Todaiji Temple: Prince Siddhartha at Birth
Gilt bronze
Todaiji Temple: Prince Siddhartha at Birth (detail)
Todaiji Temple: Prince Siddhartha at Birth
JAPAN, Nara; Nara period
The statue was cast probably for the Buddha bathing ceremony held during the consecration ceremony of Vairocana Buddha at the Todaiji Temple’s Golden Hall in 752. Statues of Prince Siddhartha at birth for Bathing the Buddha ceremonies were cast since the Asuka period (538–645). It was listed as a National Treasure in 1952.
The infant prince raises his right hand and points down with the other hand, declaring to be greater than any in heaven or on earth. The muscles on the chest and arms are depicted as soft and the figure wears a skirt turned down at the top. The base of the bowl holding the statue has fine, protruding lines shaped like a fish. Between the lines are lively and natural engravings of auspicious animals and other motifs.
For more details, go to the Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Sculpture St-Z, page 1215.
Cite this article:
author = Hsingyun and Youheng and Lovelock, Yann and Chou, Yuan and Huntington, Susan and Edson, Gary and Neather, Robert,
booktitle = {Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Sculpture St-Z},
pages = 1215,
title = {{Todaiji Temple: Prince Siddhartha at Birth}},
volume = 13,
year = {2016}}