Rebirth started from selling lunch boxes and reached the pinnacle of life

Here, Luo Yunhang and everyone met Master Li's long-time friend, Teacher Duan Jie and Duan.

He devoted his whole life to the art of the Dunhuang Grottoes. He also devoted himself to the protection and repair of the grottoes, restoring the original appearance of the murals, and copying the art of the murals. It can be said that he devoted his life's efforts and contributed his youth.

In this small courtyard, there were dozens of staff members with him. Most of them were assigned by the state after graduating from undergraduate degrees. They gave up the superior life in big cities and took root in Dunhuang without any regrets, devoting themselves to the work. own life.

The material conditions here are really poor, but everyone has a warm smile on their face.

"Welcome, comrades, welcome to Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, Old Li, I never thought we would see each other again after so many years of separation." Dean Duan said excitedly, holding Master Li's hand.

"Old Duan, you all have suffered..." Master Li looked at the conditions around him and couldn't help but feel sad.

The Mogao Grottoes are located in the arid and harsh environment of the desert, with serious sand and dust hazards and a lack of supplies. The living conditions of the Dunhuang Research Institute are very difficult.

"It's not hard, it's not hard. You see, we just got electricity last year, and now everyone's working environment is much better." Teacher Duan pointed to the light.

In the past, the main lighting tool in the Mogao Grottoes was kerosene lamps. When working in the caves, gas lamps were used to supplement the light.

The teachers in the art group are all experts in gas lamp repair. Under such difficult conditions, they copied a large number of murals. The copies of these murals were exhibited abroad and caused a sensation around the world.

Only now their living and working conditions have gradually improved.

The group received a warm welcome from everyone.

For the first meal here, Dean Duan asked the cook to make the famous local donkey meat yellow noodles.

The soup is made from minced shiitake mushrooms, diced donkey meat, and lumpy water tofu. When it is poured on the somewhat tough and chewy yellow noodles, it will exude a mellow greasy meat and sweet mushroom flavor. That smell made my mouth water uncontrollably.

After dinner, without stopping, Dean Duan took them to inspect the damaged murals in the Mogao Grottoes.

Known as the "Desert Art Museum" on the Silk Road, the murals in Dunhuang's Mogao Grottoes are in a rapidly deteriorating predicament.

In addition to the damage caused to the murals by peeling, cracking and mold growth, large areas of mural wall bases have shifted and fallen off.

The moisture generated by groundwater, rainwater, etc. dissolves the salt in the soil and causes chemical reactions, which is also eroding and damaging these Buddhist art works. Many murals are on the verge of death.

Many of the blue and red colors on the mural Buddha statues in the dark grotto have fallen off. A thick and deep crack has appeared around the neck of some Buddha statues. There has been a gap between the base of the mural and the rock wall below. gap.

The faces of many Buddha statues are covered with black mold spots, making it almost impossible to see their faces.

Rainwater entered the cave, and mold continued to multiply, causing serious damage to the face of the Buddha. The wall base in the cave, which is made of a mixture of grass and soil, has become as fluffy as a cake in many places. The problems of peeling and damage are very serious, and it is in urgent need of maintenance and repair. repair.

Master Li is also an expert in restoration. This time he can provide many feasible suggestions and lead the team to implement them.

Under the arrangement of the institute, the group of them lived in a nearby town and took a minibus with the institute's people to work in the cave every day.

According to Dean Duan, this minibus was specially arranged for them this year and has greatly improved their lives.

In the past, when they wanted to work in the cave, they had to ride a cart pulled by horses or donkeys. They often stopped halfway when the weather was bad.

All right now.

Luo Yunhang, Master Li and his party completely stayed away from the hustle and bustle of the city and began a life of ascetic cultivation for a period of time.

Most of the work every day is to stand on the scaffolding, hold a simple homemade grouting tube, insert it into the gap between the mural and the wall, suck the prepared material into the syringe, and then pour it into the void of the mural through the grouting tube. For the drum part, use wall panels to support the top and stick the mural back to the wall.

Under the erosion of time, the murals have suffered from diseases such as hollowing, peeling, and crispness, which make the delicate patterns blurred and damaged, sometimes warping like scales, sometimes covered with hoarfrost, and sometimes even becoming loose. , fall off.

The job of the restorers is to use various tools, large and small, to remove dust, fill pads, desalinize, bond, press, support... to help the murals resist time.

In Dean Duan's words, they are all a group of "wall-facers" whose job is to treat "gods and Buddhas".

From unfamiliarity to familiarity, several young people have completely integrated into the restoration work of Dunhuang murals.

Not only did I learn the various repair methods in the institute, but I also actively participated in meetings on their design plans and put forward some constructive suggestions.

It has truly made its own contribution to the protection of Dunhuang murals.

Luo Yunhang is the youngest young man among them, less than twenty, and everyone takes good care of him.

Today is a rare rest day. Master Li and his disciples are preparing to visit the Mogao Grottoes.

After they arrived, they quickly got into work. They didn't have a chance to take a full tour, so they stayed busy in the closed cave every day.

Today's Mogao Grottoes are not as famous as they were in later generations. They are still hidden in the mountains and unknown, with a deserted entrance hall and few visitors.

Because the area was too large and it did not bring any economic benefits, no comprehensive protection was carried out. In addition to the spontaneous protection of the comrades in the institute, the local government only found some local villagers to take turns to guard against vandalism. That’s all.

Some people went up to see the grotto, but they would not say anything, but they repeatedly emphasized that the grotto should not be damaged.

During this time, Luo Yunhang and his party had become familiar with the local villagers on duty. When they went up to visit, the villagers enthusiastically reminded them which caves were worth seeing.

These caves are all numbered, like Cave 275, which is known as the earliest cave and can be traced back to the Northern Liang period.

Cave 275 is the first cave dug by monk Lezu on the cliff of Shaming Mountain. On the west wall of the cave, there is a cross-legged Maitreya Buddha statue sitting on a lion stool.

Three Buddhist niches are carved on the walls on both sides to worship Bodhisattvas. Each niche has an eaves, which is a typical Central Plains style "que".

Cave 96 is the most famous statue cave. It is located in the middle of the grottoes and is a landmark building built according to the cave. It is also called the "nine-story building".

Inside the cave is a more than 695-meter-high Maitreya seated Buddha. Later generations also called it the "Peking University Statue." It was excavated in AD during the reign of Wu Zetian. It is said that its image was shaped based on Wu Zetian's face.

Cave 45 is the most beautiful statue cave. It was excavated during the heyday of the Tang Dynasty and is the best-preserved grotto. There are 7 Buddha statues with gorgeous costumes and extremely exquisite carvings. It is said that the images of Buddha and Guanyin Bodhisattva are based on the appearances of Emperor Xuanzong and Yang Guifei of the Tang Dynasty. To shape.

Cave 17, also known as the Sutra Cave, is a Zen cave built by the famous Dunhuang monk Hong Bian.

This cave contains more than 4 Dunhuang posthumous documents and cultural relics from the 11th century to the th century. The world calls it the "Sutra Collection Cave".

What is depressing is that the Sutra Cave is now in China's most critical and corrupt moment. Many precious cultural relics have been plundered by foreign powers, hidden by corrupt officials, destroyed by fools, and scattered all over the world.

Each of these caves has its own story.