or Achala ( sa, अचल, "The Immovable", ), also known as (, "Immovable Lord") or (, "Noble Immovable Lord"), is a
wrathful deity
In Buddhism, wrathful deities or fierce deities are the fierce, wrathful or forceful (Tibetan: ''trowo'', Sanskrit: ''krodha'') forms (or "aspects", "manifestations") of enlightened Buddhas, Bodhisattvas or Devas (divine beings); normally the sam ...
and ''
dharmapala
A ''dharmapāla'' (, , ja, 達磨波羅, 護法善神, 護法神, 諸天善神, 諸天鬼神, 諸天善神諸大眷屬) is a type of wrathful god in Buddhism. The name means "''dharma'' protector" in Sanskrit, and the ''dharmapālas'' are als ...
'' (protector of the
Dharma
Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...
) prominent in
Vajrayana Buddhism
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 t ...
and
East Asian Buddhism
East Asian Buddhism or East Asian Mahayana is a collective term for the schools of Mahāyāna Buddhism that developed across East Asia which follow the Chinese Buddhist canon. These include the various forms of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vi ...
.
[, Jp. rel. dict., pp. 242–246]
Originally a minor deity described as a messenger or acolyte of the
buddha
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism.
According to Buddhist tradition, he was ...
Vairocana
Vairocana (also Mahāvairocana, sa, वैरोचन) is a cosmic buddha from Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. Vairocana is often interpreted, in texts like the ''Avatamsaka Sutra'', as the dharmakāya of the historical Gautama Buddha. In East ...
, Acala later rose to prominence as an object of veneration in his own right as a remover of obstacles and destroyer of evil, eventually becoming seen as the wrathful manifestation of either Vairocana, the buddha
Akṣobhya
Akshobhya ( sa, अक्षोभ्य, ''Akṣobhya'', "Immovable One"; ) is one of the Five Wisdom Buddhas, a product of the Adibuddha, who represents consciousness as an aspect of reality. By convention he is located in the east of the Di ...
, or the
bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood.
In the Early Buddhist schools ...
Mañjuśrī
Mañjuśrī (Sanskrit: मञ्जुश्री) is a ''bodhisattva'' associated with '' prajñā'' (wisdom) in Mahāyāna Buddhism. His name means "Gentle Glory" in Sanskrit. Mañjuśrī is also known by the fuller name of Mañjuśrīkumārab ...
. In later texts, he is also called (, "Violent Wrathful One", ) or (, "Violent One of Great Wrath", ), the names by which he is more commonly known in countries like
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
and
Tibet
Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...
.
In
East Asian
East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea a ...
esoteric Buddhism
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 t ...
, Acala is classed among the
Wisdom Kings
A Wisdom King (Sanskrit: विद्याराज; IAST: ''Vidyārāja'', ) is a type of wrathful deity in East Asian Buddhism.
Whereas the Sanskrit name is translated literally as "wisdom / knowledge king(s)," the term '' vidyā'' in Vajraya ...
() and is preeminent among the five Wisdom Kings of the
Womb Realm
In Vajrayana Buddhism, the Womb Realm ( sa, garbhakoṣadhātu, Traditional Chinese: 胎蔵界; Pinyin: ''Tāizāngjiè''; Romanji: ''taizōkai'') is the metaphysical space inhabited by the Five Compassion Buddhas. The Womb Realm is based on the ...
. Accordingly, he occupies an important hierarchical position in the
Mandala of the Two Realms
The Mandala of the Two Realms (Traditional Chinese: 両界曼荼羅; Pinyin: ''Liǎngjiè màntúluó''; Romanji: ''Ryōkai mandara''), also known as the Mandala of the Two Divisions (Traditional Chinese: 両部曼荼羅; Pinyin: ''Liǎngbù màn ...
. In
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
, he is known as Bùdòng Míngwáng (不動明王, "Immovable Wisdom King", the
Chinese
Chinese can refer to:
* Something related to China
* Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity
**''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation
** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...
translation of Sanskrit ''Acala(nātha) Vidyārāja''), while in Japan, he is called Fudō Myōō, the ''
on'yomi
are the logographic Chinese characters taken from the Chinese script and used in the writing of Japanese. They were made a major part of the Japanese writing system during the time of Old Japanese and are still used, along with the subsequent ...
'' reading of his Chinese name.
[Fudō Myōō](_blank)
an
Myō-ō
Encyclopædia Britannica Acala (as Fudō) is one of the especially important and well-known divinities in
Japanese Buddhism
Buddhism has been practiced in Japan since about the 6th century CE. Japanese Buddhism () created many new Buddhist schools, and some schools are original to Japan and some are derived from Chinese Buddhist schools. Japanese Buddhism has had a ...
, being especially venerated in the
Shingon
file:Koyasan (Mount Koya) monks.jpg, Shingon monks at Mount Koya
is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asia, originally spread from India to China through traveling monks suc ...
,
Tendai
, also known as the Tendai Lotus School (天台法華宗 ''Tendai hokke shū,'' sometimes just "''hokke shū''") is a Mahāyāna Buddhist tradition (with significant esoteric elements) officially established in Japan in 806 by the Japanese m ...
,
Zen
Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...
, and
Nichiren
Nichiren (16 February 1222 – 13 October 1282) was a Japanese Buddhist priest and philosopher of the Kamakura period.
