佛堂形组合式造像塔，即采用特定规格的预制石材砌建、第一层塔身作微缩形佛堂的雕像佛塔，主要流行于中原东部唐高宗、武则天和玄宗时期，是一种内涵丰富而未受学界重视的佛教遗存。本稿基于学界刊布和笔者实地调查资料，就有据可查实例的类型与图像、铭文内容、兴衰原因与影响进行了系统、全面分析。 在类型与图像方面，分为二石型、四石型与整石型塔三类。二石型塔多用青石，第一层塔身由前、后二石块拼成，初唐后段出现于河北中南部，盛唐流行于山东中西部与河南北部，是主流类型。塔门上方多表现护法、供养题材，图像组合以兽、龙为中心配置，塔心室后壁常辟圆拱形龛并浮雕一佛二弟子二菩萨。四石型塔多用白石，第一层塔身由前、后、左、右四石板拼成，东魏个别出现于山西东南部，盛唐流行于北京房山与河北中部，属于小区域聚集分布的非主流类型。塔门上方通常留白，塔心室后壁常辟尖拱形龛并浮雕一佛二菩萨，两侧壁偶尔辟佛龛或供养人龛。整石型塔采用白石或青石，第一层塔身由整块石材雕成，北齐隋代零星出现在河北中南部，初盛唐有少量实例，分布范围大体与二石型塔重合，属于零散分布的非主流类型。塔门上方留白或刊刻铭文，塔心室素面或辟浅佛龛。 在铭文内容方面，施主多为基层民众，含个人、家庭与家族以及社邑类型，一般庶民占多数，少量为中下层官吏，僧侣时有参与。施主多因追荐亡亲而发愿造塔，宣称为帝后敬造供养，希望藉造塔行为积累功德，获得现世救济与来世福报，反映出浓厚的报四恩、种福田思想。造塔时间常选在佛教节日与斋日，以求取更大福报。造塔需耗费不少时间与资金，常以双塔形式对称组合在佛殿前方，以服务于佛事活动并庄严寺院。铭文极少写明塔心室佛像尊格，施主更关心造塔本身功德，部分实例刊刻与救济相关的《般若波罗蜜多心经》等经典。 在兴衰原因与影响方面，佛堂形组合式造像塔由于《法华经》及唐高宗晚期以来新译经典大力弘扬造塔功德而兴盛，造型受到密檐式砖塔影响，安史之乱后因《佛顶尊胜陀罗尼经》的风行而被经幢取代。此种造像塔既影响了同时期与后世他类佛塔造作，又影响了一些石窟和墓葬修建。 本稿搜集、整理了已知108座佛堂形组合式造像塔资料，有助于进一步阐释唐代物质文化。此类造像塔巧妙地将佛塔与佛堂两种功能结合在一起，同时满足了施主绕塔礼拜和供养佛陀的需求。此种创造性的佛教建筑及其文化价值，长期处于被隐藏状态，其在物质文化史上的重要地位应该得到确立。
The composite Buddhist hall-shaped pagoda with images is a kind of building made up with ready-made slabs of specific sizes and its first layer of the body is shaped as a miniature Buddhist hall. As a meaningful but neglected Buddhist relic, it was mainly popular in eastern area of the Central Plain in China during the periods of Gaozong, Wu Zetian and Xuanzong in the Tang Dynasty. Based on the materials from published researches and field surveys, this dissertation focuses on known Buddhist hall-shaped stone pagodas, making a thorough and systematic analysis on their types, images, content of inscriptions, reasons of vicissitude and influences. In terms of typology and imagery, this kind of pagoda can be divided into three categories: Two-Stone type, Four-Stone type and One-Stone type. The pagoda of Two-Stone type is mainly made of grey stones, with the pagoda’s first layer assembled with two stones in anterior-posterior direction. As the main sort of Buddhist hall-shaped pagodas, it was invented in central and southern areas of Hebei Province in Early Tang, and rose to popularity in central and southern areas of Shandong Province as well as northern area of Hebei. The area above the pagoda’s gate is often left blank or decorated with subjects of guardian and offering, while most groups of images are centered on animals and dragons. In the central room of the pagoda, a niche with a circular arch is often carved on the back wall where the group of one Buddha, two disciples and two Bodhisattvas is also engraved. The Four-Stone type is mainly made of white stones, with its first layer assembled by four slates in front, back, right and left directions. This type has a few examples in southeastern area of Shanxi Province in the Eastern Wei Dynasty. In the early period of High Tang, it revived in central Hebei Province and Fangshan area in Beijing. The distribution of such pagodas is concentrated on small areas, which belongs to a non-mainstream type. The area above the gate is often left blank and the back wall of the central room has a niche with a taper arch. One Buddha and two Bodhisattvas are often engraved in the niche and the left and right walls are occasionally carved with the niches of Buddhas or devotees. The One-Stone type of the pagoda is made of a single grey or white stone. This type appears occasionally in central and southern area of Hebei from Northern Qi to Sui Dynasty. As a non-mainstream type which is scarcely distributed, it was still made in the Tang Dynasty and its distribution is similar to the Two-Stone type. The area above the gate is also left blank or inscribed with words, while the central room’s walls are blank or carved with shallow niches. As to the inscriptions, the donors are mainly secular Buddhist believers, including individuals, nuclear families, big families and societies. Most of them are plebs, while some are medium or low-rank officials, and sometimes monks take part in the donations. Donors built these pagodas for mourning their deceased relatives, curing their illnesses. They claimed to build the pagoda and make these offerings for emperors and empresses, hoping to gain salvation and blessed reward in future rebirth, which strongly reflect the Buddhist thoughts of repaying Four Blessings and tilling the field of blessedness. The beginning of the construction was often chosen on Buddhist dates of abstinence or festivals for the aim of gaining greater blessings. The construction of such pagoda cost a lot in terms of time and fund, and the towers were usually built as a pair in front of the Buddhist hall so as to serve Buddhist activities and dignify the monastery. The identities of Buddhist statues are rarely presented in inscriptions and donors paid more attention on the merit gained by building the pagodas. Some inscriptions include the ‘Heart Sutra’ or other sutras related to salvation. As to the reasons of its vicissitude and influences, the Buddha-hall shaped stone pagoda became popular because of the Lotus Sutra as well as other classics translated in the later period of Gaozong’s reign in the Tang Dynasty. These sutras claimed the merit of building pagodas. Besides, the shapes of the pagodas are under the influence of towers with multiple eaves. After the Turmoil of Anshi, such pagodas were replaced by Buddhist pillars when the Sarvadurgati Parishodhana Uchinisha Vijaya Dharani became popular. The Buddha-hall shaped stone pagoda influenced not only contemporary and later pagodas of other types, but also Buddhist caves and burials. This dissertation collects and sorts out the materials of 108 known Buddha-hall shaped stone pagodas, therefore improving the understanding of material culture in the Tang Dynasty. This sort of pagodas with images ingeniously combines the functions of Buddhist pagodas and Buddhist halls, satisfying donors’ needs of circling the towers and making offerings to Buddhas. This creative Buddhist building with its cultural values is in obscurity for a long time and its important place in the history of material culture should be recognized.
