Fudō Myō-ō, the immovable King of Wisdom

Collezione Edoardo Chiossone 1898 Genova

- XVII-XVIII

B-1279

Unità di misura: cm; Altezza: 79.5

Myō-ō are furious deities of Indian origin who were adopted into esoteric Buddhism to serve and protect the various Buddhas. Myō-ō always have a ferocious and threatening appearance, in order to subdue evil and frighten non-believers, until they embrace Buddhist law. They represent the wisdom of Buddhism, protect the Buddhist teachings, remove all obstacles to enlightenment, and force evil to surrender. In Japan, Fudō (不動) is the most revered among the Kings of Wisdom, especially by the Shingon cult of Japanese Esoteric Buddhism. It represents the rage of Dainichi against evil and ignorance. Fudō Myō-ō was introduced to Japan in the ninth century, during the Heian period (794-1192), and since then many famous images have been made of him. Fudō Myō-ō (Sanskrit: Acala, the immovable), is the most important of the Five Kings of Wisdom or Light ( Myō-ō), that is, the five deities of Hindu origin who play the role of guardian kings and protectors of the faith in Mikkyō, the esoteric Buddhism introduced to Japan from China at the beginning of the ninth century. The figure of Fudō Myō-ō stands, by itself, with an expression of harsh ferocity, typical of the protective deities of dogma, surrounded by purifying flames. And, according to the usual iconography, he is equipped with a sankoken sword, a symbol of knowledge and submission, and a hilt in the shape of a three pointed vajra - lightning-diamond - (in our case the blade is missing but the hilt is clearly visible), and with a kensaku loop, with the dual purpose of immobilizing the enemies of the faith and keeping the believers from turning away from the right path.