Wooden Seated Statue of Thousand-Armed Kannon (by Tankei, in the Main Hall of Rengeoin)

The Central Kannon of Sanjusangendo

The Wooden Seated Statue of Thousand-Armed Kannon (by Tankei, in the Main Hall of Rengeoin) (木造千手観音坐像〈湛慶作／（蓮華王院本堂安置）〉) is the seated Thousand-Armed Kannon enshrined as the principal image at the centre of the main hall of Rengeoin, Sanjusangendo, in Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture; it was made by the Kamakura-period sculptor Tankei and designated a National Treasure on June 9, 1951. It had first been protected under earlier law in 1908. It belongs to Myohoin.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates it to 1251 to 1254 and records inscriptions in red inside the statue giving those years together with other text. A wooden canopy is designated with it as an attached item.

Why It Is a National Treasure

According to the Japan Tourism Agency's multilingual commentary, the principal Kannon of Sanjusangendo was made under the direction of the renowned sculptor Tankei (1173 to 1256). It is assembled from multiple blocks of cypress, lacquered and finished in gold leaf.

Sanjusangendo burned in 1249 and was rebuilt in 1266. This statue is the principal image made in the course of that revival, and the inscriptions inside it confirm its date. As a major late work by Tankei, Unkei's eldest son and heir to the Kei school, it is an essential piece in the history of Kamakura sculpture.

What to Look For

The Tourism Agency explains that the thousand arms are represented by 20 pairs of arms; each of the 40 is thought to save beings in 25 worlds, making a thousand in all. Look also at the hands joined in prayer before the chest and the third eye on the forehead.

On either side of the statue stand a thousand standing Thousand-Armed Kannon. The commentary notes that they were made in a similar method and style, are much smaller than the principal image, and each has its own expression. Seeing the seated Kannon together with the ranks of standing figures conveys the layout of the hall.

Seeing the Statue

The statue is seen in the main hall of Sanjusangendo. According to Walkerplus (as of April 2026), the hall is open from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. from April 1 to November 15 and 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. from November 16 to March 31 (last entry 30 minutes before closing), with adult admission of ¥600. Sanjusangendo's website could not be reached on October 4, 2026. The building, precinct and access are covered on the Rengeoin Temple (Sanjusangendo) page.