The Pagoda Pillars
 |
The domed ceiling could not, on its own, eliminate all possibility of collapse. So the designers had to seek additional solutions.
 |
The first thing visitors to Grotto No. 6 notice, is a pagoda reaching up to the ceiling. Square in shape, the pagoda measures 15 metres in height, and consists of two tiers. The first tier is 10 metres high, and the second, 5 metres. The 4 corners each have up-turned eaves and their own small 9-tier pagoda. The first tier of the main pagoda incorporates statues of the Buddha. Carved in high relief, they provide a powerful cubic effect. The second tier houses statues of a standing Buddha, produced using a stunning piercing technique.
Normally, pagodas are built in the open air, in temple courtyards or on high mountains. But in the Yungang grottoes, they stand in semi-enclosed spaces. Clearly, the intention of the designers was to introduce something fine and beautiful into the grottoes.
The fact is, a large temple used to stand nearby the Yungang Grottoes. Therefore, the corresponding pagodas were essential.
Over the centuries, however, the temple disappeared. Instead, pagodas were erected inside the grottoes as a way of maintaining the Buddha’s presence. They also served another purpose.
Although the domed ceiling could bear a great weight, its capacity was still limited. The designers realized that if the weight it had to bear grew too great, there was no avoiding collapse.
So the work faltered. But then the designers discovered that a pagoda added extra support to the grotto ceiling.
If the domed ceiling proved unable to bear the weight above, the pagoda could take some of it. Since it functioned like a pillar, it became known as a pagoda-pillar. The domed ceiling would disperse some of the weight, and would then convey the excess down to the ground through the pagoda. Thus it would receive protection from various sources.
Tan Yao and his successors, in the course of their work and research, built up a wealth of experience. The domed ceiling and pagoda-pillars, since they guaranteed a safe environment inside the grottoes, offered a freer platform for the designers to give full reign to their creative imagination.
Moreover, Tan Yao’s ambitions grew larger. He was convinced that he now had the conditions for creating a statue of the Buddha on an unprecedented scale. So he commissioned a giant standing statue of the Buddha in Grotto No. 19. At 16.8 metres tall, it would be the biggest statue of its day. However, only a few years later, an even bigger statue would be created by Tan Yao’s successor at the Yungang Grottoes, in Grotto No. 5.
The Seated Buddha Statue
Visitors, having passed through the 20-metre tall, four-storey wooden structure outside the grotto and then the antechamber, reach the back chamber. Once their eyes have grown accustomed to the dark, they see an imposing statue of the Buddha, which dominates the entire grotto. At more than 17 metres tall, it is the biggest statue at the Yungang Grottoes. On each side of the main statue two smaller ones, with smiling faces, stand beneath sacred fig trees. The scale of the main statue, sitting cross-legged, is enhanced by the two smaller ones. Its face has tapering eyebrows, a prominent nose and a kindly countenance.
Each of the statue’s fingers is over 2 metres long. Its gigantic feet provide standing room for 11 people. A single knee can hold 120 people. The Yuan Dynasty poet Wang Du described the statue as “reaching as high as the sky, surveying everything below in the world.” The designers, in achieving such a remarkable visual impact, undoubtedly had to tackle some major engineering challenges.
To ensure the giant statue’s stability, the designers made it seated on crossed legs, and forged two huge knees 14.3 metres away from each other. Thus the statue forms a triangle. The legs are the base, so the wider the knees are apart, the greater the stability. The triangular structure is the key that keeps the main body erect. The same principle was applied in all the large statues in the Yungang Grottoes, with one exception.
The Support Guard
Between one hand of the large statue and its knee, there stands a small guard, dressed in a coloured ribbon and a pleated skirt. The dust-covered ribbon lies across the guard’s breast, revealing some glimpses of fresh green. Even the pleats in the skirt can be perceived with careful observation.
In reality, the guard plays a vital role. It bears the weight of the great arm. The guard itself has four arms. Two of them support the large arm and the other two remain beside it. Judging by the density of the rock, we can say that the great arm weighs about 400 kilos. But a 2-metre length is suspended in the air, threatening to fall at any moment. To prevent such a disaster, the guard was added while the original work on the statue was being done.
But can it really carry the weight of a 400-kilogram arm?
If you look carefully, you’ll see that the great Buddha’s arms and legs are crossed a little, thus forming a stable triangle with the guard. The weight of the great arm, which would otherwise have rested wholly on the guard, is thus partially shifted to the leg, while the rest is conveyed down to the guard. Moreover, the guard isn’t standing vertically to the knee but is resting on the slant of its pleated skirt, a position that reduces the gravitational effect on it. So the guard deflects the force acting on it, away, and receives slanted support from the knee. As for the guard’s own weight; three balanced forces are acting on it, and instead of actually bearing this burden, it redistributes it. Without the guard, the imbalance of forces would undoubtedly have caused devastating problems.
So, once again, the designers of the Yungang Grottoes exercised their talent. The perfectly-appointed guard not only serves a mechanical purpose, but also becomes an object of aesthetic appreciation.
Over 1,500 years have passed. The designers and craftsmen, including Tan Yao, are long gone. But, thanks to their devotion to the great statues and their ingenuity in bridging weight and grace, they will never be forgotten.
The Yungang Grottoes brought about the first flowering of Buddhist grotto art in China. Subsequently, many other designers and craftsmen were inspired to give free rein to their imagination, and they produced numerous miracles, including the Mogao Grottoes, Longmen Grottoes and Maijishan Grottoes.
Editor:Yang
