Artworks

Five Great Bodhisattvas, Tōji lecture hall

Artwork · Anonymous · c. 839 · sculpture · Tō-ji Temple

The five Kokūzō bodhisattvas of boundless wisdom in the sculptural mandala of the Tōji lecture hall. Kongō Hō (Vajraratna), in the south-east corner of the group, is close to Nara-period sculpture: seated calmly in the lotus position, with elaborate necklace, armbands and crown and the natural folds of his garment. The bodies have greater bulk and a sensuality that Sawa Takaaki connects with Kūkai’s preferences. Head, body and the heart of the pedestal are carved from a single block, hollowed from the back; details are modelled in lacquer and the figures covered with gold leaf. Of the original images the central Kongō Haramitsu is a later replacement. 1 Mason 2005, pp. 131–132, fig. 159. ↩ Literatur Mason 2005: Penelope E. Mason, History of Japanese Art, 2nd, Pearson Education LTD. 2005.