Dojoji Temple: Thousand-Armed Avalokitesvara with Suryaprabha and Candraprabha Bodhisattvas

JAPAN, Wakayama, Hidakagawa; Heian period

These statues date from the 9th century and were originally housed in the main shrine of Dojoji Temple. Forty-two arms commonly represent the thousand arms of Avalokitesvara, but there are 44 arms in this example. The supporting Suryaprabha and Candraprabha Bodhisattvas are generally associated with the Medicine Buddha, so this configuration is extremely rare. Some believe the Bodhisattvas were a later addition. The statues were listed as National Treasures in 1994.
The three figures are assembled from pieces of wood and painted. Avalokitesvara’s other heads are clustered about a crown fronted with a standing figure of Amitabha. Apart from a solid nimbus behind the head, a smaller hollow nimbus surrounds another head at the crown’s crest. The hands radiating about the body hold various symbolic attributes. The two arms at the front are in the anjali (reverence) mudra while the pair below holds an alms bowl. The long stole that curls on either side below the lotus pedestal, on which the figure stands, is an added framing and support element.