中國 山西 東南部지역의 北魏千佛碑像 考察

Abstract

In Zhangzi, Gaoping, and Jinchengs (areas located in the Shanxi southeast Changzhi basin), there are Steles with a Thousand Buddha Statues. They have a Buddha statue triads at the bottom, and smaller Buddhist statues are placed throughout the surface as well. First of all, through the examination of the Northern Dynasties Steles with Buddha statues in the Shanxi Province, I came to the conclusion that the Steles with Buddha statues were excavated mostly in the southeast Shanxi Province, excluding Linfen and Yuncheng in the southwest Shanxi Province. In addition, I examined the style and characteristics of each the Steles with a Thousand Buddha statues in the southeast of Shanxi Province. As a result, it is found that the style and characteristics of each Stele with a Thousand Buddha statues resembled these of a Stele with Thousand Buddha Statue created in the year 496 A.D., which is the oldest example in Shanxi Province. Common characteristics include the Buddha statue triads decorating the bottom niche, the dress code of the early Northern Wei period, and the narrowly expressed faces. In addition, other common characteristics include the Western style Flying Devas and strict arrangement of smaller Thousand Buddhas (all dressed in the K āṣāya style covering both shoulders and in the Dhy āna Mudr ā Buddha pose) throughout the surface of the statue. Considering these characteristics, it can be assumed that the Steles with a Thousand Buddha Statues were generally produced around the year 500 A.D. - from the end of the 5th century to the beginning of the 6th century. However, some Steles with a Thousand Buddha statues had Bodhisattva statues that held vyajanas and niches that were house-shaped. These differences point to the influence by iconography from other regions. In other words, some of the Steles with a Thousand Buddha statues in southeast Shanxi, were similar to those common in the Gansu, Shaanxi, and Henan Province. I discovered that the Bodhisattva statues that held vyajanas and the Thousand Buddhas style were similar to the Buddhist statues in Gansu; it is probable that there is a relationship between the two regions. Furthermore, Gansu, south Shaanxi, and southeast Shanxi regions pass through the inland areas around the Yellow River basin. This locational factor allowed the transmission of similar styles of statues from the west to the southeast of Shanxi around the 6 th century and affected the way Steles with a Thousand Buddha Statues were made. This study will be further continued with additional research on Steles with a Thousand Buddha Statues in the Shanxi Province that have not been addressed in this paper.