Kongōyasha Myōō

Japan

Not on view

Kongōyasha Myōō is one of the Five Great Guardian Kings in Esoteric Buddhism. His ferocious aspect is a manifestation of the wrath of the Five Wisdom Buddhas against evil. Kongōyasha Myōō is presented with three faces, five eyes, and six arms, with each hand holding one of his attributes: a wheel, an arrow, a bow, a sword, a tri-pronged vajra, and a vajra bell. Introduced from China by Kobo Daishi (774-836), a founder of Shingon Esoteric Buddhism, the Five Great Guardian Kings became an important ritual icon, called upon as protectors of the nation during the Ninnōkyō ceremony (Sutra of the Benevolent Kings), which was performed on special occasions

Kongōyasha Myōō, Hanging scroll; ink on paper, Japan

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painting

Kongōyasha Myōō, Hanging scroll; ink on paper, Japan
Kongōyasha Myōō, Hanging scroll; ink on paper, Japan

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