A Study of the Buddhist Stone Reliefs of Mt. Hiko and the Influence of Shugendo in the Kyushu Region
Shugendo, which prospered during Japan’s Middle Ages, valued ascetic practices and fused mountain worship with Taoism, Shinto, Buddhism, Animism, astronomy, and medicine. However, since it was transmitted via oral tradition from one generation to the next, limited evidence can be found. Therefore, t...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2017
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| In: |
Religion and the arts
Year: 2017, Volume: 21, Issue: 4, Pages: 459-489 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Kyūshū
/ Buddhist art
/ Relief map
/ Shugen (Sect)
|
| IxTheo Classification: | BL Buddhism BN Shinto KBM Asia |
| Further subjects: | B
Shugendo
3D
sculpture
Mt. Hiko
Japan
|
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) |
| Summary: | Shugendo, which prospered during Japan’s Middle Ages, valued ascetic practices and fused mountain worship with Taoism, Shinto, Buddhism, Animism, astronomy, and medicine. However, since it was transmitted via oral tradition from one generation to the next, limited evidence can be found. Therefore, this essay analyzes 3D imaging data of stone reliefs found at Mt. Hiko, located in the Kyushu region of Japan, to discern whether the carvings depict certain deities and how the Sanskrit characters found in the moon circles represent Shugendo thinking. In addition, it examines how the influence of Shugendo art spread throughout the Kyushu region, Kiyomizu (Kagoshima Prefecture), and Aoki (Kumamoto Prefecture) as well as reassesses its cultural significance. With regard to the former, the results show that a relief of a seated Amitabha was engraved between two other deities: the Mahaasthaamapraapta and Avalokiteśvara. Concerning the latter, the findings reveal that these were the locations of Amitabha worship by the esoteric Tendai sect, which revered “the water” (rivers) and represented an association among Mt. Hiko, Kumano, and Aoki. |
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| Physical Description: | Online-Ressource |
| ISSN: | 1568-5292 |
| Contains: | In: Religion and the arts
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1163/15685292-02104001 |