Stone Seated Buddha in Mireukgok Valley of Namsan Mountain, Gyeongju

This seated stone Buddha, presumed to remain on the site of the Silla-period Borisa Temple, has a total height of 4.36 m and a Buddha-figure height of 2.44 m, and is the most completely preserved Silla-period stone Buddha now remaining on Namsan Mountain in Gyeongju. The head, covered in small snail-shell curls, rises to a high knot-shaped protrusion (yukgye, the crown protuberance of a Buddha), and the round face carries a subtle, inward smile. The robe draped over both shoulders appears to hang loosely, with parallel folds carved here and there. The hand gesture is the bhumisparsha mudra (hangma-chokjiin, the gesture of subduing demons), with the right hand resting on the knee, fingertips pointing down, and the left hand placed against the abdomen, though the gesture appears somewhat delicate. The halo (gwangbae), made separately from the Buddha figure, is highly decorative, richly carved inside with small buddhas and floral-scroll and vine patterns. Notably, on the back of the halo a Bhaisajyaguru Buddha, who is said to cure all illness, is engraved in fine lines - a distinctive feature found only in such examples as the halo at Mubongsa Temple in Miryang and the halo at Gyeongbuk University.

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Where it is

Region

Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk

Designation

Treasure · 보물