The Origin and History of Mogao Grottoes

The Mogao Grottoes were built during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. According to the Tang Dynasty's "Li Kerang Rebuilding the Monument of Mogao Grottoes", in 366, two years before the founding of the Qin Dynasty, monks passed by this mountain and suddenly saw the golden light shining like Buddha, so they dug the first grotto on the rock wall. Since then, Zen master Fa Liang and others have continued to build caves here to practice, which are called "desert grottoes", meaning "high places in the desert".

First, the origin of the Mogao Grottoes

Founded in the pre-Qin period of the Sixteen Countries, after the Sixteen Countries, Northern Dynasties, Sui and Tang Dynasties, Five Dynasties, Xixia and Yuan Dynasties, it has formed a huge scale, with 735 caves, 45,000 square meters of murals and 24 15 clay sculptures. It is the largest and richest Buddhist art site in the world.

Second, the history of Mogao Grottoes

The Mogao Grottoes were built during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. During the Northern Wei, Western Wei and Northern Zhou Dynasties, the rulers believed in Buddhism and built grottoes with the support of princes and nobles, which developed rapidly. During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, with the prosperity of the Silk Road, the Mogao Grottoes flourished, and there were more than a thousand caves in Wu Zetian. In the Northern Song Dynasty, Xixia and Yuan Dynasty, the Mogao Grottoes gradually declined, and only the caves of the previous dynasties were rebuilt, with few new buildings. After the Yuan Dynasty, Dunhuang stopped opening caves and gradually became barren. In the seventh year of Jiajing in Ming Dynasty (1528), Jiayuguan was closed, and Dunhuang became a nomadic place in the frontier fortress. In the fifty-seventh year of Kangxi in Qing Dynasty (17 18), Xinjiang was settled, and in the first year of Yongzheng (1723), Shazhou Station was set up in Dunhuang, and in the third year (1725), it was changed to Shazhou Wei, and immigrants from Gansu provinces settled in Dunhuang and rebuilt Shazhou City.