ABCs of Longmen: The making of Maitreya Buddha statue during Wu Zetian's regime

Updated: 2016-01-12

On Sept 9, AD 690 the south gate tower of the royal palace in Luoyang had witnessed an unprecedented historic event, as Wu Zetian announced the change of dynasty from Tang to Zhou and became China's only female monarch in history. She had changed the designation of the imperial reign into Tianshou (means granted by heaven) and ruled under the regnal name, Empress Shengshen (literally means Holy Spirit).

The Maitreya Buddha statue in Middle Leigutai Cave (Tang Dynasty)

The statue building in Longmen Grottoes, the sanctuary of Buddhist art located in south of Luoyang had adopted a different style after Wu became the co-ruler of the court together with the emperor and was entitled "Tianhou". Since then, the statues of Maitreya, the candidate bodhisattva to be a Buddha in the future, were carved into Buddha in the central position to receive donation and worship from civilians. This change had become a trend that influenced other caves nationwide.

Many caves and niches in Longmen have Maitreya statues, like Huijian Cave (carved in 673 AD), South Shuangyao Cave, south wall of Wanfo Cave, north wall of cave of Longhua Temple, Jinan Cave, front wall of Middle Leigutai Cave, Three Buddha Cave and especially the Moya Three Buddha Niche that houses statues symbolizing the Wu regime. These Maitreya statues are all in form of Buddha sitting cross-legged as the main statue, and this kind of change of Maitreya from Bodhisattva to Buddha is a portrayal of Wu's ascension to the throne.

The main statue of Maitreya Buddha in the Moya Three Buddha Niche (Tang Dynasty)

The popularity of Maitreya Buddha statues was part of the efforts Wu had made to pave the way to the emperor position. In 689 AD, she goaded Huan Yi and Fa Ming, monks in White Horse Temple, to forge the "Big Cloud Book" to proclaim her a reincarnation of the Maitreya Buddha, who should rule China in lieu of Tang emperors. A year later, when the Zhou Dynasty was founded, copies of Big Cloud Book were distributed all around the country and Big Cloud Temper was built. Later abbots preached the book to people to consolidate her position.

Moya Three Buddha Niche is the "merit cave" (a cave built to generate merit, which were dedicated to a named beneficiary) built for Wu following the suggestion of Huayi and Faming. However, the niche was never completed because Huaiyi was sentenced to death for rebellion activities and later, Zhong Zong, son of Wu regained the throne and put an end to her regime. It left the niche a cultural heritage for today's people to learn how a cave was made at that point of time.

The main statue of Maitreya Buddha in Huijian Cave (Tang Dynasty)