Maijishan Grottoes Overview & Map Weather Transportation Information
Located 45 kilometers (about 28 miles) southeast of Tianshui City in Gansu Province, Mt. Maijishan (Wheatstack Mountain) abruptly rises up 142 meters (about 155 yards) from the landscape. It gets its name from its giant wheatstack-like shape. The mountain's fame arises not just from its appearance, but from the many Buddhist caves that are gouged into its southwestern face.
This is the fourth largest area of concentrated Buddhist grottoes in China, after Dunhuang, Datong and Luoyang. The area around and on the mountain is one of the most beautiful sights in Gansu for both stunning natural scenery and impressive man-made spectacle. The mountain, studded with caves and strapped by many winding walkways and spiral stairs, rises majestically from the surrounding heavily wooded slopes, so any visitor here with a bit of time on their hands could easily spend a few days hiking and admiring. The famous Maijishan Grottoes on the sheer cliff that marks the southwest side of Maiji Mountain have been reputed as the "Oriental Sculpture Museum."
History
The Maijishan Grottoes were first built in Later Qin, constructed successively during 12 dynasties: West Qin, Northern Wei, West Wei, Northern Zhou, Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing.
Scale
Through a history of earthquakes and fires, 194 Buddhist caves and niches, 7200 clay statues, and over 1, 300 square meters (about 1, 555 square yards) of murals in the Maijishan Grottoes still remain.
Legend
Legends say when the highest cave was completed, Sakyamuni arrived here to preach Buddhism and his 28 asparas (attendants) threw flower petals onto the pilgrims below. If a petal fell on someone, it meant he or she did not truly believe in Buddhism but to everyone's joy, all the petals scattered upwards toward the sky.
What to appreciate
Clay sculptures
On arrival at the sight the most prominent sculpture is the 16 meters Buddha that is carved high up on the mountain. The grottoes, all packed together on the sheer, rocky cliff faces below and above this, look from afar like chambers of a gargantuan beehive. The highest figure is about 16 meters tall, and the smallest measures only 10 centimeters. One salient feature of the grottoes is that the only means of access between the caves is a plank road built on the face of a precipice.
Western section of the grottoes
On ascending the mountain, the grottoes are divided into two sections, the western and eastern, since the central section was almost completely destroyed by an eighth century earthquake. The western section is probably the better, with statues and other Buddhist articles dating mainly from the Northern Wei to the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907). Just ascending the mountain, on winding, rickety walkways and spiral stairs, with the wooded mountain panorama below, is a breath of fresh air for even the most unconvinced China traveler.
Other historical relics
In addition to clay sculptures, there are more than 2,000 pieces of pottery, bronze ware, ironware, jade articles, ancient books, documents, paintings, calligraphy and other culture relics in the 194 grottoes.
Oriental Sculpture Museum
The Maijishan Grottoes have acquired special recognition for their exquisite clay statues and the superb sculptural skills employed in making them. They have been classified as an "Oriental Sculpture Museum." The Maijishan Grottoes are among the four most important caves in China. The other three are the Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang, Gansu Province, the Yungang Grottoes in Datong, Shanxi Province, and the Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang, Henan Province.
Surrounding
The Grottoes are not the end of a comprehensive trip here. 15 meters above the giant clay Buddha on the eastern slope, is the Seven Buddha Pavilion, a typical Han Dynasty (206 B.C. - 220 A.D.) construction of interesting architectural value.
Recent years have also witnessed the opening of a few of the dilapidated temples around the mountain making the area good for hiking. Xianren Cliff, Mt. Shimenshan, and the Quxi all offer fine panoramic views of mountains, rivers and plants in northwest China.
The best place for such activity is in the Botanical Garden. This is situated in front of the mountain, reached by taking stairs to the right, down the road before the grottoes' ticket office.
