Pure Land illustration is a popular subject in Dunhuang wall painting, particularly in the Tang period. These Pure Land paintings aim to depict the land of bliss described in a number of sutras as a means for accruing merits through sponsorship and as a diagram for visualization as instructed by Pure Land masters.

The paintings often adopt a standard pictorial composition where architectural representation dominates the central section of the paradise scene. The architectural elements depicted include not only major halls, but also space defining elements such as corridors, pavilions, double-storied towers, and platforms and bridges standing on stilts in the lotus pool. These buildings and platforms are often seen as the stage set for the placement of the pantheon of the heavenly host that surrounds the central presiding Buddha of the Pure Land.

These paintings had been used as a model for the construction of Pure Land monasteries in Japan during 10th-11th centuries, and most recently in Hong Kong. They are also seen as the major source of information for Tang dynasty Buddhist architecture by Chinese architectural historians. In this lecture, I will examine the architectural composition of Pure Land illustrations of Dunhuang wall paintings and discuss issues such as the evolution of a prototype, the use of the prototype for illustrating different sutra, and the existence of various artistic traditions. I will attempt to interpret these paintings not simply as sources of Tang architecture but as the most appropriate tool for visualization of the Pure Land as expounded by the Pure Land patriarch Shandao.