Bronze Seated Statue of Shaka Nyorai (in the Main Hall)

A Rival to the Yakushiji Yakushi

The Bronze Seated Statue of Shaka Nyorai (in the Main Hall) (銅造釈迦如来坐像（本堂安置）) is a Nara-period bronze seated Shaka enshrined in the main hall of Kanimanji in Kabata, Yamashiro-cho, Kizugawa City, Kyoto Prefecture, which in 1953 was designated a National Treasure.

The Kizugawa City Tourism Association gives its height as 2.403 metres and its weight as two tonnes, in gilt bronze.

According to Kizugawa City, Kanimanji was founded at the end of the Hakuho period, around 680, and this is its principal image.

Significance

Kizugawa City notes that it is regarded as a masterpiece comparable to the Yakushi of the Yakushiji Kondo in Nara, considered the finest work in the history of Japanese Buddhist art.

The tourism association notes that it is thought to predate the Nara period, and that the only comparable early life-size gilt bronze Buddhas are the Asuka Daibutsu, the Kofukuji Buddha head and the Yakushiji Yakushi.

What to Look For

Kizugawa City explains that, because its origins were obscure, its history was long debated, but a survey in 2005 showed it had been the temple's image since its Hakuho founding.

The city notes that the temple is famous for the tale of the grateful crab in the Konjaku Monogatari, though its name actually comes from the ancient place name Kamuhata.

Visiting the Bronze Seated Statue of Shaka Nyorai (in the Main Hall)

The tourism association gives visiting hours of 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., with admission of 500 yen for adults and 200 yen for junior high students.

It is about 20 minutes on foot from JR Tanakura Station, with parking. Enquiries: Kanimanji, 0774-86-2577.