But
there is a very different school of thought which sees the smile as oriented
outward, a sinister leer which threatens more than it saves, particularly
when seen from below as the normal worshipper might. This has led to the
eerie interpretation that the Yumedono Kannon is not a gentle and grace-giving
Kannon, but rather the restless angry ghost of Prince Shôtoku himself.
In support of such a theory,