Nichiren declared that the Lotus Sutra alone contains the highest truth of Buddhist teachings suited for the Third Age of B ...
sects, as well as in
Shugendō
is a highly syncretic religion, a body of ascetic practices that originated in the Nara Period of Japan having evolved during the 7th century from an amalgamation of beliefs, philosophies, doctrines and ritual systems drawn from local fol ...
.
Acala has been worshiped throughout the Middle Ages and into modern times in Nepal, Tibet, China and Japan, where sculptural and pictorial representations of him are most often found.
Origins and development
Acala first appears in the (不空羂索神変真言經,
pinyin
Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally written in Chinese for ...
: ''Bùkōng juànsuǒ shénbiàn zhēnyán jīng'', translated by
Bodhiruci
Bodhiruci () was a Buddhist monk from North India (6th century CE) active in the area of Luoyang, China. His 39 translated works include the ''Ten Stages Sutra'' () and commentary, and the '' Amitabha Sutra'' with commentary. Bodhiruci is regarde ...
circa 707-709 CE), where he is described as a servant or messenger of the
buddha
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism.
According to Buddhist tradition, he was ...
Vairocana
Vairocana (also Mahāvairocana, sa, वैरोचन) is a cosmic buddha from Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. Vairocana is often interpreted, in texts like the ''Avatamsaka Sutra'', as the dharmakāya of the historical Gautama Buddha. In East ...
:
The first from the west in the northern quadrant is the acolyte Acala (不動使者). In his left hand he grasps a noose and in his right hand he holds a sword. He is seated in the half-lotus position.
More well-known, however, is the following passage from the ''
Mahāvairocana Tantra'' (also known as the ''Mahāvairocanābhisaṃbodhi Tantra'' or the ''Vairocana Sūtra'') which refers to Acala as one of the deities of the
Womb Realm Mandala:
The deity was apparently popular in India during the 8th-9th centuries as evident by the fact that six of the Sanskrit texts translated by the esoteric master
Amoghavajra
Amoghavajra ( sa, अमोघवज्र ; , 705–774) was a prolific translator who became one of the most politically powerful Buddhist monks in Chinese history and is acknowledged as one of the Eight Patriarchs of the Doctrine in Shingon ...
into Chinese are devoted entirely to him.
Indeed, Acala's rise to a more prominent position in the Esoteric pantheon in East Asian Buddhism may be credited in part to the writings of Amoghavajra and his teacher
Vajrabodhi
Vajrabodhi ( sa, वज्रबोधि, , 671–741) was an Indian esoteric Buddhist monk from Kerala and teacher in Tang China. He is one of the eight patriarchs in Shingon Buddhism. He is notable for introducing Vajrayana Buddhism in the te ...
.
![Arya Achala Tibet 12th century, Kadam Lineage Collection of Shelley & Donald Rubin (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cf/Arya_Achala_Tibet_12th_century%2C_Kadam_Lineage_Collection_of_Shelley_%26_Donald_Rubin_%28cropped%29.jpg)
While some scholars have put forward the theory that Acala originated from the Hindu god
Shiva
Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...
, particularly his attributes of destruction and reincarnation,
Bernard Faure
Bernard Faure (born 1948) is a Franco-American author and scholar of Asian religions, who focuses on Chan/Zen and Japanese esoteric Buddhism. His work draws on cultural theory, anthropology, and gender studies. He is currently a Kao Professor of ...
suggested the wrathful esoteric deity
Trailokyavijaya
Trailokyavijaya (Vajrayana, , Japanese: Gōzanze Myō-ō; Korean: Hangsamse Myeongwang) is the King of knowledge having conquered the three worlds, one of the five kings of knowledge of Buddhism. His mission is to protect the eastern part of the ...
(whose name is an epithet of Shiva), the
Vedic
upright=1.2, The Vedas are ancient Sanskrit texts of Hinduism. Above: A page from the '' Atharvaveda''.
The Vedas (, , ) are a large body of religious texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the ...
fire god
Agni
Agni (English: , sa, अग्नि, translit=Agni) is a Sanskrit word meaning fire and connotes the Vedic fire deity of Hinduism. He is also the guardian deity of the southeast direction and is typically found in southeast corners of Hindu ...
, and the guardian deity
Vajrapani
(Sanskrit; Pali: Vajirapāṇi, meaning, "Vajra in ishand") is one of the earliest-appearing bodhisattvas in Mahayana Buddhism. He is the protector and guide of Gautama Buddha and rose to symbolize the Buddha's power.
Vajrapāni is also c ...
to be other, more likely prototypes for Acala. He notes: "one could theoretically locate Acala's origins in a generic , but only in the sense that all Tantric deities can in one way or another be traced back to ."
Faure compares Acala to Vajrapani in that both were originally minor deities who eventually came to occupy important places in the Buddhist pantheon.
Acala is said to be a powerful deity who protects the faithful by burning away all impediments () and defilements (
), thus aiding them towards enlightenment.
[, under Fudo Myoo (in Japanese)] In a commentary on the ''Mahāvairocana Tantra'' by
Yi Xing
Yi Xing (, 683–727), born Zhang Sui (), was a Chinese astronomer, Buddhist monk, inventor, mathematician, mechanical engineer, and philosopher during the Tang dynasty. His astronomical celestial globe featured a liquid-driven escapement, the ...
, he is said to have manifested in the world following Vairocana's vow to save all beings, and that his primary function is to remove obstacles to enlightenment.
Indeed, the tantra instructs the ritual practitioner to recite Acala's mantras or to visualize himself as Acala in order to remove obstacles.
