“A friend of mine came up with the title for me… ‘Onendoshi’,” says the Buddhist sculptor… or rather, Onendoshi “Ookubo Taiga.” He works with clay in his daily life as if he were cooking, and has already created over 300 Buddhist statues to date.
Ookubo Taka, a Buddhist sculptor, says, “The most important thing for a Buddhist sculptor is to love the Buddha from the bottom of his heart. That feeling naturally becomes ‘Namu’ and becomes the attitude to face the Buddha.” The feelings behind these words are so filled with overflowing love that even I, who have known him for five years, can sense his deep affection for the Buddha.
ima presents “Kataru” will be featuring Onen-tsuji priest Ookubo Taka over several episodes starting from this issue.
In the first installment, take a look at some of the devotional “Buddha statues” created by Ookubo Taka.
A meticulously crafted Buddhist statue of prayer
A form of prayer that has been passed down through the generations
A group of breathtaking Buddhist statues emerges in the sunlight streaming in. This spectacular sight was created through the love and passion of Buddhist sculptor Okubo Taka, who has spent hundreds, even thousands of hours working with clay, kneading it, since his childhood. How did they elevate into such an emotionally moving “presence”? In the next episode, Part 2, we will unravel the hidden thoughts behind Buddhist sculptor Ookubo Taka.
A word from the author
On the day of this interview and photoshoot, I met Taiga for the first time in three months, and he still had the same smile and gentle demeanor. There’s no doubt that a certain percentage of my love for Buddhist statues comes from Taiga. I’m amazed every time we talk, by his boundless knowledge and wealth of information. We had a meaningful time filled with love for Buddhism and Buddhist statues.
Thank you for watching Episode 1, “Onenjishi Okubo Taka’s Creation of Prayerful Buddhist Statues.”
Please look forward to Episode 2 next time.