Chongqing- If the Dazu Rock Carvings were a stage play, what would it look like?
The Dazu Rock Carvings premiered their first play around 650 at Jianshanzi. The director was a very private person, leaving no name in history.
The statues perform by making different poses. From the Tang to the Qing dynasty, more than 50,000 statues have participated in the play.
Kwan-yin, with 30-odd poses, the most in China, has taken on more roles than any other statue, most notably the Thousand-handed and Thousand-eyed Kwan-yin, Cintamanicakra, Kwan-yin with a Rosary, Sun and Moon Kwan-yin, Kwan-yin, Kwan-yin with Jade Vase, Kwan-yin with Jade Seal, Kwan-yin with Creel, Kwan-yin with Willow Branches, and Kwan-yin with Mani Pearl.
It should come as no surprise that Thousand-handed and Thousand-eyed Kwan-yin is the biggest name. With a thousand hands comes endless poses!
"I first started organizing the stage play on Beishan in 892. I really didn't expect it to become this popular. It's technically just a crowdfunding project." said Wei Junjing, "investor" of the stage play of Dazu Rock Carvings.
"I know all the roles of Baoding Mountain from the last 70 years like the back of my hand. Welcome to the project I devoted my life to," said the 'producer and director.' "The Dazu Rock Carvings have been performed on the cliffs of Beishan, Baoding, Nanshan, Shizhuan, and Shimen mountains, and the plays have integrated the classics of Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, and folk customs in Dazu. To sum it up, your only limitation is your imagination!"