Cute Jizo sitting on a lotus

This cute Jizo, photographed at a small temple in Meguro, Tokyo, is sculpted sitting on a lotus, a common, but filled with symbolism representation.

The lotus is a sacred flower in the Buddhist tradition, expressing the enlightenment and the purity of Buddha because it blooms pure although its roots are in muddy water. Because of this symbolism, many statues representing Buddha or Bodhisattva are using this pedestal in the shape of an opened lotus flower, a design element called in Japanese rengeza, "lotus base".