[Viator]

Daruma dolls shop

A very special kind of shops in Japan are shops with different kinds of dolls. For the Japanese some kinds of dolls are far more than simple talismans, colorful gifts, theatrical puppets or traditional toys. It regards especially Daruma which represent the buddhist saint, Bodhidharma. The buddhist missionary monk called Bodhidharma is worshipped in China and Japan, but especially for the Japanese he is one of the most popular patrons and that's why the simplified, armless dolls with the image of his face, known as Daruma or Tatsuma, can be found in nearly every home and company building throughout Japan. Buying one and painting one eye to him while praying to the saint (the dolls are sold with white "empty" eyes) will bring you luck and help you solve a problem or complete a job that requires a lot of persistence. After the problem is solved or job finished, you can thank Daruma and paint the second eye to his doll. But for the next year or the next difficult task you shall buy a new Daruma doll, and that's why the number of these dolls is as big as the population in Japan and the shops and temple stalls selling them are never in danger of bankruptcy.

I came up with a funny facade of the doll's shop that makes the whole building look like a huge Daruma doll. The composition of the face features is one of the typical, so the face shall be easy recognizable for all the Japanese.

(#99)