Nihonji Daibutsu (Kyonan) | statue, monument, heritage, buddhism, interesting place

 statue, monument, heritage, buddhism, interesting place

The Daibutsu of Nihon-ji at Nokogiriyama in Chiba Prefecture, originally carved by Jingoro Eirei Ono and his 27 apprentices within 3 years, completed in 1783. It was badly damaged by erosion (a combination of earthquakes, the elements and neglect ) in the late Edo period, and restored in 1969. It is Japan's largest stone carved daibutsu with 31.05 metres (101.9 ft) tall; the head only, chin to top, is 6.6 m - which makes it second-sized Great Buddha in Japan (first among the stone ones) and one of the biggest in the world.

High on its windy plinth, the victim of sun and salt erosion, the Buddha, despite its face-lift, looks all of its 200 and some years.

This is an image known as Ruriko Bhechadjaguru Tathagata, signifying that the Universe is "a pure field confined in a lotus world", a symbol of world peace, inner peace and tranquillity of the essence of the being.

search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fv20001129a1.html