My favorite sculpture in all of art history. A sculpture of the Kuya, a tenth century Buddhist priest who helped spread Buddhism in Japan. It's remarkably lifelike, which makes the little figures marching out of his mouth (representing the sutras) all the more striking.
https://twitter.com/art_ex_japan/status/1455104814329696257
My first day ever in Kyoto I decided not to look up directions to any specific temples, just let fate guide me. The very first temple I arrived at was Rokuharamitsuji, a beautiful, quiet place that happened to be the home of this statue. Seeing it was truly a religious experience 
To be clear it was my explicit mission to see that statue. I intended to look up exactly where it was, but wanted to take things easy my first day. It was pure coincidence / providence that it happened to be in the first temple I went to. The first one that just felt right!
And what's even crazier is, that statue is a marked national treasure. It's not usually on display! I happened to catch it during it's first public showing in years! Everything aligned just right in that moment. I was truly blessed (and continue to be to this day)🙏📿🕉️
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