From a humble acolyte, Acala evolved into a powerful demon-subduing deity. In later texts such as the ''Caṇḍamahāroṣaṇa Tantra'', Acala - under the name ("Violent Wrathful One") or ("Violent One of Great Wrath") - is portrayed as the "frightener of gods,
titans
In Greek mythology, the Titans ( grc, οἱ Τῑτᾶνες, ''hoi Tītânes'', , ''ho Tītân'') were the pre-Olympian gods. According to the ''Theogony'' of Hesiod, they were the twelve children of the primordial parents Uranus (Sky) and Ga ...
, and men, the destroyer of the strength of demons" who slays ghosts and evil spirits with his fierce anger.
In the ''Sādhanamālā'', the gods
Vishnu
Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism.
Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" within t ...
, Shiva,
Brahma
Brahma ( sa, ब्रह्मा, Brahmā) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the trinity of supreme divinity that includes Vishnu, and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 21 ...
and
Kandarpa - described as "wicked" beings who subject humanity to endless
rebirth
Rebirth may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Film
* ''Rebirth'' (2011 film), a 2011 Japanese drama film
* ''Rebirth'' (2016 film), a 2016 American thriller film
* ''Rebirth'', a documentary film produced by Project Rebirth
* ''The Re ...
- are said to be terrified of Acala because he carries a rope to bind them.
![The Five Wisdom Kings](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/The_Five_Wisdom_Kings.jpg)
In
Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in majo ...
, Acala or Miyowa (མི་གཡོ་བ་,
Wylie: ''mi g.yo ba'') is considered as belonging to the ' ("vajra family", Tibetan: དོ་རྗེའི་རིགས་, ''dorjé rik''; Wylie: ''rdo rje'i rigs''), one of the
Five Buddha Families presided over by the buddha
Akṣobhya
Akshobhya ( sa, अक्षोभ्य, ''Akṣobhya'', "Immovable One"; ) is one of the Five Wisdom Buddhas, a product of the Adibuddha, who represents consciousness as an aspect of reality. By convention he is located in the east of the Di ...
and may even be regarded, along with the other deities of the ''kula'', as an aspect or emanation of the latter.
He is thus sometimes depicted in South Asian art wearing a crown with an effigy of Akṣobhya.
In
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
, Acala may also be identified as a manifestation of the
bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood.
In the Early Buddhist schools ...
Mañjuśrī
Mañjuśrī (Sanskrit: मञ्जुश्री) is a ''bodhisattva'' associated with '' prajñā'' (wisdom) in Mahāyāna Buddhism. His name means "Gentle Glory" in Sanskrit. Mañjuśrī is also known by the fuller name of Mañjuśrīkumārab ...
.
He has a consort named Viśvavajrī in both the Nepalese and Tibetan traditions, with whom he is at times depicted in
yab-yum union.
By contrast, the ''sanrinjin'' (三輪身, "bodies of the three wheels") theory, based on Amoghavajra's writings and prevalent in
Japanese
Japanese may refer to:
* Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia
* Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan
* Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture
** Japanese diaspor ...
esoteric Buddhism
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 t ...
(''
Mikkyō
is a Japanese term for the Vajrayana practices of Shingon Buddhism and the related practices that make up part of the Tendai and Kegon schools. There are also Shingon and Tendai influenced practices of Shugendō.
Mikkyō is a "lineage tradition ...
''), interprets Acala as an incarnation of Vairocana. In this system, the five chief
''vidyārājas'' or Wisdom Kings (明王, ''Myōō''), of which Acala is one, are interpreted as the wrathful manifestations (教令輪身, ''kyōryōrin-shin'', lit. ""embodiments of the wheel of injunction") of the
Five Great Buddhas, who appear both as gentle
bodhisattvas
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood.
In the Early Buddhist schools ...
to teach the
Dharma
Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...
and also as fierce wrathful deities to subdue and convert hardened nonbelievers. Under this conceptualization, ''vidyārājas'' are ranked superior to , a different class of guardian deities. However, this interpretation, while common in Japan, is not necessarily universal: in
Nichiren-shū
is a combination of several schools ranging from four of the original Nichiren Buddhist schools that date back to Nichiren's original disciples, and part of the fifth:
Overview
The school is often referred to as the ''Minobu Sect'' due to ...
, for instance, Acala and
Rāgarāja
Rāgarāja ( sa, रागराज) is a deity venerated in the Esoteric and Vajrayana Buddhist traditions. He is especially revered in Chinese Esoteric Buddhism in Chinese communities as well as Shingon and Tendai in Japan.
Nomenclature
Rāg ...
(Aizen Myōō), the two ''vidyārājas'' who commonly feature in the
mandalas
A mandala ( sa, मण्डल, maṇḍala, circle, ) is a geometric configuration of symbols. In various spiritual traditions, mandalas may be employed for focusing attention of practitioners and adepts, as a spiritual guidance tool, for e ...
inscribed by
Nichiren
Nichiren (16 February 1222 – 13 October 1282) was a Japanese Buddhist priest and philosopher of the Kamakura period.
Nichiren declared that the Lotus Sutra alone contains the highest truth of Buddhist teachings suited for the Third Age of B ...
, are seen as protective deities (外護神, ''gegoshin'') who respectively embody the two tenets of ''
hongaku
Hongaku () is an East Asian Buddhist doctrine often translated as "inherent", "innate", "intrinsic" or "original" enlightenment and is the view that all sentient beings already are enlightened or awakened in some way. It is closely tied with the ...
