Maijishan Grotto 127: Prince Mahasattva Jataka

CHINA, Gansu, Tianshui; Western Wei dynasty

This mural is located on the left and right slopes of the truncated pyramidal ceiling. The right slope’s mural is 148 cm in height with the widths of 134 cm at the top and 380 cm at the bottom. The mural on the left slope is 105 cm at the top, 250 cm at the bottom, and 110 cm high.
The mural’s theme is the Jataka of Prince Mahasattva’s self-sacrifice to a starving tigress. On the right ceiling slope, the mural depicts a large city that has three gates and a few tall towers. There is a moat surrounding the city. A royal palace within the city also has three gates. The three princes are depicted riding out with guards, along with many other people who are leaving the city. The lower left corner depicts two brothers rushing back to the palace to report on Prince Mahasattva’s self-sacrifice. Within the palace, the king receives news of his son’s death with shock. Upon hearing the news, the queen faints. Officials, attendants, and guards are present, along with two other kneeling figures who mourn at the front steps.
The mural is incomplete and damaged on the left ceiling slope. Mahasattva is depicted leaping from a cliff to two large tigers and fourteen tiger cubs below. At the foot of the cliff, Mahasattva is devoured alive. To the side stand the king and courtiers. Other parts of the story, such as the collection of Mahasattva’s bones and relics for a stupa are not shown, but may have been illustrated in the section that has deteriorated.