At 18.25″ this is the largest Shakyamuni Buddha statue in our collection — a monastery-scale figure suited to a dedicated shrine room, a Dharma center altar, or any setting where the statue is intended to anchor a space rather than simply occupy a shelf. The statue is silver plated with an antiquated finish over an oxidized copper body, seated on a double lotus throne with elegantly detailed engravings on the robe that are fully visible at this size in a way that smaller statues cannot accommodate. The statue was handcrafted in Patan, Nepal by master artisans of the Shakya caste using the traditional lost wax sculpting method.
The statue bears the complete traditional physical markings of the historical Buddha as described in the Pali Canon: the elongated earlobes, ushnisha (crown protuberance), urna (third eye of wisdom between the brows), three neck folds, and clockwise-curling hair coils. At 18.25″ each of these iconographic details is rendered with a depth of hand-carving that creates visible shadow and relief — qualities that photographs convey incompletely and that become fully apparent only in person.
Mudras of the Silver Shakyamuni Buddha Statue
After his renunciation at age 29, Prince Siddhartha sought instruction from two of the foremost meditation masters of his time. He studied under Alara Kalama, mastering the formless meditative absorption of nothingness, and then under Uddaka Ramaputta, mastering the even subtler state of neither perception nor non-perception. He achieved both attainments rapidly — but recognized that neither led to the complete liberation he sought. Leaving both teachers, he practiced alone, discovered the Middle Way between extreme asceticism and sensual indulgence, and eventually achieved full enlightenment as a Sammasambuddha — a self-enlightened Buddha who rediscovered the Dharma in an era when it had been forgotten. Learn more about the meaning behind the name Shakyamuni Buddha in our complete guide to Shakyamuni statues.
The Bhumisparsha mudra — the earth-touching gesture, right hand draped over the right knee with fingers extended downward — commemorates the moment of that enlightenment under the Bodhi tree at Bodh Gaya, when Shakyamuni called the earth deity to witness his realization against the challenge of Mara. His left hand holds the alms bowl in the open palm of the Dhyana mudra — the meditation gesture — the bowl understood to contain the three nectars that counteract the three poisons of ignorance, greed, and hatred.
Authentic, Handmade in Nepal
Every statue and ritual item is handcrafted in Patan, Nepal, using traditional lost wax casting and comes with a certificate of authenticity issued by Nepal's Department of Archaeology, verifying its materials, technique, and origin.