'' ("original enlightenment") doctrine: "life and death (''
saṃsāra
''Saṃsāra'' (Devanagari: संसार) is a Pali/Sanskrit word that means "world". It is also the concept of rebirth and "cyclicality of all life, matter, existence", a fundamental belief of most Indian religions. Popularly, it is the c ...
'') are precisely ''
nirvana
( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...
''" (生死即涅槃, ''shōji soku nehan'') and "worldly passions (''kleśa'') are precisely enlightenment (
''bodhi'')" (煩悩即菩提, ''bonnō soku bodai'').
Iconography
The ''Caṇḍamahāroṣaṇa Tantra'' description of Acala is a good summary of the deity's depiction in South Asian Buddhist art.
In Nepalese and Tibetan art, Acala is usually shown either kneeling on his left knee or standing astride, bearing a noose or
lasso
A lasso ( or ), also called lariat, riata, or reata (all from Castilian, la reata 're-tied rope'), is a loop of rope designed as a restraint to be thrown around a target and tightened when pulled. It is a well-known tool of the Spanish an ...
(''pāśa'') and an upraised sword. Some depictions portray him trampling on the elephant-headed Vighnarāja (lit. "Ruler of Hindrances", a Buddhist equivalent to the Hindu god
Ganesha
Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu d ...
, albeit interpreted negatively as one who causes obstacles), signifying his role as the destroyer of impediments to enlightenment. He may also be shown wearing a tiger skin, with snakes coiled around his arms and body.
![Fudo Myoo Kodo Toji](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/Fudo_Myoo_Kodo_Toji.jpg)
By contrast, portrayals of Acala (Fudō) in Japan generally tend to conform to the description given in the ''Amoghapāśakalparāja Sūtra'' and the ''Mahāvairocana Tantra'': holding a lasso and a sword while sitting or standing on a rock (盤石座, ''banjakuza'') or a pile of hewn stones (瑟瑟座, ''shitsushitsuza''), with his braided hair hanging from the left of his head.
[ pg. 244] He may also be depicted with a lotus flower - a symbol of enlightenment - on his head (頂蓮, ''chōren''). Unlike the South Asian Acala, whose striding posture conveys movement and dynamism, the Japanese Fudō sits or stands erect, suggesting motionlessness and rigidity.
The sword he wields may or may not be flaming and is sometimes described generically as a or , which is descriptive of the fact that the sword's pommel is in the shape of the talon-like
vajra
The Vajra () is a legendary and ritual weapon, symbolising the properties of a diamond (indestructibility) and a thunderbolt (irresistible force).
The vajra is a type of club with a ribbed spherical head. The ribs may meet in a ball-shape ...
(金剛杵, ''kongō-sho''). It may also be referred to as a . In some cases, he is seen holding the "Kurikara sword" (倶利伽羅剣, ''Kurikara-ken''), a sword with the dragon (''
nāga
The Nagas (IAST: ''nāga''; Devanāgarī: नाग) are a divine, or semi-divine, race of half-human, half-serpent beings that reside in the netherworld (Patala), and can occasionally take human or part-human form, or are so depicted in art. ...
'') king Kurikara (倶利伽羅; Sanskrit: ''Kulikāla-rāja'' or ''Kṛkāla-rāja'') coiled around it. The flaming
nimbus
Nimbus, from the Latin for "dark cloud", is an outdated term for the type of cloud now classified as the nimbostratus cloud. Nimbus also may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Halo (religious iconography), also known as ''Nimbus'', a ring of ligh ...
or halo behind Acala is commonly known in Japanese as the "
Garuda
Garuda (Sanskrit: ; Pāli: ; Vedic Sanskrit: गरुळ Garuḷa) is a Hindu demigod and divine creature mentioned in the Hindu, Buddhist and Jain faiths. He is primarily depicted as the mount (''vahana'') of the Hindu god Vishnu. Garuda is a ...
flame" (迦楼羅炎, ''karura-en'') after the mythical
fire-breathing bird from Indian mythology.
![MET 56 121 26 162315](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/MET_56_121_26_162315.jpg)
There are two main variations in the iconography of Acala / Fudō in Japan. The first type (observable in the earliest extant Japanese images of the deity) shows him with wide open, glaring eyes, straight hair braided in rows and two fangs pointed in the same direction; a lotus flower rests above his head. The second type (which first appeared in the late 9th century and became increasingly common during the late
Heian and
Kamakura
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.
Kamakura has an estimated population of 172,929 (1 September 2020) and a population density of 4,359 persons per km² over the total area of . Kamakura was designated as a city on 3 November 1939.
Kamak ...
periods), by contrast, portrays Acala with curly hair, one eye wide open and/or looking upwards, with the other narrowed and/or looking downwards, an iconographic trait known as the ''tenchigan'' (天地眼), "heaven-and-earth eyes". Similarly, one of his fangs is now shown as pointing up, with the other pointing down. In place of the lotus flower, images of this type may sport seven topknots.
Although the squinting left eye and inverted fangs of the second type ultimately derives from the description of Acala given in the ''Mahāvairocana Tantra'' and Yi Xing's commentary on the text ("with his lower
ighttooth he bites the upper-right side of his lip, and with his left
upper tooth he biteshis lower lip which sticks out"), these attributes were mostly absent in Chinese and earlier Japanese icons.
