a thorn in the flesh of Yu Jiulu's eyes, and he was not happy. She used the power of her mother's family to put pressure on Emperor Wen in an attempt to put Yi Fushi to death. In order to protect the Yifu clan, Emperor Wen appointed The Prince of Wudu as the Assassin of Qin Prefecture and asked the Yifu clan to go with him to other places. Yuan Peng was the second son of Yi Fushi, and she also had the eldest son, Prince Yuan Qin.

After coming to Qinzhou, Yi Fushi was determined to concentrate on the Buddha in Maiji Mountain, accompanied by green lanterns, and survived this life. This is a kind of happiness, but the tree wants to be quiet and the wind is not stopping.

Ever since Yi Fushi left, Yuan Baoju has been thinking about her. He quietly sent a message to let Ephraim grow her hair and wait for the opportunity to pick her up. As a result, this matter was known to Empress Yu jiulu, and she was furious, and the more she thought about it, the more angry she became, believing that only by letting The Ephesian clan die could she get the emperor's love. So xiushu Rouranguo asked her father to send troops to exert pressure to support her.

In the spring of 540 AD, Anajun led a large army south and asked his son-in-law to give an explanation. This was actually just an excuse, Rou Ran had always wanted to encroach on Western Wei. The army suppressed the territory, the Eastern Wei tiger looked at it, and Rouran came to threaten again. Emperor Wen had no choice but to send people to Qin Prefecture and order Yi Fushi to commit suicide.

The exhausted Princess Rouran did not get the emperor's love, and she did not stay long in the empress position.

Shortly after Ephesus's death, the pregnant Yukulu clan often had nightmares because of her guilt, and one day suddenly saw a woman dressed in full costume come to her residence and ask her for her life. She asked who the man was, but the doctor and the maids saw nothing, and everyone thought she was seeing the ghost of Ephraim. Yu Jiulu eventually died of nervousness and fear, difficult childbirth, at the age of 16.

The people and things in the story have long since become smoke clouds. The years have smoothed out everything. Only Ephesus's smile, still so quiet and serene in the stone niche, adds a touch of tenderness to the cruel chaotic world.

Pocket Lanzhou Lanzhou Morning News reporter Huang Jianqiang