About Hibutsu

Hibutsu are Japanese Buddhist icons or statues concealed from public view. Hibutsu are generally located within Buddhist temples in shrines called zushi . They are generally unavailable for viewing or worship, although they are brought out for specific religious ceremonies; it is also possible in some cases for the hibutsu to be viewed in exchange for an offering to the temple. Certain hibutsu, such as the wooden statue of Gautama Buddha at Seiryō-ji or the Amida statuary at Zenkō-ji, are almost never displayed, even to initiates of the temples in which they are held. Others are put on public display only rarely, in a ceremony called kaichō .

13th century copy of the Taima Mandala. Japan, Kamakura period.

Buddhist art – The devotional artistic practices

Jul

2022

Art, Dharma

Buddhist art is the artistic practices that are influenced by Buddhism. It includes art media which depict Buddhas, bodhisattvas, and other entities, notable Buddhist figures, both historical and mythical, narrative scenes from the lives of all of these, mandalas and other graphic aids to practice, as well as physical objects associated with Buddhist practice, such as vajras, bells, stupas and Buddhist temple architecture. Buddhist art originated on the Indian subcontinent following the historical life .