Vairocana (毘盧遮那佛), Niche 5, Mingshan si (茗山寺)

Niche 5 is located in Mingshan Temple (茗山寺), situated in Dingxin Town (頂新鄉), Anyue County (安岳縣), Ziyang City (資陽巿), Sichuan. The site contains twelve rock carving niches, mostly dating from the late Northern Song Dynasty 北宋 (960–1127) to the early Southern Song Dynasty 南宋 (1127–1279). The niche depicts a standing Vairocana (Piluzhenafo 毘盧遮那佛) wearing a tall crown and a double-collar drooping cassock. The bare feet of Vairocana were damaged. However, traces of a lotus pedestal below the feet remain. Both hands of Vairocana form a Bodhyangi Mudrā (zhiquanyin 智拳印) in front of his chest. His crown contains floral motifsa and seated image of Liubenzun (柳本尊) holding prayer beads in his right hand. An empty sleeve on the left indicates the left arm of Liubenzun is missing, a resulting of the ten severe ascetic practices (shilian 十煉). In addition, a mani pearl is portrayed above the head of Liubenzun. Descriptions of the photos: Overview of the niche [Image 01, Image 02]. Close-up of Vairocana [Image 03, Image 04, Image 05]. Close-up of the head of Vairocana [Image 06, Image 07, Image 08]. Close-up of the Bodhyangi Mudrā [Image 09, Image 10]. Close-up of the feet of Vairocana [Image 11]. Doodles left by visitors [Image 12]. Metadata created by: Sau Ling Wendy Yu.Non UBCUnreviewedAuthor Affiliation: Ghent UniversityFacult