Unganji Temple
Main Image Kongo Rikishi (Nio Guardians) Category Tenbu (Deva)
Impression TagsPowerDignityTense Presence
DescriptionA pair of Kongo Rikishi statues stands in the Sanmon Gate of Unganji Temple. They were carved by the master craftsman Takahashi Ichizo (Enmanzo), who is remembered as the composer of the Akita folk song Donpan-bushi and was nicknamed the Tohoku Hidari Jingoro. According to tradition, the temple's priest commissioned the statues after a large tree in the grounds died from a lightning strike; the two figures were carved from the upper and lower portions of the same trunk. Their powerful, dynamic forms guard the gate of what is said to be the oldest temple in the Kakunodate area. The temple also preserves the Shiraiwa-yaki Thousand Buddhas, a Tangible Cultural Property of Akita Prefecture.
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