Pop Japan

The rakan sculptures are said to be statues of the rakans, or arhat in Sanskrit, who are said to be the disciples of Shaka or the founder of Buddhism. A rakan is said to be the "one who is worthy" or the "perfected person" who has achieved the so-called nirvana or spiritual quenching. This may also be the reason why the statues convey different kinds of emotions, depending on how one person will interpret the feeling of being spiritually cleaned.

Photo by 663highland. Photo taken at the Otagi Nenbutsu Temple in Sagano, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. Licensed under Creative Commons. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en)

Tags: rakan, rakan sculptures, arhat, sanskrit, nirvana, buddhism, buddha, one who is worthy, perfected person, spiritual quenching, spiritual cleaning, emotions