Exploring the 'perfect conjugal bliss' of Luoyang, central China (4)

History under the moon: The stories of Longmen Grottoes

Design by: Chizao

As night descends, the Buddha statues at the Longmen Grottoes, a UNESCO World Heritage site, come alive with illumination, inviting visitors into a mesmerizing atmosphere. The evening lighting bestows an aura of mystery and splendor upon these 1,500-year-old statues, as part of Luoyang city's efforts to promote nighttime tours around this famous heritage site.

The Longmen Grottoes are a pinnacle of Chinese Buddhist art, located 12 kilometers south of downtown Luoyang. The site hosts over 2,300 grottoes featuring 110,000 Buddhist statues and images, more than 80 dagobas and 2,800 inscribed tablets, all of which were created between the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534) and Song Dynasty (960-1279).

The largest Buddha statue at the Longmen Grottoes, the Big Vairocana, was built between 672 and 676 in honor of China's only Empress, Wu Zetian. With its plump features and serene, natural expression, the Vairocana statue is celebrated as the pinnacle of Buddhist sculpture in China for its unparalleled beauty and grandeur.

Legend has it that Empress Wu Zetian donated "20,000 strings of her rouge and powder money" to complete this magnificent structure. Thus, it is speculated that the Vairocana Buddha was sculpted to mirror the likeness of the Empress herself.

A wallcreeper on the Vairocana Statue at the Longmen Grottoes. (Photo by Chizao)

Nature even enjoys a harmonious relationship with the Big Vairocana. On the left arm of the statue — the tallest Buddha statue at the Longmen Grottoes — local experts have discovered nests built by wallcreepers, a species of small mountain birds.

According to an expert, a local photographer has been capturing images of the wallcreepers in their small nest on the statue for over 11 years. The birds and their nest are well cared for, and tourists can even glimpse tiny wallcreepers perched atop the gigantic sculpture, observing the visitors below.