Shukongoshin

http://Buddhism.2be.net/Shukongoshin

From Buddhist Encyclopedia

Kongōrikishi or Niō are two wrath-filled and muscular guardians of the Buddha, standing today at the entrance of many Buddhist temples in Japan and Korea under the appearance of frightening wrestler-like statues. They are manifestations of the Bodhisattva Vajrapāṇi protector deity and are part of the Mahayana pantheon. According to Japanese tradition, they travelled with the historical Buddha to protect him.

Names

Kongōrikishi literally means "vajra warriors" (Sanskrit: Vajra-pāṇi-balin) and is written 金剛力士 in Kanji (Chinese characters. It is read 금강역사 Geumgang yeoksa in Korean, Jīngāng lìshì in [[Sndard Mandarin|Mandarin Chinese pinyin, Kim cương lực sĩ in Vietnamese. Variations of this name are Kongōjin (金剛神; Korean: 금강신 Geumgangsin; Mandarin Chinese: Jīn'gāngshén; Vietnamese: Kim cương thần) and Kongōshu (金剛手; Korean: 금강수 Geumgangsu; Mandarin Chinese: Jīngāngshǒu; Vietnamese: Kim cương thủ). Tibetan terms for Kongōrikishi include Phyag na rdo rje and Lag na rdo rje.<ref>Transliterations from Digital Dictionary of Buddhism</ref>

Kongōrikishi are also referred to as Niō which is written 仁王 (literally, "benevolent kings"; Japanese: Niō or Ninō; Korean: 인왕 Inwang; Mandarin Chinese: Rénwáng; Vietnamese: Nhân vương) or 二王 ("two kings"; Japanese: Niō; Korean: 이왕 Iwang; Mandarin Chinese: èrwáng; Vietnamese: Nhị vương; Sanskrit: Vajrayakṣa). A variation of these names is 仁王尊 (Japanese: Ninō son; Korean: 인왕존 Inwang jon; Mandarin Chinese: Rénwáng zūn; Vietnamese: Nhân vương tôn).<ref>Transliterations from Digital Dictionary of Buddhism</ref>

Manifestations

Kongōrikishi are usually a pair of figures that stand under a separate temple entrance gate usually called Niōmon (仁王門) in Japan and Geumgangmun (金剛門) in Korea. The right statue is called Misshaku Kongō (密迹金剛) and has his mouth open, representing the vocalization of the first grapheme of Sanskrit Devanāgarī (अ) which is pronounced "a." The left statue is called Naraen Kongō (那羅延金剛) and has his mouth closed, representing the vocalization of the last grapheme of Devanāgarī (म) which is pronounced "hūṃ." (हूँ) These two characters together symbolize the birth and death of all things. (Men are supposedly born speaking the "a" sound with and mouths open and die with an "hūṃ" and mouths closed.) Similar to Alpha and Omega in Christianity, they signify "everything" or "all creation." The contraction of both is Aum (ॐ), which is Sanskrit for God.

Naraen Kongō or Agyō

Naraen Kongō (那羅延金剛), also called Agyō (阿形) in Japanese, is a symbol of overt violence: he wields a vajra mallet [vajra-pāṇi] (a diamond club, thunderbolt stick, or sun symbol; )<ref>See "金剛" at William Edward Soothill and Lewis Hodous. A Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms</ref> and bares his teeth. His mouth is depicted as being in the shape necessary to form the "ah" sound, leading to his alternate name, "Agyō". Naraen Kongō (那羅延金剛) is 나라연금강 Narayeon geumgang in Korean, Nàluóyán jīngāng in Mandarin Chinese, and Na la diên kim cương in Vietnamese.<ref>Transliterations from Digital Dictionary of Buddhism</ref>

Misshaku Kongō or Ungyō

Misshaku Kongō (密迹金剛), also called Ungyō (吽形) in Japanese, is depicted either bare-handed or wielding a sword. He symbolizes latent strength, holding his mouth tightly shut. His mouth is rendered to form the sound "Un", leading to his alternate name "Ungyō". Misshaku Kongō (密迹金剛) is 밀적금강 Miljeok geumgang in Korean, Mìjī jīngāng in Mandarin Chinese, and Mật tích kim cương in Vietnamese. It is equivalent to Guhyapāda vajra in Sanskrit.<ref>Transliterations from Digital Dictionary of Buddhism</ref>

Shukongōshin

A manifestation of Kongōrikishi that combines the Naraen and Misshaku Kongōs into one figure is the Shukongōshin at Tōdai-ji in Nara, Japan. Shukongōshin (執金剛神), literally vajra-wielding spirit, is Shūkongōshin or Shikkongōjin in Japanese, 집금강신 Jip geumgang sin in Korean, Zhí jīngāng shén in Mandarin Chinese, and Chấp kim cang thần in Vietnamese.<ref>Transliterations from Digital Dictionary of Buddhism</ref>

Hellenistic influence

Kongōrikishi are an interesting case of the possible transmission of the image of the Greek god Heracles to the East Asia along the Silk Road. Heracles was used in Greco-Buddhist art to represent Vajrapani, the protector of the Buddha (See also Image), and his representation was then used in China and Japan to depict the protector gods of Buddhist temples. This transmission is part of the wider Greco-Buddhist syncretic phenomenon, where Buddhism interacted with the Hellenistic culture of Central Asia from the 4th century BC to the 4th century|4th century AD<ref>"The origin of the image of Vajrapani should be explained. This deity is the protector and guide of the Buddha Sakyamuni. His image was modelled after that of Hercules. (...) The Gandharan Vajrapani was transformed in Central Asia and China and afterwards transmitted to Japan, where it exerted stylistic influences on the wrestler-like statues of the Guardina Deities (Nio)." (Katsumi Tanabe, "Alexander the Great, East-West cultural contacts from Greece to Japan", p23)</ref>.

See also

• Vajrapani
• Skanda
• Buddhist temples in Japan
• Korean Buddhism
• Buddhist art
• Greco-Buddhism
• Greco-Buddhist art

Notes

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References

• "Religions and the Silk Road" by Richard C. Foltz (St. Martin's Press, 1999) ISBN 0-312-23338-8
• "The Diffusion of Classical Art in Antiquity" by John Boardman (Princeton University Press, 1994) ISBN 0-691-03680-2
• "Old World Encounters. Cross-cultural contacts and exchanges in pre-modern times" by Jerry H.Bentley (Oxford University Press, 1993) ISBN 0-19-507639-7
• "Alexander the Great: East-West Cultural contacts from Greece to Japan" (NHK and Tokyo National Museum, 2003)

External links

• Nio Protectors, the benevolent kings