Three-Headed Deity In Ashura Temple
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Format:
- Oban
- Publisher:
- Watanabe Shozaburo
- Edition:
- Published by Watanabe Shozaburo
- Source:
- Japanese Art Open Database
Description
A three-headed form of the deity Ashura — the fierce guardian figure with six arms, three faces expressing different emotional states — appears in the iconographic style associated with the eighth-century Nara sculpture at Kofukuji Temple, one of the most celebrated Buddhist images in Japan. Kasamatsu's rendering engages with the formal problem of depicting a supernatural being whose multiple simultaneous aspects resist naturalistic representation, requiring instead the conventions of Buddhist iconography to convey transcendent significance.
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Featured in Collections
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Frequently Asked Questions
Three-Headed Deity In Ashura Temple was created by Shiro Kasamatsu (笠松紫浪).
Three-Headed Deity In Ashura Temple was published by Watanabe Shozaburo.
Three-Headed Deity In Ashura Temple depicts temples & shrines and mythology.