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The second half of the 6th century AD represents an important era for Chinese Buddhism. In 577/578, believers suffered persecution at the hands of the secular state of Zhou. At the same time, monks made great strides in translating the writings of Buddha during this period, which led to a completely transformed understanding of his teachings. The religion, which originated in India, was now adapted to many elements of the local tradition. This historical development was reflected in unique stone inscriptions. Some of the sacred texts were painstakingly carved into the rock in characters up to three meters high, while others were integrated into the architectural design of cave temples. With this "network" of stone inscriptions, the Chinese Buddhists of that time created what are arguably the most culturally and historically significant monuments in northern China.

The task of the research center, which was established in 2005, is to compile a complete and systematic documentation of these stone inscriptions, some of which have only been rediscovered in recent years. The stone inscriptions have been preserved over the centuries, particularly in the provinces of Shandong, Henan, and Hebei. The scientific evaluation of the historical and biographical information contained in these texts – along with their commentaries – sheds new light on the Sinicization of Buddhism. Of particular interest is the fact that the texts are embedded in different spatial contexts. They lend the landscape a sacred character: monumental steles proclaim the sacred texts, steep rock faces become places of meditation, and large boulders mark pilgrimage paths climbing up the mountains.

The project is based on international cooperation, primarily with Chinese scholars, who have been increasingly focusing on questions of religious history for several years now. In addition, there are close ties to Japanese scholars who are continuing their country's outstanding tradition of Buddhist studies. Researchers from the Department of Geoinformation Science at the Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences (FH) are also involved in the project on an interdisciplinary basis to clarify the topographical situation of the carved texts. They are not only creating an overview plan of all inscriptions, but also 3D models of the inscription sites, which enable the monuments to be viewed and read on a computer.