If you ask 100 people how a Rakan (Note 1) should look like, you get as many different answers. That’s what gave rise to 1,200 of Rakan statues that Otagi Nenbutsu-ji, the temple at the outskirt of Kyoto, Japan is well-known for.
In the 1980s, under the guidance of chief of temple Kocho Nishimura (Note 2), 1,200 everyday people, who made a pilgrimage to the temple, learned carving to bring out the unique and personal figures that were hiding in the stone, each Rakan statue possessing a particular personality with a distinctly pre-enlightened identity.
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While walking around studying the characters covered in moss, I discovered a face completely cover with hands. Yeah, love can make you blind, I guess.
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As many faces/personalities in the world, I suspect there are varying shapes and forms of fatherhood. Since I’m only one daughter to one man, I’d leave the scientific study to the ones with access to vast amount of data.
What I wanted to say is, enjoy the Father’s Day, knowing that you’ve loved, guided and disciplined to the best of your ability.
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Note 1 Rakan are followers (disciples) of Buddha.
Note 2 Nishimura was a Buddhist statue sculptor and restorer that later becaume a Buddhist monk. He was the chief of the temple at the time of the rakan creations.
