Often found either side of the gateways to Buddhist temples, Niō statues are placed there to protect the temple from evil spirits and instil fear in the hearts of would-be robbers. Also referred to as Kongorishiki, these fierce looking warrior deities were originally Hindu gods known as Vajradharas or “thunderbolt wielders”, incorporated into Buddhism as temple guardians. Despite their fearsome appearance,
Niō (仁王) in Japanese means “benevolent kings”.
An important distinction between the two statues is their mouth position.
One of the pair has his mouth open and seems to be saying “Ah”, the other, with his mouth closed is saying “Un”. For this reason they are known as Agyo and Ungyo respectively. “Ah” and “Un” are the first and last letters of the ancient Sanskrit alphabet, and subsequently the Japanese phonetic alphabets, and represent the beginning and end of all things. Similar to the western notion of Alpha-Omega, the concept of Ah-Un signifies “everything in the universe”. In Nara, the Niō statues guarding Tōdaiji temple’s Nandaimon gate are magnificent examples. Dating from the beginning of the 13th century they are the largest in Japan, with both standing more than eight meters tall. Each one was constructed from over three thousand individually carved pieces of wood by the two great Japanese sculptors Unkei and Kaikei, along with twenty of their assistants. According to records, it only took sixty nine days to complete these two national treasures using this new assembly technique. The sculptors intended these statues to be viewed from below, so their bodies were made longer than their legs to create a well-balanced and powerful image when we look up at them.
Guarding the inner gate of Hōryū-ji Temple, we find another pair of fierce Niō statues. Completed in 711, they are the oldest clay Kongorishiki statues in Japan; unfortunately however, the torso of the statue on the left side had to be repaired with wood in the 16th century. The right-hand statue is entirely original, and was once painted red to represent “light”, while the other was painted black representing “darkness”, further highlighting of the concept of Ah-Un.
Niō statues are always impressive with their muscular bodies and ferocious expressions wherever they are found around Japan, however visitors to Nara would do well not to miss the chance to come face to face with the oldest, biggest and baddest temple guardians in the country.