The Gargoyle News #32, Feb. 14, 2002

Happy Valentines Day! I've transformed my latest gargoyle into a special Valentine's card, just for you. This large stone carving is the first of a set of four true gargoyles for a house in Texas. A true gargoyle is a waterspout; however, in the past hundred years the word "gargoyle" has come to apply to a wide range of grotesque sculptures. These four gargoyles will be installed in the brick balconies of the house, and the rain water will drain through their mouths. You can view your card at http://stonecarver.com/card/valentine-lion.html This is an animated card, so you need to have Java enabled to see it. If you don't have Java, you can view the card without the color animation at http://stonecarver.com/card/ice-lion.html These four gargoyles will represent the four seasons, and are based on four different animals. This first one is a winter lion. It is 2' wide and 18" tall and weighs more than 350 pounds. (60 x 45 centimeters, over 160 kg.) I am still finishing the mane and icicles on the lion's right side, but it is almost complete. Remember to send gargoyle Valentines cards to your friends and loved ones. I have a Valentine's version of the Dolce Mio (My Sweet) card, at http://stonecarver.com/postcard.html I've also added both the Java animation and regular versions of the Winter Lion card to that page.

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I just finished repairing my studio. You'll recall that a few weeks ago someone crashed a large sport utility vehicle into the front of the building, destroying a brick wall and shattering three windows. Fortunately, my gargoyles protected the sculpture and other things (including me!) which were inside the studio at the time. I replaced the brick wall with a much stronger solid stone wall, and built a gargoyle into the wall to guard over the studio and protect me from other drivers. You can see it at http://stonecarver.com/gargoyles/wall.jpg This guardian is the piece I carved at the StonExpo trade fair in Florida this winter.

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More on the Naritasan Shinshoji Temple: I've added a photo of one of the statues of Fudo-myoo, the god of fire, to my Naritasan page at http://stonecarver.com/gargoyles/naritasan.html This is not the original statue carved in the year 810 A.D., because no one is permitted to photograph that one. This deity sits in the main sanctury of the Great Pagoda of Peace at Naritasan, built in 1984. It is one of the many sculptures of Fudo-myoo in Japan. Mr. Saito, the chief of the English volunteers at the temple, sent me this photo together with more information on Fudo-myoo.

Fudo ranks first among the five great myo-o(Buddhist deities of esoteric Buddhism). He has five attributes represented in the sculpture:

1. His fiery demeanor reveals that he is the conqueror of human anger. Anger is the most unyielding inner enemy of man, thus its defeat requires the divine intervention of a spiritual power, such as Fudo.
2. He sits on a rock. That means he is immovable, and has firm belief and conviction in human salvation.
3. Flames shoot up from his back, because he dwells in a conflagration that burns up all the worldly passions of sin.
4. He carries a sword in his right hand. This weapon gives him the power to conquer the devils who threaten to degenerate man through the provocation of carnal desires.
5. He holds a rope in his left hand, symbolizing that he holds the souls of all people with the deepest mercy.

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