National Treasures & Important Cultural Properties
of National Institutes for Cultural Heritage, Japan

　　This statue is said to have come down to the Shinra Zenshindō Shrine in Onjōji Temple in Shiga Prefecture. Due to the upper mat and the lotus pedestal placed on the back, it is clear that a Monjyu (Skt. Mañjuśrī) statue was once placed on the top.
　　Three wooden boards made from a Japanese nutmeg tree are attached and another material used for the tail. The inner cavity is not used.
　　The round eyes grow wide, while the mouth is closed and the fang on both sides and the inside of the mouth can be seen. It faces front and stands firm on the ground on four legs. A wavy mane flows along the body. The back is high, and the thick body is quite impressive. The muscles and bones of the legs and the toenails are realistically represented contrary to expectation. It wears a girth (harubi), a breast harness (munagai) and crupper (shirigai) from which bud-shaped bead accessories are hung.
　　Both the head and body are painted in blue, and the mane and other hair are green, and the stomach area is pale red. The upper mat is painted in gold paint and the lotus flower is gorgeously painted in various colors, including vermilion, blue, green and white, with a finishing touch with an arrangement of cut gold leaf. The harubi, munagai and shirigai are covered in gold leaf.
　　Due to features that include the old structure using Japanese nutmeg trees, the big eyes and the facial expression with its relatively simple facial structure and thick chest, it is similar to Shishi (Lion) and Koma-inu (Guardian Dog) from the Yakushiji Temple in Nara made in Kanji 1 (1087) or Shishi (Lion) from Kyōō-gokokuji Temple in Kyoto made in the late tenth century and it is therefore possible that it was made in the eleventh century.