|
Kuzuryū
, or is a kami, deity that appears in folklore and legends of various parts of Japan, including, for example, Hakone (Kanagawa Prefecture, Kanagawa), Nagano Prefecture and Fukui Prefecture. In many cases, the ''Kuzuryū'' is associated with water. Hakone Kuzuryū legend During the Nara period, a legend arose that the Nine-headed Dragon had settled in Lake Ashi in Hakone, and that it demanded a sacrifice. To appease the dragon, the villagers agreed to select a house by shooting a white-feathered arrow and seeing where it landed, then sacrificing the daughter of the house. A priest named Mankan () cursed the dragon, and is said to have chained it to the Upside-down Cedar (an underwater rock formation). As a result of this legend, the dragon came to be worshipped as . The expression "send up a white-feathered arrow" has come to mean "choose by lot." The legend continues, saying Mankan saw the dragon reform and change into a Dragon King. He then built a shrine to the dragon. After th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yamata No Orochi
, or simply , is a legendary eight-headed and eight-tailed Japanese dragon/serpent. Mythology Yamata no Orochi legends are originally recorded in two ancient texts about Japanese mythology and history. The 712 AD transcribes this dragon name as and the 720 AD writes it as . In both versions of the Orochi myth, the Shinto storm god Susanoo (or "Susa-no-O") is expelled from Heaven for tricking his sister Amaterasu, the sun goddess. After expulsion from Heaven, Susanoo encounters two near the head of the , now called the , in Izumo Province. They are weeping because they were forced to give the Orochi one of their daughters every year for seven years, and now they must sacrifice their eighth, , who Susanoo transforms into a for safekeeping. The tells the following version: The also describes Yamata no Orochi: "It had an eight-forked head and an eight-forked tail; its eyes were red, like the winter-cherry; and on its back firs and cypresses were growing. As it crawled ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japanese Dragon
Japanese dragons (, ''Nihon no ryū'') are diverse legendary creatures in Japanese mythology and folklore. Japanese dragon myths amalgamate native legends with imported stories about dragons from China, Korea and the Indian subcontinent. The style and appearance of the dragon was heavily influenced by the Chinese dragon, especially the three-clawed ''long'' (龍) dragons which were introduced in Japan from China in ancient times. Like these other East Asian dragons, most Japanese ones are water deities associated with rainfall and bodies of water, and are typically depicted as large, wingless, serpentine creatures with clawed feet. Indigenous Japanese dragons The c. 680 AD ''Kojiki'' and the c. 720 AD '' Nihongi'' mytho-histories have the first Japanese textual references to dragons. "In the oldest annals the dragons are mentioned in various ways," explains de Visser, "but mostly as water-gods, serpent- or dragon-shaped." The ''Kojiki'' and ''Nihongi'' mention several a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nagaraja
Nagaraja ( sa, नागराज ', ) is a title used to refer to the nagas, the serpent-like figures that appear in Indian religions. It refers to the kings of the various races of the nāga, the divine or semi-divine, half-human, half-serpent beings that reside in the netherworld (Patala In Indian religions, Patala (Sanskrit: पाताल, IAST: pātāla, lit. ''that which is below the feet''), denotes the subterranean realms of the universe – which are located under the earthly dimension. Patala is often translated as un ...), and can occasionally take human form. Rituals devoted to these supernatural beings have been taking place throughout South Asia for at least two thousand years. Hinduism Hindu texts refer to three main beings by this title: Shesha, Takshaka, and Vasuki. All of them are the children of the rishi Kashyapa and Kadru. Shesha Shesha, also sometimes known as Ananta, is the eldest brother, and the first serpent king of all serpents. A devotee an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vasuki
