Ni-o - Washington, DC - Epic Beings and Creatures on Waymarking.com

The Freer Gallery is free to visit and is part of the Smithsonian Institution and open daily 10:30 to 5.
The Gallery sign indicates that this 14th century wooden sculpture is from Japan. It depicts Ni-o...a pair of guards set to gaurd Buddha at temples. This particular set came from Ebaradera... a temple in Sakai.

Wikipedia (visit link) adds:

"Nio... or Kongorikishi ... are two wrath-filled and muscular guardians of the Buddha standing today at the entrance of many Buddhist temples in East Asian Buddhism in the form of frightening wrestler-like statues. They are dharmapala manifestations of the bodhisattva Vajrapa?i, the oldest and most powerful of the Mahayana Buddhist pantheon. According to Japanese tradition, they travelled with Gautama Buddha to protect him and there are references to this in the Pali Canon as well as the Amba??ha Sutta. Within the generally pacifist tradition of Buddhism, stories of dharmapalas justified the use of physical force to protect cherished values and beliefs against evil. The Nio are also seen as a manifestation of Mahasthamaprapta, the bodhisattva of power that flanks Amitabha in Pure Land Buddhism and as Vajrasattva in Tibetan Buddhism."

Approximate Date of Epic Period: 400 BC Epic Type: Religous Exhibit Type: Figure, Statue, 3D Art Time Period: Not listed

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Date Logged Log   08/26/2014 Metro2 visited it