Archive for September, 2008

China Travel - Yungang Grottos (2)

Tuesday, September 30th, 2008

The No.5 and No.6 Grottos are a set of double grottos adjacent to each other. In front of the grottos there is a five-bay four-storeyed wooden pavilion built in the eighth year (1651) of the Shuizhi reign of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). The style of the No.5 Grotto is an oven hut with a front and a back room. In the middle of the back room there is the highest statue of sitting Buddha in the Yungang Grottos, with a height of 17 meters. In the walls of the grotto there are Buddha niches; on the top, beautiful embossments of flying Asparas. The No.6 Grotto is nearly in rectangle, with a 15-meter two-storeyed pagoda column in the middle. The first storey of the column is carved with figures of Buddha and the upper with a small nine-storeyed pagoda. The rest of the walls are carved with figures of the Buddha, the Bodhisattva and the arhats. On the top of the grotto, there are thirty-three heavenly gods and their beasts for riding. The east, south and west walls in the grotto are carved with 33 pieces of pictures illustrating the story of Sakyamuni from his birth to becoming a Buddha. The grotto is among the most representative grottos in the Yungang Grottos.

 

The Wuhua Cave is numbered as the No.9 to No.13 Grottos. The No.9 and No.10 Grottos are a double grotto in a rectangular shape with front room and back room. The south wall of the front room is carved into an octal column, the lintel of the door to the east and west wall is carved with designs and patterns of plants. The No.11 to No.13 Grottos form a group. In the middle of the No.11 Grotto, there is a rectangular column. The front room of the No.12 Grotto is carved with semi wood palaces and pavilions on the walls; its top are carved with musicians with all kinds of musical instruments in their hands. These are first-hand materials for research into the musical history at that time. In the middle of the No.13 Grotto, there is a 13-meter Buddha of Maitreya. The arch of the door to the south wall is carved with seven figures of standing Buddha. The shape of the sculptures in the Wuhua Cave is diverse, providing important visual materials for research in the fields of art, history, calligraphy, music and architecture.

 

The grottos in the east area are all pagoda caves, from the No.1 to No.4. The No.1 and No.2 Grottos were chiseled in the same period. In the middle of the cave there is a rectangular column with embossment of five-storeyed pagodas, pavilions and palaces on the walls, which are all important materials to research into the architectures of the North Wei Dynasty. The No.3  Grotto is the one of the largest scale in the Yungang Grottos. The front wall is about 25 meters high and is divided into front and back room. On both sides of the back room, there is one figure of Buddha and two of Bodhisattvas. Judged from the sculpting style and skill, it was carved in the early Tang Dynasty. The door to the south wall of the No.4 Grotto is carved with an epigraph of Zhengguang Years of the Northern Wei, the latest epigraph found in the Yungang Grottos.

 

The grottos in the west area are from the No.21 to No.53 Grottos, with some not included. Most of them were built later than the 18th year (494) of the Taihe reign of the Northern Wei. The figures of Buddha in these grottos are comparatively slim, giving a sense of pride. The style of the picture of flying Asparas is different from that of earlier time, and close to the sculpture style in the Longmen Grottos. Other grottos are all precious materials for the research into the acrobatics and architectures of the Northern Wei Dynasty.

(Source: chinaculture.org)

 

Children Chinese - Snuff Bottle Inside Painting

Tuesday, September 30th, 2008

 

Tobacco originated with the Indians of North America and has a long history of over 2,000 years. Long ago the Indians lived a hard life, often walking long distances or migrating to look for food. During this process, they often smoked tobacco to make themselves forget starvation and weariness. They used the tobacco to offer sacrifices to the Gods, and sometime even to treat diseases. They used tobacco when they were offering sacrifices to the gods. Tobacco was also used for some social activities such as, wedding, birthdays, funerals and visiting etc.. In social activities, tobacco was regarded as a noble and precious gift. In 1492, Columbus discovered the new world, resulting in the spread of American tobacco all over the world.

One kind of pipe, whose surface was decorated with beautiful feathers, was made from red clay by the American Indian, symbolizing peace. The tribal chieftains passed the pipe to express friendship and respect. Even today some tribes still have this tradition.

Snuff is a kind of pharmaceutical preparation in which the perfectly ground tobacco power is put with some rare medicinal herbs such as musk, etc. They are sealed into the wax pills and then stained several different colors, such as dark purple, deep yellow, pale yellow, etc. It tastes mellow and sharp. It is said that it can make the eyes bright, exorcise epidemic disease, and invigorate blood circulation.

In the late 16th century, tobacco was circulated from America to Luzon, Philippines and Luzon to Fujian, China. Then it was spread from the Philippines to Japan by Portuguese and Spanish sailors, traders, missionaries. Later, Japanese tobacco was spread to Korea and the northeast of China, especially Manchuria and Inner Mongolia. In a short time, snuffing became customary in China At the same time, tobacco, snuff and snuff bottles came to China from Russian traders.

After coming to China, snuff was filled with the traditional medicine bottle. Later, people used more materials and making technology to consummate it. During the course, they found that this kind of bottle was best whose mouth is bigger and stomach is smaller. This is Snuff Bottle. All smokers are like it. In Qing Dynasty, snuff was spread all over the country, not only the emperor, but common people. The feudal nobles, led by the emperor, looked for precious materials and let the craftsman make Snuff Bottle. The collectors of the world think that Snuff Bottle absorbs all kind of Chinese arts and crafts. According to the materials, Snuff Bottle is divided into six kinds. They are metal, jade, organic matter, ceramics, glassware and inside painting.

(Source: ancienthistory.mrdonn.org)

Chinese Conversation - lesson 215

Tuesday, September 30th, 2008

在莫理饭店房间
阿丹:该是我们开始另一段旅程的时候了。
卡西:我建议我们去东北角。我们可以去吃海鲜,逛沙滩,还有看看野柳一些有趣的奇 岩怪石。
阿丹:除了那些,我们还可以去龙洞攀岩。
卡西:嗯,那个嘛。我看攀岩我就弃权好了。
阿丹:我们可以在去之前先到台北青年活动中心练习。
卡西:我在高的地方会不太安心。
阿丹:我会握着你的绳子。如果我放手,你可以揍我一顿。

At Morley’s hotel room
Dan: It’s about time we have another adventure.
Kathy: I suggest we go to the Northeast coast. We could get some seafood, go to the beach, and see some interesting rocks at Yehliu.
Dan: Besides that, we could rock climb at Longdong.
Kathy: Umm, well, I think I’ll give that a miss.
Dan: We can practice at the Taipei Youth Activity Center before we go.
Kathy: I get kind of queasy in high places.
Dan: I’ll hold your ropes. If I let go, you can beat me up.

(Source: wwenglish.com)