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Tiangong Louge in Eastern Pure Land Illustrations You & Zhu

seen that the Healing Master Sutra and This non-pagoda and non-hall building is
Amitayurbhavana Sutra illustrations are either an already lost “pagoda” of the
placed symmetrically. transitional period, or a building in people’s
imagination of that time. There is a pair of bell
towers and scripture towers at the back of the
courtyard, and a finial on top of the house.
The way of grouping this Sutra
illustration is the “opened foreground type of
two-rise courtyard mode.” The front
courtyard has one hall and two teahouses to
form a U-shaped enclosed courtyard through
a corridor. There are two doors on the corridor,
which lead to the rear courtyard. The hall in
the rear courtyard has a nine-ridge roof, with
bell towers and scripture towers opposite to
each other on the left and right. The ground
floor is octagonal in shape, and the
transitional floor is a round shape. The
corridor in the rear courtyard is stretched to
Figure 15. Healing Master Sutra illustration of Cave
360 in Dunhuang Mogao Caves. Source: Chinese Rock the left and the right, which indicates there are
Cave: Dunhuang Mogao Caves Ⅴ by Dunhuang courtyards on both sides.
Academy.
4.3 Healing Master Sutra Illustration of
Cave 361 in Dunhuang Mogao Caves
The foreground of sutra illustration still (Figure 12, in the Mid-Tang Dynasty)
belongs to the opened type, but abandons The form of Cave 361 in Mogao Caves also
ponds and emulation of the notion of has niches carved into the four faces, with a
“meditation on the water of eight meritorious truncated pyramidal roof. There are two Sutra
virtues” in Amitayurbhavana Sutra illustrations on the south wall: Amitabha
illustration. In front of the main figure Sutra and Diamond Sutra illustrations. There
Healing Master, is seemingly burning lamps. are also two Sutra illustrations on the north
Burning a lamp to pray for good luck and wall: Healing Master Sutra and Maitreya
avoid disasters was a customer of that time. Sutra illustrations. The Healing Master Sutra
There are some “Burning lamp texts” in vow and Amitabha Sutra illustrations are placed
texts in Dunhuang documents, which were symmetrically. The form of the Healing
prepared when burning lamps to pray for Master Sutra illustration in this cave was also
8
good luck and avoid disasters at that time . an exploration work of the startup period. The
The hall body of the foreground on the main buildings in the Sutra illustration nearly
axis is three bays wide and stands on the occupy the entire picture [Figure 12]. From
platform with wooden hooked railings. There the perspective of grouping, it belongs to
is a round bridge-type stairway on the left and “one-rise courtyard type with closed
right side of the platform. It is particularly foreground.” The foreground still retains the
important to note that, as for setting a finial on notion of “meditation on the water of eight
the top of the hall, the finial with the sign meritorious virtues” in the Western Pure Land
wheel holding the jewel is attached with a illustrations, but it abandons open platforms,
chain, to which a colorful ring is hung, and the and is enclosed by Sanmen and a corridor
other end attached to the corner of the house. hanging on the pond to form a courtyard.

8 For example, the burning lamp text reads: “As regards to the treasure pagoda, burn the lamp for worship. The donor perceives: wish the
body is constantly clean and bright, like a jade tree; the body is constantly strong and solid…” (Dunhuang documents P2588), which reflects
the scene of burning lamps to make a wish in front of the treasure pagoda.

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