四川大邑藥師巖新發現佛頂尊勝陀羅尼經變及相關問題討論=On the Usnisa Vijaya Dharani Sutra Illustration Discovered in the Yaoshiyan Grottoes in Dayi,Sichuan Province and Relevant Issues
佛頂尊勝陀羅尼經變=Usnisa Vijaya Dharani Sutra illustration; 大邑縣藥師巖=Yaoshiyan Grottoes at Dayi County; 9世紀至10世紀初=from the 9th cen tury to the early 10th century; 敦煌=Dunhuang
Through comparison with relevant texts and images from Dunhuang,the illustration on the left side of area K7-2 at the Yaoshiyan Grottoes can be identified as an illustration of the Usnisa Vijaya Dharani Sutra,which dates from between the end of the 9th century and the middle of the 10th century.When the illustration was introduced from Dunhuang,a new form was created to facilitate the combination and engraving of different images.This form of propagation was less popular,however,due to the great popularity of simple stone pillars engraved with the text of the same sutra for the same purpose.Many relics expressing this sutra have been found in caves dating from the end of the Tang dynasty and Five Dynasties to the early Song dynasty in Sichuan and Chongqing,and most often function for the underworld salvation of believers.Combination of the newly found illustrations with images of other themes forms an organic whole that encompasses different beliefs in different stages of present,past,and future lives.The co-existence of this illustration with archaeological remains associated with Ksitigarbha belief designed for underworld salvation suggests that people needed to be saved before and after death so as to achieve a double security of afterlife salvation
