絲路傳法旅行圖 - 莫高窟第217、103窟尊勝經變序文畫面解讀=Pictures of Monks Preaching Dharma and Travelling along the Silk Road - Interpret the Illustrations of the "Prelude" from the Usnisa Vijaya Dharani Sutra in Mogao Caves 217 and 103
Both Mogao caves 217 and 103 at Mogao have a large-size painting of a landscape, which illustrates the “Prelude” from the Usnisa Vijaya Dharani Sutra and therefore can be named the “picture of Buddha-pāla travelling along the Silk Road.” In the picture, Buddha-pāla rides a donkey and wears a bamboo hat, followed by a Brahman-like man. The configuration and relationship of the people as well as the landscape was influenced by the paintings of donkey-riding literati appeared in early Tang period. In the picture in cave 103, a loaded white elephant is added, which is consistent with the description of a dharma-seeking monk travelling along the Silk Road with his elephant carrying travelling stuff. Combining the illustrated records of contemporary dharma-preaching monks' trips, the two “pictures of Buddha-pāla travelling along the Silk Road” are actually archaeological remains of precious “pictures of Silk Road travelling and dharma preaching” and provide valuable visual evidence for understanding the history of alien monks travelling from the west and preaching Dharma along the Silk Road as recorded in a lot of historical documents from the perspective of image history.
