Lingquan Temple Caves Dazhu Cave: Narayana and Kapila

CHINA, Henan, Anyang; Sui dynasty

These reliefs are carved into shallow arched niches on the sides of the cave entrance. Their names, Narayana and Kapila, are written in Chinese using clerical script above the side of each carving. Since no records of these two figures exist as a pair in Chinese scriptures, or among similar cave entrance carvings, their presence is unique.
Carved on the right side of the entrance, Narayana, who is 1.74 m in height, has a bowed head and gazes attentively over the left shoulder. He wears a winged helmet with an embedded mirror. Curls of hair are visible beneath the helmet and a long beard extends down to a bare torso. Necklaces adorn the chest and a stole entwines the shoulders. Wearing battle dress, Narayana stands barefoot atop a goat. A long sword rests on the left shoulder and a trident is held in the right hand.
Facing left, Kapila, 1.78 m in height, stands to the left side of the cave entrance. The deity has a high forehead, long face, and wears a helmet with an embedded mirror. Dressed in a suit of armor bound with a girdle, Kapila stands barefoot on top of an ox. A trident is held in the left hand and a sword in the right. Both deities, carved in mid-relief, are distinct and life-like.