Investigation And Research On Faquan Temple Grottoes In Jingyuan,Gansu Province

Gansu has a long history of grotto art.Since the discovery of the Dunhuang Tibetan Classic Cave,the grotto art has been paid more and more attention by the academic circles,and Gansu Province also has the reputation of "the hometown of grottoes".Faquan Temple Grottoes in Jingyuan County,Gansu Province,located in the north of the eastern section of the Silk Road,about 15 kilometers northeast of Jingyuan County,is a relatively complete preserved grotto temple in Jingyuan County.Faquan temple grottoes was founded in the northern wei dynasty.Because of the beautiful internal environment of the grottoes temple and the clear water gushing out,it is named "faquan".Since its establishment,the grotto temple has been damaged and rebuilt for many times.Although few ancient relics remain,it is also the direct evidence that the grotto art was spread to jingyuan county,providing materials for local religious studies.Faquan temple grottoes were carved in yangshaogou,which is surrounded by mountains on the east,west and north sides,and a sand river on the south.According to the current survey results,there are 22 caves in the temple.The shape of the cave is square or central column,the top of the cave is flat or arched,and the way of opening the niche is one side or three sides,and there are many reliefs or high reliefs in the niche.There were many statues,murals,inscriptions and so on in the cave,but almost all of them were destroyed,and few pictures were left.Part of the grottoes have a grotto before the building,which belongs to the form of the hall after the grotto.There are 7 stone tablets preserved in the grottoes of faquan temple.These stone tablets were erected in the Ming and Qing dynasties,with varying degrees of damage,some of them were seriously weathered,and some of them were incomplete.The inscriptions are related to the merits of figures,the properties of faquan temple,and the restoration of faquan temple,providing valuable information for the study of the religious and cultural exchanges between the faquan temple grottoes and the surrounding areas,as well as the related monks and civilians in the faquan temple grottoes and their religious activities.There are many Guanqiao ancient crossings along the Yellow River in Jingyuan County,which provide convenient transportation conditions for religious communication in this area.Faquan Temple Grottoes is located in the central area of Jingyuan County,westof the Yellow River,traffic is particularly convenient.The inscription materials in the cave temple contain the records of monks coming to the cave to preach and businessmen donating money to repair the Faquan Temple.It is very likely that they came to the Faquan Temple through the northern route of the eastern section of the Silk Road.It can be seen that the Faquan Temple Grottoes are an important part of the northern route of the eastern section of the Silk Road.The grottoes of Faquan Temple have historical,documentary and cultural value,especially the ancient relics inside,and their protection should be strengthened.Ancient relics are the foundation of the Faquan Temple Grottoes.Protecting these relics and further enhancing the popularity of the Faquan Temple Grottoes are the goals that we should strive for at present.