Lit. horse-mouth mudra. A mudra or hand gesture *in 印, formed by placing both palms…

Lit. bind (Sk: bandha). A mudra or hand gesture *in 印, formed by clasping both…

A gigaku mask *gigakumen 伎楽面, representing a Brahmin (the highest…

Also written 髪頭, 鉢頭, 撥頭. A dance piece in *bugaku 舞楽 and the mask of a terse,…

Also 辮髪. A long rope of hair hanging down the left side of the face and the left shoulder of a sculpted figure.…

Also called akujō beshimi 悪尉べし見, depending upon the school of Noh mask *nōmen…

Also sōgyō 僧形. A statue of a figure with a round shaved head, usually representing a Buddhist priest. Most commonly…

An abbreviation of *Bishamonten 毘沙門天, one of the four heavenly kings, or *…

A box for sutras. Indian sutras were written on long, narrow palm leaves. The leaves were stacked one top of the other, with…

1　Abbreviation of bodai satta 菩提薩た, a transliteration of the Sanskrit bodhisattva (Pari bodhisatta…

A mask used in kyōgen 狂言 plays to represent a demon. Glaring eyes, a wide jaw, and bared teeth give the mask a…

Masks worn when performing certain of the *bugaku 舞楽 dances developed from…

Also bukkō 仏工, zōbusshi 造仏師. A sculptor of Buddhist statues. 

The term was first used in the…

The lineage of a Buddhist sculptor *busshi 仏師, often presented as a…

A workshop or school of Buddhist sculptors *busshi 仏師. Bussho usually…

Also gan 龕. A niche carved out of a wall for the purpose of installing a Buddhist image, or a miniature Buddhist…

A general term that refers to all images of the Buddha used as objects of worship, although most commonly used to refer to…

Sandalwood; santalum album. A tree with fine-grained hardwood, native to India and Southeast Asia. The wood is pale-yellow…

Also *mikenkō 眉間光, miken byakugō 眉間白毫, miken byakugōsō 眉間白毫相…

Also takushu 磔手 and chōshu 張手 (Sk: vitasti). A unit of measure that originated in India, used in the…

Father old man. A Noh mask *nōmen 能面 representing a cheerful old man. The powder…

The path purifier, mask worn by the first actor in a procession of ancient theatrical performances gigaku 伎楽.…

Lit. knowledge-fist mudra. A mudra or hand gesture *in 印 formed by…

Also enjiraku or enchiraku 円地楽. A piece in imperial court dancing *…

Also chinzō chōkoku, see *chinsō 頂相. Portrait sculptures of…

Eyes carved directly into the surface of a wooden sculpture. This method was in general use until the late Heian period when…

Also kinjūza 禽獣座 and jūza 獣座. A pedestal or throne for a Buddhist image in the form of a bird or a…

Also pronounced chōketsui. A garment with long sleeves. Seen, for example, on images of *…

Also kairen 開蓮. A lotus flower found on the head of a *Fudō Myōō …

A Noh mask *nōmen 能面 supposedly intended to represent the 9th-century poet and…

Metal casting. A technique used in metalwork to produce vessels or sculptures by melting down metal and pouring it into a…

Also chūdai-no-son 中台の尊. The principal statue in a group of Buddhist statues. The central image in a triad or group…

Also imono 鋳物. Casting. A technique used to make cast sculptural forms. 

The base material was heated…