Kokosan Kinsho-ji Temple
Main Image Stone Buddhist Statues (1,319 figures, including the Child-Rearing Kannon) Category Bodhisattva / Other
Impression TagsWarmthGentlenessDepth
DescriptionKinsho-ji, Temple No. 4 of the Chichibu Thirty-Four Kannon Pilgrimage, is known as the “temple of stone Buddhas,” with 1,319 stone images throughout its grounds. The group was initiated by the monk Kosen Togaku to memorialize those who died in the great famine that began in 1783 and related hardships; tradition says there were once about 3,800 statues. Beside the Kannon Hall is the Child-Rearing Kannon, also called the Motherly Kannon, depicting a mother about to nurse an infant on her lap. Its donor, Yoshinoya Hanzaemon, is said to have commissioned the image after losing both the child he believed had been granted through the principal Kannon's blessing and his wife, having an ukiyo-e artist depict the mother and child as they had appeared in life. Visitors can encounter the many stone images and the gentle Child-Rearing Kannon at close range during an ordinary visit.
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