Chen Zhi has been looking at the screen of his mobile phone along the way. This is all the information about the character Sun Wukong in the Thousand Buddha Grottoes that he compiled during this period by combining all the information from various aspects.
In fact, from ancient times to the present, especially with the rapid development of archaeological civilization in modern times, many people have become interested in the image of Sun Wukong.
In 2011, some local villagers even claimed to have discovered Sun Wukong's tomb, but it was later confirmed that they only had the same name.
Looking through the documents from ancient times to the present, Sun Wukong has always been the main image in Journey to the West, and has assumed the most important task of the Journey to the West team.
Xuanzang of the Tang Dynasty was a loyal believer in Buddhism. He went west to obtain Buddhist scriptures. Sun Wukong was an important messenger who exterminated demons and demons and escorted Tang Monk to obtain Buddhist scriptures. Compared with the gentle Xuanzang of Tang Dynasty, he acted as a warrior.
Nowadays, Chinese academic circles have done a lot of research and speculation on the origin of the image of Sun Wukong.
Some people think that he was an apprentice that Tang Xuanzang received after entering the Western Regions. This apprentice was a Hun man named Shi Pantuo. After he helped Tang Xuanzang enter the desert, he was afraid of being implicated by Xuanzang's wanted status. So abandon him.
There is also a theory that Shi Wukong, a later eminent monk who achieved enlightenment and was also a devout believer in Buddhism, accompanied Tang Xuanzang on his journey to the West in the later period, so this legend was handed down.
However, these arguments are very incomplete, especially the character of Shi Wukong, which was later proven to be more than 40 years later than Xuanzang, and was completely fictitious.
Moreover, there is now certain historical evidence that Xuanzang did blend in with the victims and left Chang'an alone.
Therefore, Xuanzang must be the second westwarder he met on his way to the west. He may be from the Western Regions, but he did not abandon him like Shipantuo, but accompanied him all the way to India and then returned to Chang'an. !
The deep friendship the two people formed is unimaginable to ordinary people.
There is a certain historical reason why "Xuan Zang's Sutra Searching Picture" appeared in the Dunhuang Grottoes murals.
According to the analysis of the Dunhuang Academy, these murals appeared in the middle and late Tang Dynasty, and at that time, the novel Journey to the West had not yet been formed.
However, in the documents unearthed from the Dunhuang Scripture Cave, there are many records about Xuanzang’s journey to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures.
This includes the story that when Xuanzang traveled to the west to learn Buddhist scriptures and passed through Guazhou, he received adventurous help from local officials and people, and when he returned again, he was welcomed by the local people.
This means that when Xuanzang returned from studying for scriptures, he was accompanied by a companion. This incident was seen by many local people.
At that time, the people in the Western Regions did not use Chinese and were not good at writing records, so they passed it on orally and sang its praises from generation to generation.
Painters of later generations used their artistic imagination to tell this story and paint it on the walls based on these deeds passed down. Therefore, the murals that appeared at that time should be the most convincing.
Of course, the mobile phone also has a series of murals from the Dunhuang Buddhist Caves, including the "Sutra-seeking Picture" mural on the north side of the west wall of Cave 2 of the Yulin Caves.
In this mural, Tang Monk in cassock stands on the shore of the rolling torrent, with his hands clasped together, worshiping Guanyin, very pious.
Behind him, Sun Wukong wore a hair shawl and a golden hoop on his head. He was holding a white horse in one hand and looking at Guanyin in the distance with the other hand raised in front of his forehead. He did not salute and jumped up on the wall in a disrespectful manner. His wild nature was not lost.
But when I want to see the details, most of the mural is unclear.
These murals are not the most original versions. They were repaired to a certain extent in the late Qing Dynasty and the post-modern period, covering up many traces of the past.
Therefore, Chen Zhi needs to go and see the original authentic work in person in order to know the historical truth behind this mural at that time.
This trip is very far away and requires a night's flight. There are many people in the airport, and some people are covered in the sour smell of wool, as if they haven't showered in hundreds of years. Everyone didn't sleep well on the plane.
.
Especially Chen Zhi, in the haze, dreamed of the dark desert again.
But this time in the desert, he saw the huge millstone-shaped stone again. The stone was stained with blood and full of knife and ax marks.
When I woke up again, the stewardess made a beautiful voice in the aircraft flashlight:
"Dear passengers, Dunhuang International Airport has arrived.
Dunhuang is a beautiful city. It is home to the world-famous Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes. I wish all travelers a happy trip and see you soon~~”
With the soft farewell voice of the stewardess, they stepped off the plane one after another. When they went out, they found that it was already bright outside and it was already past five o'clock in the morning here.
The person from the old somersault organization was holding a big sign to greet them at the parking lot.
Dunhuang City is affiliated to Jiuquan City, Gansu Province. It is located at the westernmost end of the Hexi Corridor. It is a node city on the Silk Road. It is famous for its "Dunhuang Grottoes" and "Dunhuang Murals" and is a world-renowned historical and cultural city.
However, most modern scholars believe that the etymology of the word "Dunhuang" is not Chinese, but comes from a rare language in ancient times. In other words, the city of Dunhuang appeared a long time ago.
It is generally believed that "Dunxi" recorded in "The Classic of Mountains and Seas" is the earliest name for Dunhuang and is the Chinese transliteration of the local minority languages.
Legend has it that since ancient times, this generation has been the most prosperous center of the Western Regions. Various ethnic groups live here, and many strange people and strangers will appear here.
There are records in the Han Dynasty that during the period of Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty, people with eyes of various colors appeared here.
Some have thick hair all over their bodies and long tails behind them, just like monkeys.
Some are like falcons. They are ferocious by nature, brave and warlike, and their living habits are completely different from humans. They never interact with the Han people in the Central Plains, let alone intermarry. They often plunder the women of the Central Plains for adultery and even eat them raw.
It was not until the opening of the Silk Road that these strange phenomena disappeared.
During the Tang Dynasty, when the Han nationality became strong and powerful, many areas in the Western Regions were Sinicized or trampled upon by the Turks, so most of the various ethnic groups were assimilated by the Central Plains people.
The person who came to pick them up this time was a young man from an ethnic minority with curly hair, probably in his twenties.
Lao Jiandou said that this was a tour guide they asked an acquaintance to find locally. Although he was not too familiar with it, he was considered a veteran in the tour guide industry, and the money was sufficient, so there should be no problem...
Lao Jiandou said that this was a tour guide they asked an acquaintance to find locally. Although he was not too familiar with it, he was considered a veteran in the tour guide industry, and the money was sufficient, so there should be no problem...