open-mouthed form (statue)
Buddhist term for a statue with an open mouth, representing the first sound 'a' of 'aum' (阿吽). Often paired with 吽形 (うんぎょう), the closed-mouth form.
The Agyō of the Niō statues has its mouth open.
Standard kanji form for this Buddhist term.
From the Sanskrit syllable 'a' (अ), the first sound of 'aum'. The kanji 阿 is used phonetically (ateji) for 'a', and 形 means 'form' or 'shape'.