The Bodhisattva Monju (Manjushri) with Eight Topknots

Japan

Not on view

This miniature sculpture represents a distinctive form of the bodhisattva Monju, who personifies Buddhist wisdom. This iteration of the deity shows him with his hair coiffed into eight knots, corresponding to the number of syllables in a corresponding incantation. It probably once formed part of a decorative program for the mandorla (aureole) of a much larger sculpture.

The Bodhisattva Monju (Manjushri) with Eight Topknots, Gilt bronze, Japan

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The Bodhisattva Monju (Manjushri) with Eight Topknots, Gilt bronze, Japan
The Bodhisattva Monju (Manjushri) with Eight Topknots, Gilt bronze, Japan

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