Page 140 - JAPAN THE SHAPING OFDAIMYO CULTURE 1185-1868

73 Aizen Myóó in shrine
Join and Shükichi (fl. 1297)
gilt bronze
h. figure, 7.9 (31/8); shrine, 30.0 (ii3/ 4)
Kamakura period, 1297
Shômyôji, Kanagawa Prefecture
Important Cultural Property
Aizen Myóó (Lord of Passions), like Fudó,
is one of the Kings of Bright Wisdom,
guardians of Buddist truth. He symbolizes
the transformation of the human passions,
particularly lust and greed, into Enlighten-
ment. He is customarily shown, as here,
wearing a lion crown, with a third eye of
wisdom in the center of his forehead, with
six arms, and with an Esoteric Buddhist
symbol in each hand. Since the myoo are
fierce aspects of the Buddha, his hair
stands up in anger. Behind him is a sun
halo, and he sits, like most Buddhist dei-
ties, on a lotus throne. Beneath the lotus
blossom seat is a vase, traditionally con-
taining treasures; these are depicted on
the base of the lotus throne, closely follow-
ing the iconographie prescriptions of Eso-
teric Buddhist sutras. Much care has been
lavished on the realistic modeling of the
angry face and the exaggerated folds of
the hem of the garment.
The lion crown, hair, arms, and acces-
sories were each made separately. Each of 73
the many tiers of the pedestal is made of
cast bronze, hammered bronze plate, and
cast silver, and decorated with gold and sil-
ver gilt and inlay. The wooden zushi (min-
iature shrine) may have been made at the
same time as the image, or shortly after.
An inscription on the back of the pedestal
indicates that this small, elaborately cast
image was made at Shômyôji in 1297.
The names of the sculptors, Join and
Shükichi, father and son, are recorded in
the inscription. Calligraphy on other ex-
tant items in Shômyôji reveals that Join
and Shükichi were metalworkers from the
Eastern provinces and were active at Shô-
myôji and at Gokurakuji in Kamakura, an-
other Esoteric Buddhist temple. This
image has a simplicity and directness that
bespeaks the style of provincial artisans.
NYS

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