are two wrathful and muscular guardians of the Buddha standing today at the entrance of many Buddhist temples in

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 ...

in the form of frightening wrestler-like statues. They are dharmapala manifestations of the bodhisattva Vajrapāṇi, the oldest and most powerful of the Mahayana Buddhist pantheon. According to scriptures like the Pāli Canon as well as the ''Ambaṭṭha Sutta'', they travelled with Gautama Buddha to protect him. Within the generally pacifist tradition of Buddhism, stories of dharmapalas justified the use of physical force to protect cherished values and beliefs against evil. They are also seen as a manifestation of Mahasthamaprapta, the bodhisattva of power that flanks

Amitābha Amitābha ( sa, अमिताभ, IPA: ), also known as Amitāyus, is the primary Buddha of Pure Land Buddhism. In Vajrayana Buddhism, he is known for his longevity, discernment, pure perception, purification of aggregates, and deep awarene ...

in Pure Land Buddhism and as Vajrasattva in Tibetan Buddhism.

Manifestations

Symbolic meaning

They are usually portrayed as a pair of figures that stand guarding temple entrance gates usually called '' Shānmén'' (山門) in China, in Japan and ''Geumgangmun'' () in Korea. The right statue is traditionally called Guhyapāda and has his mouth open, representing the vocalization of the first grapheme of Sanskrit Devanāgarī (अ) which is pronounced "a".Transliterations fro
Digital Dictionary of Buddhism
/ref> The left statue is traditionally called Nārāyaṇa and has his mouth closed, representing the vocalization of the last grapheme of Devanāgarī (ह ) which is pronounced "" (हूँ). These two characters together ( a-hūṃ/a-un) symbolize the birth and death of all things. (Men are supposedly born speaking the "a" sound with mouths open and die speaking an "" and mouths closed.) Similar to Jaya-Vijaya, they signify "everything" or "all creation". The contraction of both is

Aum ''Om'' (or ''Aum'') (; sa, ॐ, ओम्, Ōṃ, translit-std=IAST) is a sacred sound, syllable, mantra, or an invocation in Hinduism. ''Om'' is the prime symbol of Hinduism.Krishna Sivaraman (2008), ''Hindu Spirituality Vedas Through Ved ...

(ॐ), which is Sanskrit for The Absolute.

Guhyapāda

Guhyapāda ( Traditional Chinese: 密迹金剛; simplified Chinese: 密迹金刚; pinyin: ''Mìjī jīngāng''; Japanese: ''Misshaku Kongō''; '' Korean: Miljeok geumgang''; Vietnamese: ''Mật tích kim cương'' ) is a symbol of overt violence: he wields a '' vajra'' mallet "" (a diamond club, thunderbolt stick, or sun symbol) and bares his teeth. His mouth is depicted as being in the shape necessary to form the "ha" or "ah" sound. In China, he is also known as General Ha (哈将 Hā Jiāng) in reference to this iconographic detail. Similarly, he is also known as Agyō (阿形, "a"-form, general term open-mouthed statues in aum pair) in Japan due to this detail as well. In Chinese Buddhism, Guhyapāda is regarded as one of the Twenty-Four Protective Deities, who are a grouping of dharmapalas often enshrined in the

Mahavira Hall A Mahavira Hall, usually simply known as a Main Hall, is the main hall or building in a traditional Chinese Buddhist temple, enshrining representations of Gautama Buddha and various other buddhas and bodhisattvas. It is encountered throughout ...

of temples and monasteries. In addition, Guhyapada is also sometimes paired or identified with the Wisdom King Ucchuṣma, who is commonly known in Chinese as ''Huìjì Jīngāng'' (穢跡金剛). Dadaocheng Cisheng Temple2018哼將軍

Nārāyaṇa

Nārāyaṇa ( Traditional Chinese: 那羅延金剛; simplified Chinese: 那罗延金刚; pinyin: ''Nàluōyán Jīngāng''; Japanese: ''Naraen Kongō;'' Korean: ''Narayeon geumgang''; Vietnamese: ''Na la diên kim cương'') 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 "", or "heng" or "un". In China, he is also known as General Heng (哼将 Hēng Jiāng) in reference to this iconographic detail. Similarly, he is also known as Ungyō (吽形, "um"-form, general term closed-mouthed statues in aum pair) in Japan due to this detail as well.

Vajrapāni

Both ''Guhyapāda'' and ''Nārāyaṇa'' are seen as manifestations of

Vajrapāni (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 ...

( Traditional Chinese: 執金剛神; simplified Chinese: 执金刚神; pinyin: ''Zhíjīngāng shén''; Japanese: ''Shūkongōshin;'' Korean: ''Jip geumgang sin''; Vietnamese: ''Chấp kim cang thần),'' with the name literally meaning "'' vajra''-wielding god".

Nio Zen Buddhism

Nio Zen Buddhism was a practice advocated by the Zen monk

Suzuki Shōsan was a Japanese samurai who served under the ''shōgun'' Tokugawa Ieyasu. Shōsan was born in modern-day Aichi Prefecture of Japan. He participated in the Battle of Sekigahara and the Battle of Osaka before renouncing life as a warrior and becomi ...

