Omaha daily bee., 1908-04-26
PROTECTING A GREAT BuppHA
Huge bronze Figure at Nara, Japan,
Induces American Assist
Rncc.


1t is certainly beautiful impulse that is
causing a subscription to be circulated in
this country for national contribution to
the fund for the restoration of the colossal
bronze sitting figure of Buddha at Nara,
Japan; and 1t may turn out to be histori-
cally an incident of much Importance. The
announcement is just made once again, as
It has been made many times during the
last six months. that the immigration ques-
tion between the Japanese government and
our own has been settled The very fact.
however, that this has to be insisted upon
so often; the circumstance that a settle
ment between diplomatists is not the same
as one assented to by the peoples involved; ;
and the great truth that things are never
settled until they are settled right-all the
phenomena of an unrelieved tension
whether reasonable or unreasonable be-
tween two hitherto friendly peoples, must
be taken into account.
The great bronze statute of the temple OF
the Dai-Butsu at Nara is familiar to every
one In pictures brought home by travellers.
Its head towers above the topmost branches
Of the trees as II may easily do. being
fifty-slx feet in height. 1t was erected in
the year 752 at the then capital-a bronze
casting overlaid with gold. Old chronicles
relate that 'at shone as with the yellow
light OF Paradise" About 1t was built a
great temple to the dedication OF which
holy men came over from the distant
shores of India. For more than 400 years
Conly third part Of its history 1t remain
ed thus But In the year 11S4.l during the
Gempe wars, the temple was burned and
the head OF the great Buddha badly dam
aged. So the ruler after this war caused
Q new head to be cast for the colossus by
the celebrated sculptor Anam and he re-
built the temple. This work was paid for
partly by the shotgun himself and partly by
popular subscription. For another 200 years
the great Buddha sat and smiled in his
enigmatical contemplation upon the world,
TIL again the temple and the colossus were
damaged by conflagration arising during
the Ashikaga wars of the fifteenth and
early sixteenth centuries. II was not until
the latter part of the seventeenth century
that new head and right hand were sup
Piled with another rebuilding of the tenn
pie, by an income taxation laid upon the
mobiles and by popular subscription. An
other lapse OF 200 years has brought signs
Of decay In the temple and danger to the
wonderful statue, so that its thorough re-
pair has been decided upon at an estimated
cost of $4,000.
1t is participation in the popular Jap
anese subscription by which half of this
sum is TO be raised, the other half having
been appropriated by the Japanese govern
ment, that the friends of Japan in this
ceuntry propose. Last year about half OF
the $4,000 to be raised by the japanese
people had been paid in. Although no ap-
peal has been made for subscriptions out
side of Japan the happy thought of an
American contribution has been put in pro-
cess OF realization, and already some sl5C
in small sums has been subscribed in Bos-
ton chiefly by members OF the steff of the
Museum of Fine Arts and the personnel OF
that institution.-Bo Transcript.