Amida Nyorai of Jorakuji and the two attendant statues

At Jorakuji, an ancient Tendai sect temple located in Higashi-Naganuma, the Amida Triad statue, designated as a Tokyo Metropolitan Cultural Property, is enshrined. It is housed inside the Amida Hall (main hall) on the right after entering the temple gate, and along with the Koshouji Kannon Bosatsu statue, it is known as one of the oldest Buddhist statues in the city.
The three Buddhist statues are all made of cypress wood using the yosegi-zukuri technique. Their heights are as follows: the central Amida Nyorai seated statue is 78.4 cm, the right attendant Kannon Bosatsu standing statue is 92.7 cm, and the left attendant Seishi Bosatsu standing statue is 92.3 cm.
The seated Amitabha Buddha statue in the central shrine is in the posture of right foot over left in the lotus position (crossing both legs and placing the instep of each foot on the opposite thigh). The right hand faces forward with the first and second fingers bent, and the left hand also faces upward with the first and second fingers bent. The ushnisha (the curly hair on the head of the Buddha statue) is carved, and the eyes are carved and attached. The robe covers from the right shoulder to the abdomen, wrapping around the thighs and legs. Overall, lacquer gilding (applying gold leaf over lacquer) is applied over a cloth base, but the chest area shows noticeable peeling of both the base and the lacquer gilding.
The structure is carved from a single piece of wood for the head and body, with a split at the neck below the three grooves (called "sando") on the neck, and hollowed out inside. Separate pieces of wood are joined at the back of the head behind the ears, the back of the body, the shoulder, elbow, and wrist of the right arm, and the cuff and wrist of the left arm.
You can see characteristics of the Fujiwara period in the calm expression of the lowered eyes, but features such as the slightly large snail-shell curls and the somewhat dense folds of the robe, which alternate between large and small pleats, retain an older style. The work is believed to be a regional piece from the early 12th century.
The two attendants placed on the left and right of the Amitabha Buddha statue are the Kannon Bodhisattva statue and the Seishi Bodhisattva statue, both standing figures. The right attendant, the Kannon Bodhisattva statue, stands upright on a pedestal, with the right hand hanging down with the palm facing forward, and the left hand bent holding a lotus flower. The head is styled with a topknot, and the eyes are carved. It is dressed in a shoulder cloth (jōhaku) and heavenly robe (ten'i), and below the waist wears a skirt and a waist cloth. Overall, the fabric base is decorated with lacquer and gold leaf.
The structure spans front to back along the line connecting behind the ear and behind the heel, with an inner hollowing.
The statue of Bodhisattva Seishi, standing with the right hand bent and the left hand hanging down, is otherwise almost identical in form and structure to the statue of Kannon. The objects held, the detached parts of the heavenly robe, and the tips of the feet on both statues are believed to have been made in later periods.
Both flanking attendants share techniques and facial expressions, especially the indistinct lines of the lower eyelids, which are common with the central figure, and are considered to be created as a set with the central figure.
The investigation confirmed that one of the five repair wooden plaques placed inside the Chuson statue bears an inscription in ink stating "Shoo 3rd year, October, Buddhist sculptor Shohei Yamaguchi." It is known that repairs were carried out in the early Edo period, in the 3rd year of Shoo (1654).
All three statues show slight imperfections in their sculptural beauty, but their forms, bodies, and drapery are well-arranged, making them excellent examples of regionally crafted Buddhist statues with superior technique.