Also known as Liu Hai in China, Gama Sennin is a rustic immortal, a sage with deep alchemical knowledge of ethno-pharmacology the herbs and medicines that heal the body and inspire the soul.
This early 1900s Japanese wood statue depiction reveals the sage in a contemplative form. His face is open and welcoming his mouth nearly open like he is about to speak. He is bedecked in sumptuous robes exhibiting many folds burnished in a warm fire-red gold. His protruding slipper is detailed. His weight and gravity pronounced. Beneath the sage is the three legged toad, Gama Sennin’s constant companion and magical totem. The sage would occasionally loose his toad down deep wells, the toad however, could always be lured back with a string of gold coins. The toad on this statue is shown with a string pouring forth from his mouth. Toads are revered in many cultures as a magical totem and ethno- pharmacology has revealed that some of these bufo-toxins found in toads are indeed quite transformative: ranging from highly potent painkillers to hallucinogens. Warmly rendered this early 20th century depiction of this beloved beneficent sage is in excellent condition. (SD)