Nyorai: The Buddhas

Japonista Dictionary › Deity ranks

Nyorai (如来), the Japanese rendering of the Sanskrit tathāgata, means one who has come thus: a being who has reached complete awakening. The Nyorai stand at the summit of the Buddhist hierarchy and at the centre of almost every temple altar. Where a bodhisattva is dressed as a prince, a buddha is dressed as a monk, and that simplicity is the first thing to look for.

What a buddha looks like

Japanese sculptors followed a canon of bodily marks inherited from India. A Nyorai has short hair in tight snail-shell curls (rahotsu), a cranial protuberance (nikkei), a small jewel or curl between the brows (byakugō) and long earlobes, stretched by the heavy earrings of the princely life the historical Buddha gave up. Three folds at the neck signal radiance. The robe is a single draped cloth, worn over both shoulders or leaving the right shoulder bare. These are described in full in Marks of the Buddha.

Because buddhas look so alike, their identity rests on the hands. The mudrā and any object held, such as Yakushi's medicine jar, are the decisive clues.

The buddhas of Japan

• Shaka Nyorai, the historical Buddha, teacher of this world.
• Amida Nyorai, Buddha of Infinite Light and lord of the Western Pure Land.
• Yakushi Nyorai, the Medicine Buddha of the Eastern Pure Land.
• Dainichi Nyorai, the cosmic Buddha of esoteric teaching.
• Birushana, the radiant Buddha of the Great Buddha Hall at Tōdaiji.
• Miroku, the Buddha of the future, more often shown as a bodhisattva in waiting.

Buddhas in sets

Buddhas rarely stand alone. In a triad a Nyorai is flanked by two bodhisattvas: Amida with Kannon and Seishi, Shaka with Monju and Fugen, Yakushi with Nikkō and Gakkō. In esoteric Buddhism the Five Wisdom Buddhas, Gochi Nyorai, group Dainichi with four buddhas of the directions, and the Two Realms Mandala maps them all. The Thirteen Buddhas preside over memorial rites.

Collecting notes

• Most Nyorai figures found today are Edo period temple and household images in gilt or lacquered wood, often the principal image, honzon, of a family altar.
• Check whether the hands are original. Hands were carved separately and are the part most often replaced, which can change the apparent identity of a figure.
• The halo and pedestal belong to the figure's meaning. See Halos and Pedestals.

In the collection

Browse Amida, Shaka and Dainichi figures, or the full Buddhist Statues and Sacred Art collection. For a particular form, our collector concierge can search Japan on your behalf.

See also

• Bosatsu: The Bodhisattvas
• How to Read a Buddhist Statue
• Periods of Japanese Buddhist Sculpture
• Why collect Japanese Buddhist statues