Acala's mismatched eyes and fangs were allegorically interpreted to signify both the duality and nonduality of his nature (and of all reality): the upward fang for instance was interpreted as symbolizing the process of elevation towards enlightenment, with the downward fang symbolizing the descent of enlightened beings into the world to teach sentient beings. The two fangs also symbolize the realms of buddhas and sentient beings,
yin and yang
Yin and yang ( and ) is a Chinese philosophy, Chinese philosophical concept that describes opposite but interconnected forces. In Chinese cosmology, the universe creates itself out of a primary chaos of material energy, organized into the c ...
, and male and female, with the nonduality of these two polar opposites being expressed by Acala's tightly closed lips.
![Yellow-Fudo-manshu](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f1/Yellow-Fudo-manshu.jpg)
Acala is commonly shown as having either black or blue skin (the ''Sādhanamālā'' describes his color as being "like that of the ''atasī'' (
flax
Flax, also known as common flax or linseed, is a flowering plant, ''Linum usitatissimum'', in the family Linaceae. It is cultivated as a food and fiber crop in regions of the world with temperate climates. Textiles made from flax are known in ...
) flower," which may be either yellow or blue), though he may be at times portrayed in other colors. In Tibet, for instance, a variant of the kneeling Acala depiction shows him as being white in hue "like sunrise on a snow mountain reflecting many rays of light". In Japan, some images may depict Acala sporting a red (赤不動, ''Aka-Fudō'') or yellow (黄不動, ''Ki-Fudō'') complexion. The most famous example of the ''Aka-Fudō'' portrayal is a painting kept at
Myōō-in on
Mount Kōya
is a large temple settlement in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan to the south of Osaka. In the strictest sense, ''Mount Kōya'' is the mountain name ( sangō) of Kongōbu-ji Temple, the ecclesiastical headquarters of the Kōyasan sect of Shingon Budd ...
(
Wakayama Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Wakayama Prefecture has a population of 944,320 () and has a geographic area of . Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Prefecture to the north, and Mie Prefecture and Nara Prefecture ...
) traditionally attributed to the
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese. ...
Tendai
, also known as the Tendai Lotus School (天台法華宗 ''Tendai hokke shū,'' sometimes just "''hokke shū''") is a Mahāyāna Buddhist tradition (with significant esoteric elements) officially established in Japan in 806 by the Japanese m ...
monk
Enchin
(814–891) was a Japanese Buddhist monk who founded of the Jimon school of Tendai Buddhism and Chief Abbot of Mii-dera at the foot of Mount Hiei. After succeeding to the post of Tendai , in 873, a strong rivalry developed between his followers ...
. Legend claims that Enchin, inspired by a vision of Acala, painted the image using his own blood (thus explaining its red color), though recent analysis suggests that the image may have been actually created much later, during the
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the Genpei War, which saw the struggle bet ...
. The most well-known image of the ''Ki-Fudō'' type, meanwhile, is enshrined in
Mii-dera
, formally called , is a Buddhist temple in Japan located at the foot of Mount Hiei, in the city of Ōtsu in Shiga Prefecture. It is a short distance from both Kyoto, and Lake Biwa, Japan's largest lake. The head temple of the Jimon sect ...
(Onjō-ji) at the foot of
Mount Hiei
is a mountain to the northeast of Kyoto, lying on the border between the Kyoto and Shiga Prefectures, Japan.
The temple of Enryaku-ji, the first outpost of the Japanese Tendai (Chin. Tiantai) sect of Buddhism, was founded atop Mount Hiei by S ...
in
Shiga Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Shiga Prefecture has a population of 1,412,916 (1 October 2015) and has a geographic area of . Shiga Prefecture borders Fukui Prefecture to the north, Gifu Prefecture to the nort ...
and is said to have been based on another vision that Enchin saw while practicing austerities in 838. The original Mii-dera ''Ki-Fudō'' is traditionally only shown to esoteric masters (''
ācārya''; 阿闍梨, ''ajari'') during initiation rites and is otherwise not shown to the public, though copies of it have been made. One such copy, made in the 12th century, is kept at
Manshu-in
, also known as the Manshuin Monzeki, is a Tendai temple located near the Shugakuin Imperial Villa at Sakyō-ku, Ichijo-ji, Takenouchi-cho, in northeast Kyoto, Japan.
The temple was founded by Dengyō Daishi in the 8th century. It was then ...
in
Kyoto
Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...
.
The deity is usually depicted with one head and two arms, though a few portrayals show him with multiple heads, arms or legs. In Japan, a depiction of Acala with four arms is employed in subjugation rituals and earth-placating rituals (安鎮法, ''anchin-hō''); this four-armed form is identified in one text as "the lord of the various categories
gods
A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greater ...
]." An iconographic depiction known as the "Two-Headed
Rāgarāja
Rāgarāja ( sa, रागराज) is a deity venerated in the Esoteric and Vajrayana Buddhist traditions. He is especially revered in Chinese Esoteric Buddhism in Chinese communities as well as Shingon and Tendai in Japan.
Nomenclature
Rāg ...
" (両頭愛染, ''Ryōzu Aizen'' or ''Ryōtō Aizen'') shows Acala combined with the wisdom king
Rāgarāja
Rāgarāja ( sa, रागराज) is a deity venerated in the Esoteric and Vajrayana Buddhist traditions. He is especially revered in Chinese Esoteric Buddhism in Chinese communities as well as Shingon and Tendai in Japan.
