Five statues by a renowned Indonesian artist are on their way

Peace Times 10

On the Indonesian Island of Java, Kasrin an artist with his workshop in Muntilan, a small town some ten minutes from Borobudur, - site of the greatest Buddhist monument in the world - is sculpting in lavic rock, the statues of the five Dhyani Buddhas destined to adorn the new monastery of Gangchen. Given the length of the journey from Indonesia to Tibet the five statues will travel by sea to Calcutta in India, before proceeding over land to Gangchen.

The statues which represent the Buddha in his five manifestations (Amoghasiddhi, Ratnasambhava, Akshobya, Amitabha and Vairochana), are nearly five feet high and weigh some two hundred pounds each.

Kasrin comes from a long lineage of artists: his father was a sculptor. For more than thirty years, ever since he was a small boy, he has been carving extraordinary forms of Buddhist and Hinduist deities in hard volcano rock. His workshop carries the name of Wabgsa Cailedra, the king who launched the construction of the Borobudur stupa mandala. Some of his works of art embellish the parks of some of the most important Indonesian cities, and others still can be admired in Belgium, Taiwan and Australia.

«My philosophy is based on cultivating optimism, courage, respect for our tradition», explains Kasrin who has a favourite student: his son Yoga Budhi Wantoro. He adds: «When I sculpt a Buddha, I face the task with inner purity and clarity.   s.d.