Since ancient times, tigers have been loved and worshipped by Chinese, and are known as the "king of the hundred beasts". Indeed, the tiger has a majestic posture, colorful coat, strong limbs and brave and powerful limbs, and integrates perfect shape, color, god and strength.
The Dunhuang Grottoes are all-encompassing and rich in animal images, among which tigers are naturally indispensable. The Year of the Tiger is coming, let's look for the tiger in the Dunhuang Grottoes together!
a tora-no-go monk
Monk with tiger foot silk paintings from the collection of the Museum of Gemée, France
This painting was excavated from the Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes and is now in the French Museum of Jimei's "Monk with Tiger's Foot", with delicate brushstrokes and light colors, which is a fine work in the painting of "Walking Foot Monk". The main image of the picture is a walking monk, with a high nose and deep eyes, a full face and hair, a prayer on his back, and a rosary in his hand. The monk was accompanied by a tiger, his eyes wide open, striding forward, majestic.
The painter also gave the walking monk the quality of perseverance in bravery and courage to go forward, and also gave it to the tiger beside him. In the long journey, one person and one tiger travel together, and all the loneliness and hardships eventually turn into inner clarity. In the new year, may you be in awe and brave on the road of life.
Tigers in the mountains
Tiger in the mountains and forests Cave 249 of Mogao Caves Western Wei
The north of the 249th cave of Mogao Caves has a picture of a mountain forest shooting and hunting: a fierce tiger leaps over the mountain and jumps over the valley, with angry eyes wide open, opens its mouth and exhales, and pounces on the hunter on horseback with a rapid thunderous momentum, while the hunter pulls back his horse, pulls a bow and arrows, and is agile. The painter used extremely concise, smooth and elegant brush and ink to accurately capture the tense moments when the hunter confronted the tiger.
The tiger in the picture is outlined by the earth red line, and the line contains a dynamic beauty, which vividly expresses the tiger's mighty strength and vigor. May your dragons rise and the tigers roar in the new year.
Tigresses and juvenile tigers
Tigress and Baby Tiger Cave 301 cave of Mogao Caves Northern Zhou
The story of the Buddha's life records the various good deeds of Shakyamuni Buddha in his previous life. Prince Satsubu recounts the story of the Buddha's previous life as Prince Satan, when he saved the tigress and the baby tiger with his own body. The story uses extreme situations to promote the core sentiments of compassion and devotion.
The top of the 301st cave of Mogao Cave is south and east, and the story of "Prince Safu sacrificed his life to feed the tiger" is painted in the form of a comic strip, of which a picture of Nanpi is quite touching. In the picture, the tigress sits back, with affectionate eyes, staring at the seven tiger cubs around her, some of them are pouting on the ground, some are staring at the raised small paws, some are waving their four feet as a child, and some are looking east and west... Cute. The painter portrays this extremely warm companionship as the eternal beauty on the wall, adding a touch of home warmth to the Dunhuang murals.
With the warm embrace of home, you can release the fatigue of the old year and set off with courage in the new year. May you embrace the warmth of your side in the new year and be sure of the path under your feet.
White tiger
In traditional Chinese culture, the Green Dragon, White Tiger, Suzaku and Xuanwu are called the Four Elephants, which represent the four directions of east, west, south and north respectively. Among the four elephants, the white tiger is the god of the West. Yun of the Immortal Dao Department: "The God of the West is the Twenty-Eight Houses of the Seven Houses of the West, Kui, Lou, Stomach, Pleiades, Bi, Qian, and Ginseng, which form a tiger statue, located in the West, and is white, so it is called the White Tiger."
White Tiger Mogao Caves Cave 431 Northern Wei
In the top of cave 431 of Mogao Caves, a white tiger is depicted, which is the first time that a tiger appears in dunhuang murals as one of the four gods. The images of the white tiger, green dragon, suzaku and other figures in the picture are skillfully combined with the surrounding plant patterns, which enrich the content of the murals while also having decorative effects, reflecting the painter's rich imagination and exaggerated artistic processing skills.
Flapping White Tiger Mogao Cave Cave 249 West Wei
The top of cave 249 of Mogao Caves is also painted with a white tiger. It opened its mouth, raised its wings, galloped in the air, and together with Suzaku, Xuanwu, and Qinglong, it rushed and jumped in the cave to guard the four directions. In the new year, I wish you a great deal in your career.
Reprinted from the Fine Arts Newspaper, typeset reprinted from the Lanting Book Club wc public account