Longqing Lotus Cave Grottoes

Longqing Lotus Cave Grottoes

The Longqing Lotus Cave Grottoes are a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Longqing Lotus Cave Grottoes are situated on the sheer cliff of the western side of Xianxian Peak in Wufeng Mountain, on the northwestern foothills of Mount Tai.

The Lotus Cave Grottoes are three meters high, with an arched entrance built outside. Above the lintel is an inscription reading "Sacred Buddha Lotus Cave, Fifth Month of the Sixth Year of the Tianqi Era." Inside the cave, the central wall features carvings of one Buddha, two monks, and two Bodhisattvas, while the four walls and both sides of the arched entrance are adorned with 242 small Buddha figures. The ceiling is decorated with a lotus-patterned caisson. Over ten small Buddha figures are carved on the eastern exterior wall of the cave. Most of the inscriptions inside the cave have faded, but some legible ones include the names of the donors from the fifth year of the Wuding era of Eastern Wei (547 AD) and the first year of the Qianming era of Northern Qi (560 AD). In 1979, it was designated as a Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit of Jinan City.

The Lotus Cave Grottoes carvings are located at the eastern end of the western part of Wufeng Mountain, east of Shiwo Village in Wufengshan Township, Changqing County. They were announced as part of the second batch of Provincial Key Cultural Relics Protection Units in 1992. The grotto faces west. It has a convex-shaped floor plan, measuring 4 meters in width, 3.98 meters in depth, and 3.10 meters in height. The flat ceiling is engraved with 42 lotus flowers arranged in a grid pattern, all painted red. The northern, eastern, and southern walls of the cave chamber each have a second-level platform that is 0.30 meters wide and 0.40 meters high. The eastern wall (front) features a set of five statues: one Buddha, two disciples, and two Bodhisattvas. The main Buddha is centrally placed, standing 2.12 meters tall, seated in the lotus position on a Sumeru pedestal with a waist-high base. It has a spiral hair bun, a serene expression, wears a right-shoulder-exposed kasaya, and forms the meditation mudra. Behind the Buddha is a boat-shaped, flame-like halo, and a circular halo behind the head is adorned with a lotus design. On either side are Ananda and Kasyapa, and further out are two Bodhisattvas, all barefoot and standing on lotus pedestals. The Bodhisattvas also have flame-like halos behind them. A total of 259 niches are carved into the northern, southern, and other walls, containing 211 "Thousand Buddhas" (the name given to the figures in the small niches). Outside the cave, there are 14 niches with 31 statues. Below the northern wall at the cave entrance, there are two inscriptions from the Northern Dynasties period (undated) and one reading "Da Song Jia? Ninth Year" (note: the Northern Song Jia? era only had eight years). The cave entrance is topped with a pointed arch door lintel. Based on the characteristics of the statues, this cave dates back to the late Northern Dynasties. Outside the cave is a built arched doorway, with the lintel bearing the large characters "Sacred Buddha Lotus Cave," inscribed with the date "Fifth Month of the Sixth Year of the Tianqi Era" during the Ming Dynasty.

Further Reading:

· Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units