Rethinking the Carving No. 20 at Dafowan, Baodingshan,Dazu Visual Experience of the Viewer

Abstract

This paper is an attempt to re-evaluates the characteristics and significance of Carving No. 20 at Dafowan, by reconstructing the visual experience of the viewer. It firstly focuses on examining the spatial relationship between the No. 20 and its viewer which can widen the scope of discussion. Unlike other cliff carvings at Dafowan, the No. 20 has two storeys, offering a unique experience of visiting it twice for the viewer. Following the pilgrim route at Dafowan, the viewer enters the upper storey of the No. 20 along a narrow path from the No. 18 and No. 19 situated to the east of it. After looking through it to the west, the viewer returns by the same path and walks down the stairs at the No. 18, and then proceeds eastward to the wider space in front of the lower storey of the No. 20. It is interesting to note that the relief scenes and inscriptions in the No. 20 are arranged from the east to the west, the same as the viewer's movement direction in both storeys. This suggests that the structure, relief scenes and inscriptions of the No. 20 were designed with consideration of the viewer’s eyes and movements, which depends on the spatial difference between the two storeys. However, previous studies have rarely reflected on this fact. On the upper storey, there are ten hell scenes, which show many jailers whose gaze and gesture face the outside of the frame, and inscriptions referring to the reader (i.e. viewer). It indicates that the composition of them is based on the existence of a viewer. On the other hand, on the lower storey the viewer is placed in a situation where he/she needs to grasp the causal relationship between the scenes of the hell and the activities of violating Buddhist precepts (Ch. jie), by connecting the various scenes and their inscriptions. In short, the viewer is a participant to the scenes of hell in the upper storey, whereas he/she becomes a witness in the lower stores. It reveals that the scenes and inscriptions work in distinct ways in the upper and the lower storeys respectively, and therefore necessitates a re-examination of a previous assumption that the scenes of hell in both storeys together represent the Eighteen Hells in the Buddhist scriptures.