3．花色古迹满城香

3．花色古迹满城香

作为一个有3000年历史的古城，洛阳为人们留下了许多珍贵的历史遗产，如白马寺、龙门石窟、洛阳城遗址等。

白马寺在洛阳城东9千米处，建于东汉明帝永平十一年（公元68），它是佛教传入中国后营建的第一所寺院，在中国佛教史上占据着重要的地位，历来被佛教界尊称为中国的“释源”或“祖庭”。

唐、宋及元、明、清各代不断对白马寺加以重修。现存的白马寺大体上是明代重修的规模，主要建筑有山门、天王殿、大雄殿、千佛殿和毗卢阁等。寺内的主要建筑分布在由南向北的中轴线上，前后5座大殿错落有致，严谨有序。其中大雄殿内的23尊元代“夹苎干漆”造像，形态各异，栩栩如生。它们全都是由丝、麻制成，每尊重量仅有3～5千克，从元代至今700多年来未经修缮，仍然色彩如新，是罕见的稀世珍品，也是白马寺的镇寺之宝。

寺中的清凉台被称为“空中庭院”，是白马寺的胜景。这个长43米，宽33米，高6米，由青砖镶砌的高台，具有古代东方建筑的鲜明特色。毗卢阁重檐歇山，飞翼挑角，蔚为壮观，配殿、僧房等附属建筑，布局整齐，自成院落。院中古柏苍苍，金桂沉静，环境清幽。相传原来是汉明帝刘庄幼时避暑和读书的处所，后来改为天竺高僧下榻和译经的地方。

白马寺东侧，是有名的齐云塔。寺中种有许多石榴树。白马寺的石榴在汉魏时曾誉满京师。石榴原产伊朗和中亚一带，在汉代同佛经、佛像一起传入中国，并多在洛阳、长安落户。当时人们赞美石榴，把它作为中外人民交往的标志，石榴的身价倍增。

龙门石窟在洛阳城南10余千米处，它与大同的云冈石窟、敦煌的莫高窟并称为中国古代佛教艺术的三大宝库。龙门石窟从北魏太和十八年（494）迁都洛阳后即开始营造，中间经过东魏和西魏，北齐和北周，以及隋、唐各代，连续大规模营造达400多年之久。据统计，现存窟龛2100多个，佛塔40多座，造像10万多尊，造像题记和碑碣3000多块。北魏开凿的石窟全部集中在西山，约占龙门石窟龛造像的三分之一。

唐代是龙门石窟开凿史上的第二个高潮时期。龙门石窟中最大的洞窟奉先寺大卢舍那像，就是武则天时开凿的。奉先寺位于龙门西山南部，大卢舍那佛通高17.41米，头高4米，面部丰满秀丽，目光宁静含蓄，嘴角微露笑意。卢舍那佛的两边有二菩萨、二子弟、二天王、二力士的造像。有学者认为卢舍那佛的形象与《资治通鉴》记载的武则天的容貌相吻合，应是武则天的传神写照。整个奉先寺窟龛雄伟壮观，且改变了魏晋南北朝的宗教神秘色彩，明显地呈现出世俗化的倾向，表现了唐代雕塑艺术的时代风格和高度成就。

龙门东山窟龛较少，时代也较晚，看经寺洞位于东山南部，是武则天时开凿的。洞顶佛雕体态丰润的飞天，四壁佛雕的29尊罗汉像神态各异，是现存较早的罗汉群像。在东山万佛沟北崖的千手千眼观音像龛，是唐玄宗到唐文宗时期开凿，龛高2.37米，造像属于密宗，在唐代也是比较罕见的。龙门石窟中，唐代开凿的窟龛最多，差不多占总数的2/3。

除了名胜古迹享有盛誉外，洛阳牡丹也令游人神往。关于洛阳牡丹曾有这样一个传说：牡丹花本来是长安最多，有一年冬天，武则天写下诏令：明朝游上苑，火急报春知。花须连夜发，莫待晓风吹。到次日凌晨，百花都开放了，只有牡丹不开。武则天大怒，就把它们贬植洛阳。谁知牡丹一到洛阳，居然竞相怒放。武则天下令用火来烧，结果火虽烧焦了枝干，花却更为夺目。当然，传说的真实与否无法考证，但现在“洛阳牡丹佳天下”却是名副其实的。

3. Historical Relics

A city with a history of 3,000 years, Luoyang is home to numerous invaluable historical relics, among which are White Horse Temple, Longmen Grottoes and the site of ancient Luoyang.

White Horse Temple

Situated nine kilometers east of Luoyang and built in 68 A.D., the White Horse Temple was the first temple built up after Buddhism was introduced to China and thus has always been honored by the Chinese Buddhist circle as "the temple of origin" for its special significance in the development of Buddhism in China.