Nomenclature
Rāg ...
(Aizen).
Acolytes
![Blue Fudo ShorenIn](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f3/Blue_Fudo_ShorenIn.JPG)
Acala is sometimes described as having a retinue of acolytes, the number of which vary between sources, usually two or eight but sometimes thirty-six or even forty-eight. These represent the elemental, untamed forces of nature that the ritual practitioner seeks to harness.
The two boy servants or ''dōji'' (童子) most commonly depicted in Japanese iconographic portrayals are and , who also appear as the last two of the list of Acala's eight great ''dōji''.
Kiṃkara is depicted as white in color, with
his hands joined in respect, while Ceṭaka is red-skinned and holds a vajra in his left hand and a vajra staff in his right hand. The two are said to symbolize both
Dharma-essence and ignorance, respectively, and is held to be in charge of good and evil.
![Eight Attendants I Kongobuji](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/af/Eight_Attendants_I_Kongobuji.jpg)
Kiṃkara and Ceṭaka are also sometimes interpreted as transformations or emanations of Acala himself. In a sense, they reflect Acala's original characterization as an attendant of Vairocana; indeed, their servile nature is reflected in their names (''Ceṭaka'' for instance means "slave") and their topknots, the mark of banished people and slaves. In other texts, they are also described as manifestations of
Avalokiteśvara
In Buddhism, Avalokiteśvara (Sanskrit: अवलोकितेश्वर, IPA: ) is a bodhisattva who embodies the compassion of all Buddhas. He has 108 avatars, one notable avatar being Padmapāṇi (lotus bearer). He is variably depicted, ...
(
Kannon
Guanyin () is a Bodhisattva associated with compassion. She is the East Asian representation of Avalokiteśvara ( sa, अवलोकितेश्वर) and has been adopted by other Eastern religions, including Chinese folk religion. She ...
) and Vajrapāṇi or as transformations of the dragon Kurikara, who is himself sometimes seen as one of Acala's various incarnations.
Two other notable ''dōji'' are Matijvala (恵光童子, ''Ekō-dōji'') and Matisādhu (恵喜童子, ''Eki-dōji''), the first two of Acala's eight great acolytes. Matijvala is depicted as white in color and holds a three-pronged vajra in his right hand and a lotus topped with a moon disk on his left, while Matisādhu is red and holds a trident in his right hand and a wish-fulfilling jewel (''
cintāmaṇi'') on his left. The eight acolytes as a whole symbolize the eight directions, with Matijvala and Matisādhu representing east and south, respectively.
Texts
![Rinmetsudojihonzon](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Rinmetsudojihonzon.jpg)
As noted above, Acala appears in the ''Amoghapāśakalparāja Sūtra'' and the ''Vairocanābhisaṃbodhi Sūtra''. As Caṇḍaroṣaṇa or Caṇḍamahāroṣaṇa, he is the primary deity of the ''Caṇḍamahāroṣaṇa Tantra'' and is described in the ''Sādhanamālā''.
The Japanese esoteric Buddhist tradition and
Shugendō
is a highly syncretic religion, a body of ascetic practices that originated in the Nara Period of Japan having evolved during the 7th century from an amalgamation of beliefs, philosophies, doctrines and ritual systems drawn from local fol ...
also make use of the following
apocryphal sutras on Acala:
* ''Sūtra of the Great Wrathful King Āryācala's Secret Dhāraṇī'' (聖無動尊大威怒王秘密陀羅尼経, ''Shō-Mudō-son daiifunnuō himitsu darani kyō'')
: A sūtra consisting of a discourse on Acala given by the bodhisattva
Vajrasattva
Vajrasattva ( sa, वज्रसत्त्व, Tibetan: རྡོ་རྗེ་སེམས་དཔའ། ''Dorje Sempa'', short form is རྡོར་སེམས། ''Dorsem'', Монгол: Доржсэмбэ) is a bodhisattva in the Maha ...
(identified here with
Samantabhadra Samantabhadra (Lit. "All Good", or "Always Auspicious") may refer to:
* Samantabhadra (Bodhisattva), a bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism associated with practice and meditation
* ''Samantabhadra'' (Tibetan: ''Kuntu Zangpo''), the name of a Buddha, ...
) to Mañjuśrī, set in "Vairocana's great assembly." The sutra describes Acala as being identical with the all-pervading ''
dharmakāya
The ''dharmakāya'' ( sa, धर्म काय, "truth body" or "reality body", zh, t=法身, p=fǎshēn, ) is one of the three bodies (''trikāya'') of a buddha in Mahāyāna Buddhism. The ''dharmakāya'' constitutes the unmanifested, "inconc ...
'', "
avingno fixed abode, but
welling
Welling is an area of South East London, England, in the London Borough of Bexley, west of Bexleyheath, southeast of Woolwich and of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater London in 1965, it was in the historical county of Kent.
...
within the hearts of sentient beings" (無其所居、但住衆生心想之中).
* ''Āryācala Sūtra'' (仏説聖不動経, ''Bussetsu Shō-Fudō kyō'')
: A summarized version of the above sutra.
Translated into English, it runs as follows:
:
: To this text is often appended two litanies of the names of Acala's young acolytes (童子, ''dōji''), the 'thirty-six ''dōji'' (三十六童子, ''sanjuroku dōji'') and the 'eight great ''dōji'' (八大童子, ''hachi daidōji'').
