National Treasure Hall
Statue of Kubanda
National Treasure
Kubanda is one of the Eight Kinds of Mythological Beings. It is thought to be a representation of the yakshas, a class of beings in Hindu, Jain and Buddhist beliefs that are conceived of as either benign nature spirits or malevolent ghosts that prey on travelers. With its glaring eyes and bared teeth, Kubanda appears to symbolize the latter.
In Japanese Buddhism a more common name for Kubanda is yasha. Yakshas are servants of Bishamonten (also known as Tamonten), a deity of war and one of the Four Heavenly Kings. He is king of the north and is regarded as a benign deity who protects the righteous.
This work is dated to 734 and was made by the hollow-core dry-lacquer sculpting technique.