Liuli: The Spirit of Nirvana in Fire – From the Seven Treasures of Buddhism to the Millennium Rainbow of Cyber Aesthetics

When Nü wa was refining five colored stones to repair the sky, the falling flames fell into the rivers of the human world, cooled down and turned into spiritual glass. “- Explanation of the Origin of Glass in the Lost Text of” Huainanzi ”

Chapter 1 Material Code: The Art of Quenching Silicates

1、 Chemical Essence and Technological Evolution

Liuli is a lead barium silicate glass mainly composed of silicon dioxide (SiO ₂), which is different from ordinary sodium calcium glass. Its core characteristics are:

• Formula key: During the Warring States period, the “Kao Gong Ji” recorded that “glass stone is added with saltpeter and lead lead.” Modern science has confirmed that lead element (PbO content 15-30%) enhances refractive index, and barium element (BaO) enhances melt flowability
• Color Alchemy:
  • Cobalt blue: 0.5% cobalt oxide (CoO) is the color that appears as Buddha blue, and the pigments used in Dunhuang murals are of the same origin
  • Peacock green: Chromate (Cr ₂ O ∝) is generated in a reducing flame, which is opposite to the coloring mechanism of copper red glaze
  • Emperor Shi Huang: Lead antimonate (Pb ∝ (SbO ₄) ₂) is produced by high-temperature decomposition and is a unique color in the Ming and Qing dynasties
  • Bubble Aesthetics: Ancient glass retains a group of 0.1-0.3mm bubbles, which scatter light to form the “star effect”, while modern precision glass pursues zero bubbles

2、 Global Craft Schools

1. Eastern system:

Chinese dewaxing method: originated in the Spring and Autumn Period, shaped with beeswax and fired in pottery molds, represented by the dragonfly eye in the tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng during the Warring States period

Seven Treasures of Japan: Copper body with filigree filling and glass glaze, improved to transparent color without a body during the Meiji period (representative work “Four Seasons Flower and Bird Screen” in the collection of the Tokyo National Museum)

2.Western systems:

Murano, Venice: invented the “Millefiori technique” in the 13th century, which involves slicing and splicing colored glass rods together

French enamel: Limoges craftsmen burn miniature portraits on glass substrates (this technique was used in Napoleon’s “Coronation Day Jewelry Box” gifted to Josephine)

Chapter 2 Mythological Archaeology: The Divine Carrier in Civilization Mirrors

1、 Buddhist cosmology

The Herbalist’s Sutra lists colored glass as the building material of the “Oriental Pure Colored Glass World”. The mural in Cave 172 of the Mogao Grottoes of Dunhuang depicts the herbalist Buddha holding a colored glass bowl, in which the dew refracts seven colors of light to heal all living beings. In the Tang Dynasty “Mandala” in the collection of the East Temple in Japan, glazed beads symbolize “spiritual intelligence of the Dharma realm”, and their blue color corresponds to the top wheel of the human body.

2、 Epic of Mediterranean Civilization

The ancient Egyptians believed that glass was melted from the nails of the Nile god Hapi, and the glass stripes on Tutankhamun’s golden mask represented the Milky Way. Phoenician merchant ships loaded cobalt blue glass beads across Gibraltar, and the Nordic Vikings exchanged them with amber, forming the “Glass Road” 400 years earlier than the Silk Road.

3、 The evolution of royal symbols

Emperor Yongle of the Ming Dynasty granted Xizang’s Great Treasure Dharma King the “Coloured Glaze Palace” (imitating the copper hall of Xiantong Temple on Mount Wutai), and 288 glazed tiles were used to simulate Mount Xumi; Louis XIV, the Sun King of France, ordered 2000 pieces of glass to be embedded in the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles, making the candlelight dinner a Baroque style optical illusion.

Chapter 3: Energy Metaphysics: The Transparent Membrane of Matter and Spirit Realm

1、 The spiritual medium shared by the three religions

According to the Taoist Inner Alchemy, the “Seven Signs of the Yunji” refer to glass as the “visual carrier of external alchemy fire”, and the observation window of the alchemy furnace needs to be embedded with glass because it can filter out “yin turbid qi” and only penetrate pure yang fire images

Tantric Chakra Theory: Tibetan Buddhism uses blue glazed bead strings to count and recite “Om Ak”, believing that its vibration frequency (measured at 512Hz) resonates with the top chakra

3 Christian symbols of light: The rose windows of medieval Gothic churches were made of lead strips pieced together with glass, and the color spots formed when sunlight passed through were seen as the “embodiment of the Holy Spirit”

2、 Modern energy application scenarios

Space purification: Islamic architecture hangs glass mosaic lights on the arch, and the geometric pattern diffracts light to decompose negative energy (measured in Cairo Mosque, negative ions increase by 30%)

• Psychological therapy: Biodynamik Clinic in Germany places patients in a glass prism room, where chromatographic changes regulate melatonin secretion

Adaptation to the Electronic Age: Silicon Valley engineers are popular to wear radiation resistant pendants containing glass chips, which use their dielectric constant (ε=6.5) to buffer electromagnetic pulses

Chapter 4 Aesthetics of Creation: Religious Relics

Contemporary Translation of Traditional Crafts

1. New generation of ancient methods:

Taiwan’s glass workshop replicated the Warring States’ “Panziwen Zun” using 3D scanning of the original object and wax casting, with an error of less than 0.01mm

Venice Berengo Studio uses the millennium old “Thousand Flowers Technique” to create cancer cell models (exhibited at the Venice Biennale)

2. Cross border experiments:

Hermes 2024 “Glass Saddle” Series: Weaving glass sheets with titanium alloy to withstand an impact force of 80kg

Chinese post-90s artist Lin Kunhao’s installation of “Data Buddha”: Fiber optic cable passes through the glass Buddha head to display real-time network traffic

Conclusion: Transparent eternal questioning

From Damascus craftsmen purifying silica sand with camel ashes to Corning’s use of molecular deposition to grow glass, glass has always reflected the spectrum of civilization between technology and faith. Its material essence is the violent recombination of sand particles by high temperature, while its cultural significance is the most stubborn pursuit of humanity for the realm of transparency. When synthetic glass is suspended and formed in the space station, the air in those ancient bubbles still tells our final attachment to the world