An ancient beacon tower, Buddhist caves and a monk called Xuanzang

It seems inconceivable that a tower made of mud bricks could have survived for longer than 1,700 years but there it is with its original 3rd Century wooden struts protruding from the top like a few stray bristles. The Kizil Gaha beacon tower was built as part of a defence system against invaders  - possibly Turks or the warring Xiongnu tribes - and those manning it used smoke fires during the day and torches at night to warn others down the line of approaching invaders. It's thought there were thousands of such beacons along the long network of walls defending China's territory against the northern tribes. And the reason they have survived so long is the dry desert climate - the same climate that has ensured the preservation of 4,000 year old mummies.

Nearby this remnant of the ancient past lie the Kizil Kucha caves - testimony to the early Buddhists who travelled and paid homage to the founder of this relatively new religious teaching. Xuan Zang, after Marco Polo the most well-known traveller on the Silk Road, travelled to India in the 7th Century in a quest to discover the original Buddhist teachings, as what had reached China were poorly translated. He learnt Sanskrit and translated several Buddhist works into Chinese - and today his version of the Heart Sutra is considered the basis for all Chinese commentaries, though Kumarajiva (see previous post) is usually more readable. 

He is also immortalised in the classic "Journey to the West" (written several centuries after his death). One of the travellers in our group had read this book and was delighted to be able to identify several of the places described.

These caves were often earlier than the ones described in a previous post and often not in such good condition. Some were apparently lived in and the frescoes and domes were damaged by soot from household fires. However, some of the frescoes were particularly impressive and where they were intact a great deal of the imagery was visible. These caves are not generally open to the public without a special permit, so we were very fortunate to be able to view them.

In the same general area are the Kumtura Caves, at the mouth of the Muzat River - and these are not open except to special visitors (the advantages of travelling with Edmund Capon as our guide!). During the construction of a dam in the 1970's, the level of the Muzat rose and consequently the caves were water-damaged as a result. However it has since been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site and measures are being taken to preserve the caves properly.

There was an opportunity to see a fresco not included in our tour, but it would have cost (for me) rather a substantial amount more so I fossicked among the rocks instead. This is what I missed (courtesy Baohuasi.org/news). Hmm. Very different to everything else we'd seen - many more Persian elements, much more ornate detailing in the costumes, definitely not the run of the mill bodhisattvas!