SŎKKURAM

Sŏkkuram (Stone Grotto Hermitage) is a Buddhist shrine located in Korea on the slope of Mount T'oham in Kyŏngju City in South Kyŏngsang province. According to the Samguk yusa (Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms, 1279), Prime Minister Kim Taesŏng (d. 774) constructed Sŏkkuram in 751 c.e. during the reign of King Kyŏngdŏk (r. 742–776) to honor his mother from a previous incarnation.

The manmade, keyhole-shaped, cavelike structure is constructed with granite blocks covered with earth. The inner sanctuary is circular with a hemispherical domed ceiling containing a lotus capstone and twenty-eight clump-stones representing the sun and the stars of the cosmos. The MahĀyĀna Buddhist iconographic program is mixed with esoteric elements. The main buddha, perhaps an image of Śākyamuni, seated in the padmāsana position with the earth-touching mudrĀ, is a monumental sculpture in the round. Carved in relief on the sanctuary wall are fifteen standing deities: an eleven-headed Avalokiteśvara, Samantabhadra, Manjuśrī, Indra, Brahmā, and ten arhat disciples of Śākyamuni. The upper niches of the wall contain ten seated figures: Vimalakīrti, Kṣitigarbha, Avalokiteśvara, and other esoteric bodhisattvas, one of whom holds a three-prong vajra. Fourteen guardian deities are depicted in the front area: four heavenly kings, two Dvārapāla guardians, and the eight-set guardians, including Asura, Garuḍa, and Nāga.

The Buddha's full fleshy face is softly modeled with a benign spiritual expression. The tribaṇga (threebending)-posed bodhisattvas are elegantly tall figures wearing three-plaque crowns with double-U pattern scarves. The international Tang style is apparent in the thin clothes and fluid folds. The complex but precise iconometry of the cave and the figures creates a sense of harmony in the monument.

See also:Cave Sanctuaries; Huayan Art; Korea, Buddhist Art in; Monastic Architecture; Stūpa

Bibliography

Harrell, Mark. "Sokkuram—Buddhist Monument and Political Statement in Korea." World Archaeology 27, no. 2 (October 1995): 318–335.

Hwang Su-young. Sokkuram Cave Temple. Photos by Ahn Jangheon. Seoul: Yekyong Publications, 1989.

Kang Woo-bang. "Bulguksa Temple and Seokbulsa Temple." Korea Journal 41, no. 2 (Summer 2001): 320–344.

Park Hyounggook. "A Discussion on the Sculptured Images in Niches at the Sŏkkuram Cave Temple of Kyŏngju—with a Focus on the Restoration of Vimalakīrti, Mañjuśri and Eight Bodhisattvas." Ars Buddhica no. 239 (July 1998): 50–72.

Junghee Lee