Devil in the details in a temple full of allusions

As imposing as the Fahai frescoes are, Lu Shaojie, a veteran guide at the Fahai Temple, in whose main hall they are housed, believes that the saying "The devil is in the detail" could not be more apt in this hall of saints.

"Initially people may be overwhelmed by all the splendor, but ultimately it was the improbable care given to the tiniest detail that gives the murals their emotional weight and imbues a viewer, Buddhist or not, with a sense of awe."

One particularly startling detail involves the blood vessels on the ear of a fox, painted on the hall's northern wall. Under a magnifying glass they appear to be fork-like crimson lines, so fine that they seem to be just tapering away. But there is a delicate translucence to the wall of the vessel, as well as a palpability to the flowing of blood underneath.