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Stuck-in-the-Sixties

@suebiohazard.bsky.social

Promoting sixties-inspired peaceful vibes through music, art, photography, science, and other groovy stuff. Photo: The Paragon, Bath x my new science blog https://sciencecontentcreator.wordpress.com

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The Kimono Gallery@roger1952.bsky.social · 16h ago

Dating to the early fourteenth century during the late Kamakura period (1185–1333), Japan, this sacred image represents Esoteric Buddhism’s (Mikkyō) vision of the Bodhisattva of the Wish-Fulfilling Jewel and the Wheel of the Law.

Seated in a pose of contemplative ease (mahārājalīlāsana), this early fourteenth-century wooden sculpture of Nyoirin Kannon—the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara in the form of Chintamanichakra—inclines its head gently to rest a right hand against its cheek, absorbed in profound meditation over the salvation of all sentient beings. The six-armed deity sits with the right knee raised and the sole of the foot pressed inward, its fluid, asymmetrical posture balancing supreme celestial authority with intimate, earthly accessibility. Luminous patches of gold leaf (haku) cling to the rounded contours of the torso, face, and tall, braided topknot, softening into the dark, burnished patina of the underlying lacquered cypress (hinoki). One right hand holds the wish-fulfilling jewel (nyoi-hōju) at its chest, while upper arms reach out to hold the wheel of the Law (hōrin) and stabilize the body against the earth. Intricate, microscopic geometric lace rendered in cut gold leaf (kirikane) glimmers along the hems of the flowing garments. The sculpture projects an intensely serene sensory atmosphere: the cool, porcelain-like touch of century-aged wood and smoothed lacquer, the faint, lingering scent of incense embedded in cypress grain, the soft glow of gilded surfaces in low light, and the profound, unbroken silence radiating from downcast, crystal-inlaid eyes. The creation of such an icon exemplifies the supreme summit of Japanese Buddhist sculpture (busshi) and the spirit of monozukuri (artisanal mastery and sacred craft). Influenced by the realistic innovations of the Kamakura-period Kei school, the statue employs the joined-block wood technique (yosegi-zukuri), which allowed sculptors to hollow out the interior to prevent warping and insert realistic crystal eyes (gyokugan) from within the head.