Guardian and workers

Scene 2, Baodingshan, Dazu (map)

From left to right, two workers with animal heads are separated by a supervisor from the Dharmapalas. The workers have human bodies but animal heads (theriomorphs); the convention symbolizes humans who have been reincarnated as animals in order to pay off a karmic debt, as in the Dong Yue Miao in Beijing. The group is transitionally located between the Guardians to the right (previous page) and the Wheel of Reincarnation to the left (next page). Perhaps they represent the workers themselves, who physically created the reliefs?