What is a manifold?

In the mountains and rivers, intersections, lakes and rivers all over Tibet, you can almost see an altar made of stone and slate-Manidui. Also known as "god heap". Most of these stones and slates are engraved with six-character mantra, insightful eyes, statues and various auspicious patterns, which are also masterpieces of Tibetan folk artists.

These stone piles are called "Duobang" in Tibetan, which means to build stones. "Multi-gang" can be divided into "father gang" and "multi-gang". "Flower gangs prevent filth and disasters" are mostly located at the end of the village. The stone pile is huge and the top is stepped. There are scriptures to stop filth, eliminate disasters and pray for blessings, as well as grains, gold and silver jewelry and spears. Most of the "gangs" are distributed on roadsides, lakes and intersections. The stone pile is small, conical and has no steps. The right pile contains anti-evil mantras, and the stone pile on the platform also contains guns, knives and spears.

In Tibetan Buddhist areas, people regard stones as living and spiritual things. "Mani Stone" engraved with Buddha statues and Buddhist scriptures has no uniform specifications and shapes. Producers don't have to choose what stones to pick up and carve on them. Scriptures are mostly "six-character mantra" and incantations.

Manidui was originally called Manza, which means Datura. It is a pile of stones of different sizes full of aura, which is called "Duoben" in Tibetan. Another method is to carve words and images on stones or pebbles, featuring the colors and contents of Tibetan Buddhism, including Buddha, animal protector and six-character mantra that can never be read, and then pile them up into a long wall. This Mani wall is called Miandang in Tibetan. On auspicious days, people simmer mulberries, add stones to the Mani pile, touch them with their foreheads, pray silently, and then throw them on the pile. Over time, a lot of Mani piles have been built, and the more they are built, the higher they are. Every stone embodies the voice of believers. The appearance of Mani stone made these natural stones begin to be visualized. In the long historical process, a large number of Mani stone carvings have emerged in Tibet, and ordinary people can be seen everywhere. They are the pursuits, ideals, feelings and hopes of Tibetans carved on stones.

Tibetans and Stone Worship

Belief is a common form of natural worship among all ethnic groups in China and even many primitive tribes in the world, especially the worship of boulders. Some huge rocks are not only places for pilgrims to atone, but also regarded as sacred stones by local villages. They are particularly grotesque and easy to create the illusion that there is a god in them. The unusual appearance of this stone and its utility in people's lives are often the reasons why ancestors worship it. Tibetans are taught by this religion that everything is animistic, and that even a small stone is spiritual, and spiritual objects must have the light of Buddha or be occupied by ghosts.

As the carrier of human social culture, stone has become a powerful witness to the inheritance and creation of social civilization with its immortal texture. Stones can not only make various production tools, attack wild animals and defend enemy weapons, but also build houses and cities, grind powder and dispense medicines. In some places, stones are used to build houses. A large number of stone tools, sarcophagus, stone mound tombs and stone pagodas found in cultural relics investigation can prove how unusual stones are for our ancestors. Tibetans cherish rare stones and regard "Rangjiong" (natural in Tibetan) stones as sacred objects, such as Buddha statues, Buddha eyes, Buddha footprints and so on. In addition, Tibetan headdresses and necklaces are mostly composed of coral stones, agate stones, fossils and various beautiful stones, which means the derivative forms of lingshi worship.