* ''Sūtra on Reverencing the Secret Dhāraṇī of Āryācala'' (稽首聖無動尊秘密陀羅尼経, ''Keishu Shō-Mudō-son himitsu darani kyō'')
Bīja and mantra
![Bonji-hāṃ](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Bonji-h%C4%81%E1%B9%83.png)
The ''
bīja In Hinduism and Buddhism, the Sanskrit term Bīja () ( Jp. 種子 shuji) (Chinese 种子 zhǒng zǐ), literally seed, is used as a metaphor for the origin or cause of things and cognate with bindu.
Buddhist theory of karmic seeds
Various schools ...
'' or seed syllables used to represent Acala in Japanese Buddhism are (हां / हाँ) and ''hāmmāṃ'' (हाम्मां / हाम्माँ), the latter being a combination of the two final ''bīja'' in his mantra: ''hāṃ māṃ'' (हां मां).
''Hāṃ'' is sometimes confounded with the similar-looking (हूं), prompting some writers to mistakenly identify Acala with other deities.
[cf. Getty, Alice (1988). The Gods of Northern Buddhism: Their History and Iconography. Courier Dover Publications. p.170, which mistakenly conflates the two Niō with Acala (Fudō) and Rāgarāja (Aizen).] The syllables are written using the
Siddham script Siddham may refer to:
*Siddhaṃ script, an alphabet and numeral script that originated and was used in India; now used in East Asia only
*Siddham (Unicode block)
Siddham is a Unicode block containing characters for the historical, Brahmi-derived ...
and is conventionally read as ''kān'' (カーン) and ''kānmān'' (カーンマーン).
Three
mantra
A mantra (Pali: ''manta'') or mantram (मन्त्रम्) is a sacred utterance, a numinous sound, a syllable, word or phonemes, or group of words in Sanskrit, Pali and other languages believed by practitioners to have religious, ma ...
s of Acala are considered to be the standard in Japan. The most widely known one, derived from the ''Mahāvairocana Tantra'' and popularly known as the "Mantra of Compassionate Help" (慈救呪, ''jikushu'' or ''jikuju''), goes as follows:
![BonjiHaammaam](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/BonjiHaammaam.png)
The "Short Mantra" (小呪, ''shōshu'') of Acala - also found in the ''Mahāvairocana Tantra'' - is as follows:
The longest of the three is the "Great Mantra" of Acala, also known as the "Fire Realm Mantra" (火界呪, ''kakaishu'' / ''kakaiju''):
Another mantra associated with the deity is ''
Oṃ caṇḍa-mahāroṣaṇa hūṃ phaṭ'', found in the ''Siddhaikavīra Tantra''. The text describes it as the "king of mantras" that dispels all evil and grants "whatever the follower of Mantrayāna desires".
Worship
Japan
Fudō Myōō (Acala), was never popular in Indian, Tibetan or even Chinese Buddhism , but in Japan it became the object of a flourishing cult with esoteric overtones.
The cult of Acala was first brought to Japan by the esoteric master
Kūkai
Kūkai (; 27 July 774 – 22 April 835Kūkai was born in 774, the 5th year of the Hōki era; his exact date of birth was designated as the fifteenth day of the sixth month of the Japanese lunar calendar, some 400 years later, by the Shingon sec ...
, the founder of the Shingon school, and his successors, where it developed as part of the growing popularity of rituals for the protection of the state. While Acala was at first simply regarded as the ''
primus inter pares
''Primus inter pares'' is a Latin phrase meaning first among equals. It is typically used as an honorary title for someone who is formally equal to other members of their group but is accorded unofficial respect, traditionally owing to their sen ...
'' among the five wisdom kings, he gradually became a focus of worship in his own right, subsuming characteristics of the other four ''vidyarāja''s (who came to be perceived as emanating from him), and became installed as the
main deity (''honzon'') at many temples and outdoor shrines.
Acala, as a powerful vanquisher of evil, was regarded both as a protector of the imperial court and the nation as a whole (in which capacity he was invoked during state-sponsored rituals) and the personal guardian of ritual practitioners. Many eminent Buddhist priests like Kūkai,
Kakuban
Kakuban (覚鑁/覺鑁; 1095–1143), known posthumously as ''Kōgyō-Daishi'' (興教大師) was a priest of the Shingon sect of Buddhism in Japan and credited as a reformer, though his efforts also led to a schism between and . Kakuban is also ...
,
Ennin
, better known in Japan by his posthumous name, Jikaku Daishi (), was a priest of the Tendai school of Buddhism in Japan, and its third . Ennin was instrumental in expanding the Tendai Order's influence, and bringing back crucial training and re ...
, Enchin, and
Sōō worshiped Acala as their patron deity, and stories of how he miraculously rescued his devotees in times of danger were widely circulated.
At temples dedicated to Acala, priests perform the , or ritual service to enlist the deity's power of purification to benefit the faithful. This rite routinely involves the use of the
as a purification tool.
Lay persons or monks in ''
yamabushi
are Japanese mountain ascetic hermits. They are generally part of the syncretic religion, which includes Tantric Buddhist, Shinto, and Japanese Taoist elements.
Their origins can be traced back to the solitary Yama-bito and some (saints or ho ...
'' gear who go into rigorous training outdoors in the mountains often pray to small Acala statues or portable talismans that serve as his ''
honzon
, sometimes referred to as a Gohonzon ( or ), is the enshrined main image or principal deity in Japanese Buddhism. The buddha, bodhisattva, or mandala image is located in either a temple or a household butsudan.
