Gyeongju Gulbulsa Temple Site Stone Four-Sided Buddha

About this place

The Gyeongju Gulbulsa Temple Site Stone Four-Sided Buddha is a Unified Silla period rock Buddha at the site of Gulbulsa Temple in Gyeongju, with Buddhist figures carved on all four sides of a rock approximately 3 meters tall, hence the name 'four-sided stone Buddha.' The western face depicts Amitabha Tathagata of the Western Pure Land with attendant bodhisattvas, the eastern face Bhaisajyaguru of the Lapis Lazuli World, the northern face Maitreya, and the southern face Shakyamuni — forming a four-directional Buddha. According to the Samguk Yusa, when King Gyeongdeok of Silla visited Baengnyulsa Temple, he heard the sound of Buddhist chanting coming from the ground. When the ground was dug up, this rock was discovered, and Buddhist figures were carved on all four sides, with a temple called Gulbulsa ('carved Buddha temple') built around it. The four-sided Buddha of Gulbulsa is particularly noteworthy for its varied expression — three-dimensional, incised and relief, seated and standing — and its plump, soft yet vibrant quality characteristic of early Unified Silla.