Ra-hula’ is a red Netsuke style miniature sculpture figurine packaged in a plastic sphere gashapon capsule toy. ‘Gashapon’ comes from the sound of the vended item being dispensed.
Rahula is pictured in ‘The 500 Arhats’ from Takashi Murakami’s 2015/16 exhibition at the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo. The 500 Arhats is one of the largest paintings ever produced. The origin is from the legend of the 500 arhats (holy people) who remain in this world to spread the teachings of the Buddha. It consists of four 10-foot tall and 82-foot long sections, each devoted to a different natural element — wind, forest, fire, and mountain — and each named after a Chinese constellation creature: the Blue Dragon in the east, the White Tiger in the west, the Vermilion Bird in the south, and the Black Tortoise in the north. It was conceived as a response to the 2011 Earthquake and Tsunami and as a homage to the power of nature.
Rahula: The only son of Gautama Buddha. He is shown stretching open his stomach to reveal a Buddharupa - an ‘awakened one’ - inside of him.
The item is made entirely of plastic.
Capsule diameter 70mm
Red Ra-hula figure is 47mm x 29mm
Mount is approx. 28mm x 28 mm
Exhibition flyer 210mm x 150mm
Comes with a removeable strap
Made by Kaikai Kiki and Kaiyodo
Note that the capsule is in perfect condition, and while it has been opened once, the obi seal remains partly intact.
This is sold as an art piece and not a toy.