(1579–1655), who advocated Nio Zen Buddhism over Nyorai Zen Buddhism. He recommended that practitioners should meditate on Nio and even adopt their fierce expressions and martial stances in order to cultivate power, strength and courage when dealing with adversity. Suzuki described Nio as follows: "The Niō (Vajrapani) is a menacing God. He wields the kongōsho (vajra) and he can crush your enemies. Depend on him, pray to him that he will protect you as he protects the Buddha. He vibrates with energy and spiritual power which you can absorb from him in times of need."

Influence on Taoism

In Chinese folk religion and Taoism, they are known as ''

Heng Ha Er Jiang Heng and Ha () are two generals of the Shang dynasty in Chinese mythology, featured within the 16th-century Chinese fantasy novel ''Investiture of the Gods''. These two fictional characters were created by the author of ''Investiture of the Gods' ...

'' (). Within the Taoist novel '' Fengshen Yanyi'',

Zheng Lun Zheng Lun (Chinese character, Chinese: 鄭倫; Pinyin: Zhèng Lún) is a character featured within the famed classic Chinese novel ''Fengshen Yanyi''. Zheng Lun was originally the head student under Duè Zhenrèn (度厄真人) of the Western Kunl ...

and

Chen Qi Chen Qi may refer to: *Chen Qi (artist) (born 1956), Chinese/Singaporean oil painting and ink painting artist *Chen Qi (actress), Chinese actress *Chen Qi (baseball), Chinese national baseball team infielder, see China national baseball team *Chen Q ...

were finally appointed as the two

deities 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 greate ...

Hellenistic influence

Kongōrikishi are a case of the transmission of the image of the Greek hero Heracles to East Asia along the

Silk Road The Silk Road () was a network of Eurasian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles), it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and reli ...

. Heracles was used in Greco-Buddhist art to represent Vajrapani, the protector of the Buddha, and his representation was then used 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 ...

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 AD.''"The origin of the image of Vajrapani should be explained. This deity is the protector and guide of the Buddha Sakyamuni. His image was modeled 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 Guardian Deities io"'' (Katsumi Tanabe, "Alexander the Great, East-West cultural contacts from Greece to Japan", p23)

Gallery

File:Bust of a Buddhist guardian figure, from China, Yuan Dynasty, 14th century CE. The British Museum.jpg, Bust of a Buddhist guardian figure, from China, Yuan Dynasty, 14th century CE. The British Museum File:Statue of the Two Vajra Warriors (金刚力士 Jinggang Lishi) or Nio (仁王 Renwang) - Guhyapada (密跡金剛 Miji Jinggang) and Narayana (Naluoyan Tian) in Tze Shan Monastery (慈山寺 Císhànsì) in Hong Kong.jpg, Statue of Mìjī jīngāng (''Guhyapada'') on the right and Nàluōyán Jīngāng (''Narayana'') on the left of the shanmen in Tsz Shan Monastery in Hong Kong File:Temple Guardian (Miljeok Geumgangyeoksa) at Hwa-Eom Temple-.jpg, Narayeon Geumgang at

Hwa-Eom Temple Hwaeomsa ( Sino-Korean: ''hwa-eom-sa'' 華嚴寺, literally " Flower Garland Temple") is a head temple of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism. It is located on the slopes of Jirisan, in Masan-myeon, Gurye County, in South Jeolla Province, South ...

in South Korea File:Two Niō who stand in the left (Ungyō) and right (Agyō) of the sanmon gate at Zentsū-ji in Zentsū-ji City Kagawa pref.jpg, Two Niō who stand in the left (Ungyō) and the right (Agyō) of sanmon (gate) at

Zentsū-ji The is a Buddhist temple of the Shingon sect in Zentsūji, Kagawa, Japan. It was established in 807 by Kūkai, founder of Shingon Buddhism, who was born where the temple now stands. The oldest structure, the Shakadō Hall, dates to around 167 ...

in Japan File:Niō or Temple Guardian. Banna-ji. Ashikaga, Togichi.jpg, Niō or Temple Guardian. Banna-ji File:Niō - Temple Guardian. Banna-ji. Ashikaga, Togichi.jpg, Niō - Temple Guardian. Banna-ji. File:Kongōrikishi by anonymous sculptor (Kōfuku-ji, 3) (National Treasure).jpg, Agyō and Ungyō in Kofuku-ji were made by the Kei school in the 13th century, 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 betwee ...

in Japan. National Treasure of Japan. File:Vajirapani Shukongōshin Tōdai-ji before 1939.jpg, Shukongōshin in Tōdai-ji at Nara, Japan. Made in the 8th century. National Treasure of Japan.

Notes

References

* ''Religions of the Silk Road'' by Richard Foltz, 2nd edition (Palgrave, 2010) * ''The Diffusion of Classical Art in Antiquity'' by John Boardman (Princeton University Press, 1994) * ''Old World Encounters. Cross-cultural contacts and exchanges in pre-modern times'' by Jerry H.Bentley (Oxford University Press, 1993) * ''Alexander the Great: East-West Cultural contacts from Greece to Japan'' (NHK and Tokyo National Museum, 2003)

External links

Nio Protectors, the benevolent kings
{{Buddhist temples in Japan Bodhisattvas Buddhist gods Chinese gods Japanese gods Buddhism in Japan Buddhism in Korea Heracles Japanese architectural features Buddhist architecture Twenty-Four Protective Deities