Sanvey - a sacred place in Dunhuang vicinity

Pilgrimage to Sanvey - worship of Taoist and Buddhist Gods

25 km from Dunhuang to the south-east, there is the locality of Sanvey, a kind of shrine. The total length of this area is 6 km. There are small pavilions of Taoist and Buddhist saints, steles with inscriptions and several temples.

The temple of the goddess Xi Wang Mu (C-van-mu) is among the most popular one. This goddess is of non-Chinese origin. According to some scholars Xi Wang Mu came with the nomads from the West, from the Kunlun Mountains. Many facts show that the Se peoples - Sakes believed in her. However, this image acclimated particularly in China, becoming the personification of female shamans. The temple in Sanvey is one of the few in China, dedicated to this goddess.

Besides temples, the shrine Sanvey has a Taoist monastery, dedicated to God Longwang (Lunvane). According to Taoist religious mythology, there is a pantheon of Gods, each of them is responsible for a certain area. Dragon Longwang according to a legend was the master of the water element. People prayed to him for rain during a drought. No wonder that the inhabitants of the Dunhuang oasis built a monastery in honor of this god.

Sanvey is a kind of holy city, dotted with small shrines and pavilions built in honor of the gods, or just with statues dedicated to the Taoist gods and Buddha. Every year, in addition to the tourists who come to see the sights Sanvey, these places are visited by hundreds of followers of Goddess Guanyin who came on pilgrimage. Sanvey is also notable for a well and Saint Guanyin Pavilion, a female deity who saved from all kinds of disasters. The image of Guanyin is represented by a woman with a thousand arms and eleven heads. She is associated with a lot of legends and stories. This is one of the most revered goddesses in China, which is also considered the patroness of women.

In addition to churches and monasteries, pavilion Serenity Buddha Shakya Muni Hall of the Patriarchs are especially popular, a little further to the mountains there is Letszuntan Hall, statues of saints and steles carved with inscriptions and Amitabha Buddha hall.