莫高窟的创建者
东晋十六国时期的前秦建元二年（366），一位名叫乐僔的和尚到达敦煌。他来到三危山前，身处隔河相望的三危山和鸣沙山之间，乐僔在这里禁不住遥拜大山，起身仰望时忽然看到金光千佛的神奇景象，就萌生了在这里开凿石窟的念头。于是，乐僔在鸣沙山断崖前住了下来，一边坐禅修行，一边在峭壁上架空凿险，建造石窟。在乐僔的不懈努力下，多年以后，终于在山上凿建了第一个洞窟，莫高窟自此创建。
乐僔之后，又有法良禅师来到这里。他同样看到了在乐僔面前显现过的奇异景象，于是就在乐僔窟旁开凿了莫高窟的第二个洞窟。此后，这里的僧侣、香客、朝拜者络绎不绝，人们纷纷在这里修建寺院、开窟造像，规模越来越大。法良虽然不是第一个在此开窟的人，却与乐僔一同被认作莫高窟开窟的鼻祖，成为敦煌石窟的创建者。
Founders of Mogao Caves
In 366 during the Sixteen Kingdoms period, a pilgrim-monk named Yue Zun arrived in Dunhuang. He wandered in between Sanwei Mountain and Sounding Sand Hill and gazed in awe at the majestic peaks. Looking up, he suddenly had a vision of a golden radiance in the form of a thousand Buddhas, which inspired him to carve caves in that location. Thus, Yue settled on the cliffs of Sounding Sand, where he practiced meditation while carefully excavating the steep rock face to construct the caves. Thanks to his relentless efforts, he ultimately completed the first cave on the mountain, marking the founding of the Mogao Caves.
After Yue Zun, another monk named Fa Liang arrived at the site. He too saw the extraordinary vision that had appeared to Yue and began to carve the second cave of Mogao next to Yue's. From that point on, monks, devotees, and pilgrims flocked to the area, building temples, caves, and Buddhist statues, hence expanding the scale of the site. Although Fa was not the first to carve caves there, he and Yue are both recognized as the founding figures of the Mogao Caves who played a crucial role in the establishment of the Dunhuang cave complex.