According to the summary of Tibetan archaeology, there was a megalithic culture in ancient Tibet, which was a primitive megalithic culture developed from the Neolithic tradition. It was believed that it entered the hinterland of Tibet from the northeastern Tibetan area around Qinghai Lake. There are many remains of this kind of stone worship in Tibetan areas, which can be divided into three forms: single stone, stone circle and stone pillar. For example, in Duoren, south of the Great Salt Lake in southern Tibet, 18 rows of stone pillars were found, which ran east and west. There is also a martyr statue, with two concentric stone circles at the west end, three huge stones in the center of the stone circle, the larger one is 2.75 meters high, and an altar is set in front of the huge stones. There is also an arrow arranged with stones at the eastern end of the pillar. Similar boulders are all over Tibetan areas, such as the stone pillars in Pulan, Tibet; Gannan's "Long History"; The "Son of the Stone Bull" on the mountain is independent, tens of meters high, which makes the local Tibetans and Han people worship. In Tibetan areas, especially in Kangqu and some Amdo Tibetan areas, white stones are enshrined in roofs, lintels, window sills and the center of the land. Wherever gods are enshrined, there are their figures. They believe that white stone is the essence of snow-capped mountains and the patron saint of families, fields and crops; People also think that the huge white rocks that stand tall are the embodiment of the dragon lady and goddess. Manidui, which is spread all over Tibet's high mountains and valleys and beside the village road, is an outstanding performance and obvious heritage of Tibetan rock worship.

The world's largest mani stone pile.

The Xinzhai Mani Stone Pile next to Jiegu Town, the capital of Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province, is said to be the largest Mani Stone Pile in the world. Mani piles are mostly made of white stones, and are often placed in squares or circles on hilltops, mountain passes, intersections, ferries, lakes, temples and cemeteries for praying and becoming the patron saint of local people.

It is said that there are as many as 2 billion stones in the Mani pile in Xinzhai. These warping stones vary in size and shape, from desktop to egg. The contents carved on Mani stone are generally related to Tibetan Buddhism. There are Buddhist scriptures, most of which are six-character mantras, other auspicious words, Buddha statues, immortals, animals or monsters, which are very rich in content.

The Mystery of "Mani Stone Pile"

Tongtian River runs down from the hinterland of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, with snow peaks in Tanggula Mountain and Bayan Kara Mountain on both sides. Between the peaks and grass beaches on both sides of the strait, there are flaky piles dotted around. Flakes vary in size and pile height. The smooth surface of each slice is engraved with neat ancient Indian Buddhist scriptures, which is the mystery of the famous "Mani Stone Pile" on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

According to legend, when the Tang Priest learned the scriptures, he crossed the Tongtian River and got help from the giant turtle. The giant turtle asked the Tang Priest to ask when the Buddhist paradise Tathagata would be completed. However, when Tang Priest arrived in the Western Heaven, he was too busy to learn the scriptures and forgot to ask the giant turtle about becoming an immortal. When he came back from the Buddhist scriptures and crossed the Tongtian River, chinemys reevesii crossed the river with Tang Yan and his disciples on his back and went to the middle of the river to ask about the trust. Tang Yan told the truth, and the turtle sank to the bottom in a rage. The Tang Priest and his disciples fell into the water and the Buddhist scriptures were all wet. Master and apprentice picked up Buddhist scriptures and put them on rocks by the river to dry. When it was almost dry, a gust of wind blew and Buddhist scriptures flew all over the sky. The master and the apprentice stopped and grasped slowly. There were still a lot of Buddhist scriptures scattered on both sides of the Tongtian River. The scattered Buddhist scriptures are now mani stones. Tibetans believe in Buddhism, so these Mani stones are collected in piles to form a dotted Mani stone pile landscape. There is another saying: Mani stone is the sun-dried stone of Tang priest's master and apprentice. When the wet Buddhist scriptures are dried on the slate, the Buddhist scriptures are printed on the slate.

Legend is a legend after all, but the Buddhist scriptures on Mani stone are carved on hard flaky with hammers, axes, knives and chisels. No one has counted the number of Mani stones on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, and I am afraid it is an astronomical figure in terms of its wide distribution. I'm afraid such a huge project will not be less than the pyramids along the Nile. Its origin and organizers can't be verified. But this is definitely a precious legacy left by Tibetan ancestors to future generations. It is not difficult to imagine that there are few people in this wasteland at an altitude of four or five kilometers. How many hardships and difficulties need to be paid and overcome when Mani stone engraved with so many Buddhist scriptures is scattered to the mountains of the plateau!

When the mystery of "Mani Stone Pile" is revealed, people are waiting.