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myouou@–¾‰¤
KEY WORD :@art history / iconography
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Translation of Sanskrit vidyaraja, meaning spell-king. Vidya literally means knowledge, but in Esoteric Buddhism mikkyou –§‹³ it also came to signify sacred lore and, by extension, a mystic formula or spell similar to a dharni (Jp: darani ‘É—…“ò) or mantra (Jp: shingon ^Œ¾), and the vidyaraja or myouou are personifications of what were believed to be especially powerful spells. In origin they are generally Hindu deities who were adopted into the Buddhist pantheon, and they constitute the third category in Japanese Buddhist iconography, the first two being tathagata *nyorai ”@—ˆ, and bodhisattva *bosatsu •ìŽF. The fourth category is that of the divinities *ten “V. According to the esoteric doctrine of three wheel-embodiments, sanrinjin ŽO—Ög, *Dainichi ‘å“ú and other Buddhas, representing the embodiment of the wheel of own-nature, jishourinjin Ž©«—Ög, manifest themselves both as bosatsu, corresponding to the embodiment of the wheel of the true Dhara, shouhourinjin ³–@—Ög, and as myouou, corresponding to the embodiment of the wheel of injunction, kyouryourinjin ‹³—ß—Ög, and whereas bosatsu instruct people in the teachings of Buddhism by compassionate means, myouou assume a fearsome appearance at the behest of the Buddhas in order to subjugate and convert obdurate nonbelievers. They include *Fudou Myouou •s“®–¾‰¤, *Gouzanze Myouou ~ŽO¢–¾‰¤, *Gundari Myouou ŒR䶗˜–¾‰¤, *Daiitoku Myouou ‘åˆÐ“¿–¾‰¤ and *Kongouyasha Myouou ‹à„–é³–¾‰¤, who are collectively known as the five great myouou *godai myouou ŒÜ‘å–¾‰¤, as well as *Aizen Myouou ˆ¤õ–¾‰¤, *Daigensui Myouou ‘匳ƒ–¾‰¤, *Kujaku Myouou E–¾‰¤ and *Ususama Myouou ‰G•¹–€–¾‰¤, and there are various groupings of eight great myouou hachidai myouou ”ª‘å–¾‰¤, and in Indian Tantric Buddhism, groups of four and ten myouou, although in Indo-Tibetan Tantrism they are usually referred to as wrathful deities (Sk: krodha). Apart from Kujaku Myouou, they are usually represented as wrathful funnugyou œ|“{Œ`, often with many faces, many arms and even many legs. They hold weapons in their hands and are sometimes adorned with skulls, snakes or animal skins and wreathed in flames. Their female counterparts are called myouhi –¾”Ü (Sk: vidyaraini, spell-queen), but these too may still be referred to as myouou, as in the case of Kujaku Myouou, who is in fact a female deity, and the term myouhi is also used to denote the female consorts of Buddhist deities in general .
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(C)2001 Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System.@No reproduction or republication without written permission.
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