The Chongxiangsi Grottoes located in Xiaoxi town in Guang’an, Sichuan province, is an important cave temple of the Sui and Tang dynasties. There is a niche in which a Dipamkara Buddha statue was carved in a unique form and with special themes, and it contains abundant historical information. An analysis of the type and style suggests that the style of the statue is of a simplified variety occurring in the course of development of statue art as various practices and motifs were imported and digested. The characteristic of a round halo radiating light was typical in the Chongxiangsi Grottoes, but it originated from Gandhara in ancient India, entered Banzhong from Tanshui and Hanzhong via the Western Regions and the Hexi Corridor, and then reached the Chongxiangsi Grottoes after following the Qujiang River. The unique costumes and hand gestures with special meanings of this particular statue suggest that it is representative of the Vyakarana Jataka and the karma stories of three boys. The niche in combination with the accompanying statues and images reflects early belief in Dipamkara Buddha, a kind of orthodox faith different from the widespread Dipamkara belief of a later period originating in western Fujian that became prevalent after the Five Dynasties. It can be surmised from historical analysis that the most important reason for the building of this statue is that a trend of "seeking Vyakarana and becoming Buddha" was spreading through Buddhist communities at the time, affecting a change in artistic motifs and taste.
