Introduction to North Grotto Temple
Qingyang North Grotto Temple is one of the four largest grottoes in Gansu Province. It is located at the intersection of Ru River and Pu River in the southeast of Xifeng City, 25 kilometers away from the urban area. First built in the second year of Yongping in the Northern Wei Dynasty (AD 509), the Nan Grottoes, located fifteen miles east of Jingchuan County, were built by Xikang Sheng, the governor of Jingzhou in the Northern Wei Dynasty. It is the sister cave of Jingchuan South Grotto Temple and an important cave on the northern Silk Road.
The North Grotto Temple is backed by green mountains and faces the blue stream. On the ocher cliff, which is 12 meters long and 20 meters high, there are carvings of *** 295 from the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Western Wei Dynasty, the Northern Zhou Dynasty, the Sui Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty, the Song Dynasty and the Qing Dynasty. A grotto. There are 2125 large and small statues of gods, densely covered with grottoes, and a peak-shaped chamber, 20 meters high and 120 meters long, which is the content of Longdong area. The grottoes are divided into three levels: upper, middle and lower. Among them, Cave 165 created by Xi Kangsheng is the largest and is a large grotto with seven Buddhas as its content. The statues in "Seven Buddhas" are majestic, exquisite and solemn, without losing the splendor and charm of the Northern Wei Dynasty statues. The Seven Buddhas and Maitreya Bodhisattvas, the seated Bodhisattvas, and the Asuras holding the sun and moon are all successful works with artistic appeal.
In addition, there are also statues of the Northern Zhou Dynasty in Cave 240, showing their honest and simple style. The North Grotto Temple has the largest number of grottoes in the Tang Dynasty, and the most representative one is Cave No. 32, which was built in the first year of Wu Zetian's Ruyi (AD 692). The large and small statues in the cave have plump faces, wide-open eyes, and floating bodies. They can be called fine works of art in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. The statues of the Tang Dynasty made new achievements in art. There are still sculptures from the Sui, Tang, Song, Jin, Xixia, and Xixia periods in the cave. There are more than 150 inscriptions from the Yuan Dynasty, which are treasures for studying history and calligraphy. The inscription accurately records the time when the cave was excavated, providing valuable written information for studying social life and development in the past dynasties.
These sculpture arts, which have lasted for more than a thousand years, embody the wisdom of the working people and are the crystallization of the hard work of ancient artists. It has left us with rich spiritual wealth.
Tickets and opening hours
Adult ticket price: 30 yuan Preferential policies:
A. Free policy: Children under 1 meter in height are free.
B. Preferential policy: Children’s tickets can be purchased between 1.2m and 1.5m, and senior citizens’ tickets can be purchased by senior citizens over the age of 70 with their senior citizen ID cards. 9:20-17:30
Transportation overview
Self-driving route: Starting from Xi'an, go north along National Highway 312, go to the North Expressway in Changwu County, Shaanxi, and continue north to Fengxiang intersection , turn right and turn east, follow the direction of Qingyang Xifeng indicated by the road sign, go straight north for 45 kilometers through Changqingqiao Town to Dongzhi Town, turn left to the west, and walk 16 kilometers along the Northeast Highway to Beidong Temple. (The Changwu-Qingyang Expressway is under construction and will be completed and open to traffic by the end of the year).
Bus: The North Grotto Temple of Qingyang Airport is 30 kilometers south of the airport. Take a bus from the airport to Qingyang South Bus Station. Take a taxi south through Dongzhi Town and west to the North Grotto Temple of Qingyang South Bus Station. Take a taxi south through Dongzhi Town, and turn right 25 kilometers south of the station to the North Cave Temple. The shuttle bus from Qingyang City to Zhenyuan County (one every 2 hours) passes through Beidong Temple.
(Editor: Jelly)