Buddhist statues at Nara temple get New Year's dust-off

Buddhist statues at Nara temple get New Year's dust-off

NARA, Japan - - The three Buddhist statues at the Golden Pavilion of the Yakushiji temple in Nara get a New Year's dust-off in a cleaning ceremony attended by 500 visitors on Dec. 29. The photo shows the two bodhisattva statues, Nikko on the left and Gakko on the right, being carefully cleansed by Buddhist priests. The sitting Tathagata statue in the center shines after cleansing. Nikko and Gakko will be exhibited at the Tokyo National Museum in March next year for a four-month period. The three Buddhist statues are designated national treasures.

American Zen priest promotes Jizo project for Hiroshima, Nagasaki

American Zen priest promotes Jizo project for Hiroshima, Nagasaki

KYOTO, Japan - Jan Chozen Bays (R), an American Zen master, speaks with reporters at a Kyoto hotel on Aug. 4. She called for people to join a project to make some 270,000 statues and written images of Jizo Bodhisattva to represent the victims of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and promote world peace. Bays said she came up with the idea when she visited Hiroshima and Nagasaki two years ago. Jizo Bodhisattva is the guardian of deceased children, expectant mothers, firemen, travelers, and pilgrims.

American Zen priest promotes Jizo project for Hiroshima, Nagasak

American Zen priest promotes Jizo project for Hiroshima, Nagasak

KYOTO, Japan - Jan Chozen Bays (R), an American Zen master, speaks with reporters at a Kyoto hotel on Aug. 4. She called for people to join a project to make some 270,000 statues and written images of Jizo Bodhisattva to represent the victims of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and promote world peace. Bays said she came up with the idea when she visited Hiroshima and Nagasaki two years ago. Jizo Bodhisattva is the guardian of deceased children, expectant mothers, firemen, travelers, and pilgrims. (Kyodo)

Buddhist statues at Nara temple get New Year's dust-off

Buddhist statues at Nara temple get New Year's dust-off

NARA, Japan - - The three Buddhist statues at the Golden Pavilion of the Yakushiji temple in Nara get a New Year's dust-off in a cleaning ceremony attended by 500 visitors on Dec. 29. The photo shows the two bodhisattva statues, Nikko on the left and Gakko on the right, being carefully cleansed by Buddhist priests. The sitting Tathagata statue in the center shines after cleansing. Nikko and Gakko will be exhibited at the Tokyo National Museum in March next year for a four-month period. The three Buddhist statues are designated national treasures. (Kyodo)