Vasuki (IAST: ) is the second king of the nagas in Hinduism. He is described as having a gem called ''Nagamani'' (serpent's ornament) on his head. Adishesha, the first king of the serpents and the mount of Narayana, is his elder brother, and Manasa, another ''naga'', is his sister. Vasuki is Shiva's snake, depicted around his neck. He is known in Chinese and Japanese mythology as being one of the "eight Great Dragon Kings" (八大龍王 pinyin: Bādà lóngwáng; Japanese: Hachidai Ryūō), amongst Nanda (Nāgarāja), Upananda, Sāgara (Shakara), Takshaka, Balavan, Anavatapta, and Utpala. Legends Vasuki is famous for coiling around Shiva's neck, who blessed and wore him as an ornament. Vasuki took part in the incident of Samudra Manthana by allowing both the devas and the asuras to bind him to Mount Mandara, so that they could use him as their churning rope to extract the amrita from the ocean of milk. Vasuki is also mentioned in other Hindu scriptures, such as the ''Rama ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lernaean Hydra
The Lernaean Hydra or Hydra of Lerna ( grc-gre, Λερναῖα Ὕδρα, ''Lernaîa Hýdra''), more often known simply as the Hydra, is a serpentine water monster in Greek and Roman mythology. Its lair was the lake of Lerna in the Argolid, which was also the site of the myth of the Danaïdes. Lerna was reputed to be an entrance to the Underworld, and archaeology has established it as a sacred site older than Mycenaean Argos. In the canonical Hydra myth, the monster is killed by Heracles (Hercules) as the second of his Twelve Labors. According to Hesiod, the Hydra was the offspring of Typhon and Echidna. It had poisonous breath and blood so virulent that even its scent was deadly. The Hydra possessed many heads, the exact number of which varies according to the source. Later versions of the Hydra story add a regeneration feature to the monster: for every head chopped off, the Hydra would regrow two heads. Heracles required the assistance of his nephew Iolaus to cut off all of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Honji Suijaku
The term in Japanese religious terminology refers to a theory widely accepted until the Meiji period according to which Indian Buddhist deities choose to appear in Japan as native ''kami'' to more easily convert and save the Japanese.Breen and Teeuwen (2000:95) The theory states that some ''kami'' (but not all) are local manifestations (the , literally, a "trace") of Buddhist deities (the , literally, "original ground").Satō Masato (2007) The two entities form an indivisible whole called ''gongen'' and in theory should have equal standing, but this was not always the case. In the early Nara period, for example, the ''honji'' was considered more important and only later did the two come to be regarded as equals.Basic Terms of Shinto During the late Kamakura period it was proposed that the ''kami'' were the original deities and the buddhas their manifestations (see the ''Inverted honji suijaku'' section below). The theory was never systematized but was nonetheless very pervasive an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vajrayana
Vajrayāna ( sa, वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle"), along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, are names referring to Buddhism, Buddhist traditions associated with Tantra and "Secret Mantra", which developed in the Medieval India, medieval Indian subcontinent and spread to Tibet, Nepal, other Himalayan states, East Asia, and Mongolia. Vajrayāna practices are connected to specific lineages in Buddhism, through the teachings of lineage holders. Others might generally refer to texts as the Buddhist Tantras. It includes practices that make use of mantras, dharanis, mudras, mandalas and the visualization of deities and Buddhas. Traditional Vajrayāna sources say that the tantras and the lineage of Vajrayāna were taught by Gautama Buddha, Śākyamuni Buddha and other figures such as the bodhisattva Vajrapani and Padmasambhava. Contemporary historians of Bu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shinbutsu-shūgō
''Shinbutsu-shūgō'' (, "syncretism of kami and buddhas"), also called Shinbutsu shū (, "god buddha school") Shinbutsu-konkō (, "jumbling up" or "contamination of kami and buddhas"), is the syncretism of Shinto and Buddhism that was Japan's only organized religion up until the Meiji period. Beginning in 1868, the new Meiji government approved a series of laws that separated Japanese native kami worship, on one side, from Buddhism which had assimilated it, on the other. When Buddhism was introduced from China in the Asuka period (6th century) the Japanese tried to reconcile the new beliefs with the older Shinto beliefs, assuming both were true. As a consequence, Buddhist temples (, ''tera'') were attached to local Shinto shrines (, ''jinja'') and vice versa and devoted to both kami and buddhas. The local religion and foreign Buddhism never quite fused, but remained inextricably linked to the present day through interaction. The depth of the influence from Buddhism on local re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eight Great Nāga Kings