The temple was under constant repair through Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. The current one is reconstructed according to the one in the Ming dynasty. From the entrance, there stands in order the Gate, Hall of Heavenly Kings, Hall of Sakyamuni, Hall of 1000 Buddhas, Hall of Greeting, the Cool and Clear Terrace and the pavilion. Inside the temple, all the five main halls are orderly lined along the central south-north axis. Inside the Hall of Sakyamuni, there stand 23 statues. Made of silk and hemp and weighing only three to five kilograms each, the statues, each with different facial expressions and postures, are so lifelike and remain as colorful as they were first made in the Yuan dynasty. So rare are they that they are the most valued treasure in the temple.

The Cool and Clear Terrace, reputed as "the terrace in the air", is among the most appealing in the temple. Forty-three meters long, thirty-three meters wide and six meters high, the grey-brick terrace is of a strong oriental flavor. Hall of Mahavira which is topped with a double nine-ridged roof, is a courtyard indeed. With side halls and monk house, dark green cypresses and golden laurels, the courtyard offers a quiet yet beautiful environment. It is said that it was first used as a summer resort and the study for Emperor Liu Zhuang of the Han dynasty. Later, it became a place for visiting Indian eminent monks to live and translate sutra.

Inside the White Horse Temple there grow many pomegranate trees. Pomegranate is the local fruit of Iran and other countries in Central Asia. When Buddhism was introduced to China, pomegranate was also brought along to China and grown by many residents in Luoyang and Chang'an. Chinese people loved pomegranates and regarded them as a symbol of the exchanges with foreign friends; as a result, the price of pomegranate soared by folds. Longmen Grottoes

Ten kilometers south of the city proper of Luoyang, Longmen grottoes, together with Yungang Grottoes in Datong and Mogao Caves in Dunhuang, are titled the three treasuries of the Chinese Buddhist art. Started from 494 when Northern Wei moved its capital to Luoyang, the excavation lasted more than 400 years through Southern and Northern Dynasties, Sui and Tang. It is estimated that currently there are more than 2,100 niches, more than 40 stupas, more than ten thousand of statues and more than 3,000 tablets. In the West Mountain are grottoes mostly carved in Northern Wei, taking up one third of the total.

Carving of caves in Longmen climbed to its second peak in the Tang dynasty. The biggest statue in Longmen, the Statue of Vairocana Buddha in the cave known as Fengxian Temple was carved during the reign of Emperor Wu Zetian. 17.41 meters high with the four-meter high head included, the Buddhist statue looks quite gentle and tranquil. On the two sides of the Buddha, there are two Bodhisattvas, two juniors, two heavenly kings and two warriors. Some scholars believe the appearance of the Vairocana Buddha statue is quite similar to that of Emperor Wu Zetian according to the description of Wu's apperance in Comprehensive Mirror for Aid in Governance, so they think the statue is actually a statue of the woman emperor. Statues and niches in the Fengxian Temple are quite different from those carved in the Southern and Northern Dynasties. Instead of seeming mysterious and keeping a distance from the common people, they look closer to people, reflecting the different artistic style of the Tang dynasty.

Compared with the West Mountain, caves in the East Mountain are fewer and younger. In the south part of the mountain, there is a cave known as Kanjing Temple. The excavation of the cave was started when Wu Zetian was in power. Inside the cave, there are plump flying Apsaras on the ceiling and 29 arhats of different bearings on the wall. Excavation of the statue of the 1000-Armed-and-1000-Eyed Avalokiteshvara in the Wanfo Valley was started during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong and finished during the reign of Emperor Wenzong of the Tang dynasty. ("Wanfo" in Chinese literally means "ten thousand Buddhas".) 2.37 meters high, the statue is a portrayal of Buddha which belongs to the esoteric sect and is quite rare even in the Tang dynasty. Of all the caves in Longmen, those excavated in the Tang dynasty take up nearly two thirds.

In addition to those historical relics, Luoyang is also famed for its peony. And a widely spread legend adds more charm to the beautiful flower. There used to be a lot of peonies in Chang'an. On a winter day, Emperor Wu Zetian wanted to go to an imperial garden the next day, so she issued an order that all flowers blossom during the night so that she could see the various flowers. The next morning, all the flowers blossomed except the peonies. Emperor Wu became very angry and ordered all the peonies to be grown in Luoyang. Surprisingly, the moment they were moved to Luoyang, all of them blossomed at once. Hearing that, Wu issued another order to burn the flowers. Nonetheless, those peonies got even more colorful and eye-catching. Nowadays, it's very hard to verify the story, but the beauty of Luoyang peonies is self-evident.