Worshipping by circumambulating was a time-honored traditional ceremony in ancient India that was later adopted by Buddhism as a way to show respect for Buddha. This paper discusses whether ancient Buddhist followers at the Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes worshipped Buddha by circumambulating clockwise or counter-clockwise. By investigating statues and murals in caves from different times and structures at the Mogao Grottoes, in particular the visual material on this ceremony in Mogao Cave 23, and by comprehensively analyzing the regulations for worshipping Buddha in Buddhist texts, this paper comes to the conclusion that ancient Buddhist followers paid their respects to Buddha by circumambulating clockwise around a central statue of Buddha.