8 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 8 or eight may also refer to: Years * AD 8, the eighth year of the AD era * 8 BC, the eighth year before the AD era Art *The Eight (Ashcan School), a group of twentieth century painters associated with the Ashcan School * The Eight (painters), an avant-garde art movement of Hungarian painters Motor vehicles *Bentley Eight, Bentley's "entry-level" offering from 1984 until 1992 *Leyland Eight, a luxury car produced by Leyland Motors from 1920 to 1923 *Mercury Eight, a first Post War Mercury car design * Morris Eight, a small car inspired by the Ford Model Y * Standard Eight, a small car produced by Standard Motor Company 1938–59 * Wolseley Eight, a four-door, light saloon car produced by Wolseley Motors Limited from 1946 to 1948 * Straight eight, automobile engine * Eight cylinder, automobile engine Sports *Eight (rowing), rowing boat used in the sport of competitive rowing * Figure 8 (belay device), rock climbing equipment also known as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kadru
Kadru () is usually regarded as the daughter of Daksha and the consort of the sage Kashyapa in Hindu scriptures. Kashyapa is the son of Marichi, who is a manasaputra, a mind-born son of Brahma. Kadru is best known as the mother of the nagas, the race of serpents. Legends of Kadru detail her relationship with her elder sister Vinata, who was also one of Kashyapa's many wives. In one story, Kadru and Vinata vie to bear the children of Kashyapa who are more powerful than the other. While Kadru gives birth to a thousand nagas, Vinata bears two sons, Aruṇa and Garuda. Kadru is also portrayed as more scheming and wily than Vinata. She challenges Vinata to guess the colour of the tail of Uchchaihshravas, the divine white horse. After Vinata says the tail is white, Kadru tricks Vinata by directing her sons to coil around the horse's tail, causing it to appear black. As a result, Vinata loses the bet and she and her sons are forced to become the slaves of Kadru and her sons. Anoth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kashyapa
Kashyapa ( sa, कश्यप}, ) is a revered Vedas, Vedic Sage (philosophy), sage of Hinduism., Quote: "Kasyapa (Rudra),(Vedic Seer)..." He is one of the Saptarishis, the seven ancient sages of the ''Rigveda''. Kashyapa is the most ancient and venerated Rishi, rishi, along with the other Saptarishis, listed in the colophon verse in the ''Brihadaranyaka Upanishad''. Kashyapa is an ancient name, referring to many different personalities in the ancient Hindu and Buddhist texts. The place Kashmir is named after him, as well as numerous other Sanskrit texts and Indian scriptures. Name Kashyapa means "turtle" in Sanskrit. According to Michael Witzel, it is related to Avestan ''kasiiapa'', Sogdian language, Sogdian ''kyšph'', New Persian ''kašaf'', ''kaš(a)p'' which mean "tortoise", after which Kashaf Rūd or a river in Turkmenistan and Khorasan is named. Other relations include to Tocharian languages, Tokarian B ''kaccāp'' ("brainpan"), Tocharian languages, Tokarian A ''kā ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mount Meru
Mount Meru (Sanskrit/Pali: मेरु), also known as Sumeru, Sineru or Mahāmeru, is the sacred five-peaked mountain of Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist cosmology and is considered to be the centre of all the physical, metaphysical and spiritual universes. There is no clear identification of Mount Meru with a particular geophysical location. Many famous Buddhist, Jain, and Hindu temples have been built as symbolic representations of this mountain. The "Sumeru Throne" 須彌座 xūmízuò style base is a common feature of Chinese pagodas. The highest point (the finial bud) on the pyatthat, a Burmese-style multi-tiered roof, represents Mount Meru. Etymology Etymologically, the proper name of the mountain is Meru (Sanskrit: Meru), to which is added the approbatory prefix su-, resulting in the meaning "excellent Meru" or "wonderful Meru". ''Meru'' is also the name of the central bead in a mālā. In other languages In other languages, Mount Meru is pronounced: * Assamese: ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
_(8697431158).jpg "Click for more on -> Vajrayana")
