As a part of Tang-Tubo Road, Yushu is a vital communication hub linking up Tibet, Sichuan Province and Xining since the ancient times. Traveling along the ancient road and trade routes, we will see so many varied scenic spots, historical sites, local conditions and customs that we simply can not take them all in .

The Tang-Tubo Road, called 'The road to meet Buddha' in Tibetan, is the ancient route from Chang’an----the ancient capital of the Tang Dynasty----to Lhasa, Tibet. It has a history of over 1,300 years and is regarded as one of the three major roads.

According to historical records in Chinese and Tibetan, Songtsan Gampo, the king of Tubo Kingdom, sent the first envoys to visit Chang'an in 634 (the eighth year of Zheng Guan's reign of Tang Dynasty), and soon the Tang Court sent envoys to pay a return visit , thus the exchange of friendly visits between them started. Gar Tongtsan, the grand minister of Tubo Kingdom, was ordered to seek a marriage alliance with Tang Dynasty in 640 A.D.(the fourteenth year of Zheng Guan's reign of Tang Dynasty). Having judged the situation, Li Shiming, the Tang Emperor Taizong, gave the hand of Princess Wencheng of the Tang court in marriage to Songtsan Gampo.

Escorted by Li Daozong, the prince of Jiang Xia, Princess Wencheng left Chang"an for Lhasa with accompanying group via Tianshui, Lanzhou, Nyida Riwo and Baihai Lake (now Gyaling and Erling Lake) where Songtsan Gampo himself leading people waited to meet them, then they went westward along the north bank of the Yellow River, and arrived in Lebagou, where they carved many rock carvings, via Kharu Chu-the source of the Yellow River, Zong Longyi(now called Cao Longtan in the south of Domda River, Yushu ) and Zichu River.

They stayed in Bilung for a month. To spread Buddhism, Princess Wencheng had the craftsmen accompanying her carved nine Buddhist statues on the cliffs of Bilung. They continued towards southwest and arrived in Lhasa via Nachu, northern Tibet.

Among the nine statues, the central figure is Mahavairocana, flanked by four Boddhisattavs on two tiers of either side. Commonly called "the Eight Great Disciples of the Buddha", they are: Avalokitesvara, Mandjusri, Vadjrapani, Maitreya, Samantabhadra, Akasagarbha, Ksitigarbha and Zipa Namse (Sgri-pa Rnam-ses) Bodhisattvas.

Eighteen lines of "Kacha"written by Thomi Sambohta were carved on the cliff to the left of the relief, and twelve lines of Tibetan Buddhist Sutras and sixteen lines of " Pradjnaparamita Dhasatika" in Chinese regular script written by Princess Wencheng were carved on the cliff to the right of the relief, so were various Buddhist images, Stupas and Sutras etc. on many rocks in Bilung. Seventy year later, Princess Jincheng of the Tang court married Tride Tsutsan, , the Tsanpo of the Tubo Kingdom.

While passing by Bilung, Princess Jincheng had the hall, where the Buddhist statues carved by Princess Wencheng were enshrined and worshipped, built and had it renovated in 730 A.D.

Approved by the State Council of Chinese People's Republic of China in 1957, the rock carvings of Bilung become one of the important protected cultural relics of Qinghai Province.

The zigzag and tortuous Tang-Tubo Road stretches several thousand Li. If you travel along the ancient road, you will enjoy the magnificent sceneries of the plateau and the mystic sources of rivers, especially the enchanting carvings of Bilung.