The image can be either a statue o ...
''.
This element of yamabushi training, known as
Shugendō
is a highly syncretic religion, a body of ascetic practices that originated in the Nara Period of Japan having evolved during the 7th century from an amalgamation of beliefs, philosophies, doctrines and ritual systems drawn from local fol ...
, predates the introduction of Acala to Japan. At this time, figures such as , who appeared before the sect's founder,
En no Gyōja
( b. 634, in Katsuragi (modern Nara Prefecture); d. c. 700–707) was a Japanese ascetic and mystic, traditionally held to be the founder of Shugendō, the path of ascetic training practiced by the ''gyōja'' or ''yamabushi''.
He was banish ...
, or Vairocana, were commonly worshiped.
Once Acala was added to list of deities typically enshrined by the yamabushi monks, his images were either portable, or installed in ''
hokora
is a miniature Shinto shrine either found on the precincts of a larger shrine and dedicated to folk ''kami'', or on a street side, enshrining ''kami'' not under the jurisdiction of any large shrine.Encyclopedia of ShintoHokora Accessed on De ...
'' (outdoor shrines).
These statues would often be placed near waterfalls (a common training ground), deep in the mountains and in caves.
The
daimyo
were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominally ...
Takeda Shingen
, of Kai Province, was a pre-eminent ''daimyō'' in feudal Japan. Known as the "Tiger of Kai", he was one of the most powerful daimyō with exceptional military prestige in the late stage of the Sengoku period.
Shingen was a warlord of great ...
is known to have taken Fudō Myōō as his patron (particularly when he transitioned to being a lay monk in his later years), and has commissioned a statue of Fudō that is supposedly modelled after his face.
Acala also tops the list of
Thirteen Buddhas
The is a Japanese grouping of Buddhist deities, particularly in the Shingon sect of Buddhism. The deities are, in fact, not only Buddhas, but include bodhisattvas and Wisdom Kings. In Shingon services, lay followers recite a devotional mantra t ...
.
[, Japanese Dictionary, p.748, middle row, under 「志ふさん・ぶつ.. (十三)佛」] Thus
Shingon Buddhist
Shingon monks at Mount Koya
is one of the major schools of Buddhism in Japan and one of the few surviving Vajrayana lineages in East Asia, originally spread from India to China through traveling monks such as Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra.
Kn ...
mourners assign Fudō to the first seven days of service.
The first week is an important observance, but perhaps not as much as the observance of "seven times seven days" (i.e. 49 days) signifying the end of the "intermediate state" (
bardo
In some schools of Buddhism, ''bardo'' ( xct, བར་དོ་ Wylie: ''bar do'') or ''antarābhava'' (Sanskrit, Chinese and Japanese: 中有, romanized in Chinese as ''zhōng yǒu'' and in Japanese as ''chū'u'') is an intermediate, transitio ...
).
Literature on Shingon Buddhist ritual will explain that Sanskrit "seed syllables",
mantra
A mantra (Pali: ''manta'') or mantram (मन्त्रम्) is a sacred utterance, a numinous sound, a syllable, word or phonemes, or group of words in Sanskrit, Pali and other languages believed by practitioners to have religious, ma ...
s and
mudra
A mudra (; sa, मुद्रा, , "seal", "mark", or "gesture"; ,) is a symbolic or ritual gesture or pose in Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism. While some mudras involve the entire body, most are performed with the hands and fingers.
As wel ...
s are attendant to each of the Buddhas for each observance period. But the scholarly consensus seems to be that invocation of the "Thirteen Buddhas" had evolved later, around the 14th century
and became widespread by the following century,
so it is doubtful that this practice was part of Kūkai's original teachings.
China
![Acala_at_Buddha_Tooth_Relic_Temple_and_Museum](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Acala_at_Buddha_Tooth_Relic_Temple_and_Museum.JPG)
Bùdòng Míngwáng (Acala) worship in China was first introduced into China during the
Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
after the translation of esoteric tantras associated with him by monks such as Amoghavajra and Vajrabodhi. Iconography of Acala has been depicted infrequently in some temples and grottoes from the Tang through to contemporaneous times, usually as part of a set depicting the
Eight Wisdom Kings or
Ten Wisdom Kings, In modern times, he is revered as one of the eight Buddhist guardians of the
Chinese zodiac
The Chinese zodiac is a traditional classification scheme based on the lunar calendar that assigns an animal and its reputed attributes to each year in a repeating twelve-year cycle. Originating from China, the zodiac and its variations remain ...
and specifically considered to be the protector of those born in the year of the Rooster. He is also frequently invoked during Chinese Buddhist repentance ceremonies, such as the
Liberation Rite of Water and Land
The Liberation Rite of Water and Land () is a Chinese Buddhist ritual performed by temples and presided over by high monks. The service is often credited as one of the greatest rituals in Chinese Buddhism, as it is also the most elaborate and requ ...
, along with the other Wisdom Kings where they are given offerings and intreated to expel evil from the ritual platform.
Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
.">
File:Tang Acala Vidyaraja (14372153865).jpg
File:Tang Acala Vidyaraja (14185590020).jpg
File:Tang Acala Vidyaraja (9912784335).jpg
) as an incarnation of Vairocana (the "Great Sun Buddha") in a similar vein as Acala. Indeed, Acala's Mantra of Compassionate Help is presented in the text as Smokey's "great mantra."