English ver. Message from SAGAWA Fumon 英訳｜狹川普文様

Bravo! To the Project Team Working on a Complete Reconstruction of the Shukongōshin Standing Statue

 

 

SAGAWA Fumon
Chief Priest of the Kegon Sect, 223rd Steward of Tōdaiji Temple

 

 

The Standing Statue of Shukongōshin [Skt. Vajrapāṇ], the guardian of the north, has stood in the Hokkedō [Lotus Hall] for approximately 1,300 years and it continues to fascinate people to this day. 

It is said that the first Steward of Tōdaiji temple, Rōben, always kept this statue of Shukongōshin close at hand and the perfection of its form embodies the philosophy and energy of the early Tōdaiji. 

The Tengai-mon Gate and the Hokkedō building both date back to the original establishment of the temple complex and display an imposing appearance, while the Buddhist statues housed within the Hokkedō possess a compelling power that can only be described as miraculous. 

Their potency gives proof to the supreme efforts of the people who have treasured them down them down through the ages. 

 

The form and coloring of this Shukongōshin statue incorporate a great appeal and as a result of ten years of scientific study and research, the project team have succeeded in producing a painstakingly accurate plan the original decoration for the Reiwa period. I am sure that the sculptors who created the original during the eighth century would be amazed at the result. 

It can be said that this sculpture represents the culmination of many years of work by Professor Yabuuchi Satoshi who has served as the overall producer of the project. 

Two reproductions have been created, one is made using the dry lacquer technique and represents the statue’s present condition while the other is a clay statue that will have color and decoration applied to the surface to recreate what is thought to be its original appearance. I would like to express my sincere appreciation for this laudable project. 

After completion, these statues are to be donated to Tōdaiji temple where they will be treasured and employed to give people some idea of how the temple must have looked at the time the statue was first created.

I look forward to praying before these statues, both dry lacquer and clay, within the precincts of Tōdaiji temple in the near future.