. esoteric buddhist art under the tang 411
The third phase began with the ending of the Tibetan occupation of
Shazhou and lasted well into the tenth century. The Esoteric Buddhist
art from this period is in many ways a return to the forms and styles
of the post-Tibetan period, and as such celebrates the classical Esoteric
Buddhist art of the mid-Tang.
Together with the wall-paintings in situ, the large amount of Eso-
teric Buddhist paintings found among the manuscript hoard of in cave
no. 17 at the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang constitutes the single most
important collection of Esoteric Buddhist art in China from the Tang.
Not only do we here find a broad range of the most common iconic
themes pertaining to Esoteric Buddhism, but also more specialized
and localized forms reflecting influence from the Tibetan Buddhist
tradition.^20 Important examples of votive paintings for displaying on a
wall are the Vajradhātu Mandala from Musée Guimet and the numer-
ous paintings of the various forms of Avalokiteśvara. The forms of
this bodhisattva by far dominate the repertoire of depicted Esoteric
Buddhist divinities. Wall paintings also feature a range of Esoteric
Buddhist themes, including the thousand-armed Mañjuśrī, Vajrapāṇi,
Vairocana, and so on. Jingxiang from the Usṇ̣īsavijayā can be found in ̣
cave nos. 55 and 454. Cave no. 14 features entire scenes drawn from
the Esoteric Buddhist pantheon, and can be rightly considered a full
Esoteric Buddhist shrine (Guo 2006).
While the importance of the Tang Esoteric Buddhist art from Dun-
huang can hardly be overestimated, one must not overlook the fact that
Shazhou, the prefectural seat of Dunhuang, was situated on the western
margins of the Tang Empire along the Silk Road. Hence, the forms of
Buddhism that developed here can hardly be considered mainstream
in the sense of being representative of Chinese Buddhism as such at
that time, and neither can the forms of religious art that it produced.
The Esoteric Buddhist art found in connection with the Mogao Caves
constitutes a unique blend of cross-cultural iconographical themes and
styles not seen elsewhere, in effect a cultural and religious melting pot.
This does not mean that the more common forms and types of Tang
Esoteric Buddhist art are not representative, but that they are often
(^20) For an overview of the type of Esoteric Buddhist art found at Dunhuang, cf.
Peng 2008. See also Sørensen 1991–1992b; although slightly outdated in some of its
observations, much of the information is still relevant.