En no Gyoja
Encyclopedia
En no Gyōja or En no Ozunu (役小角), born 634, was a Japanese ascetic and mystic
, traditionally held to be the founder of Shugendō
, a syncretic religion incorporating aspects of Taoism
, Shinto
, esoteric Buddhism
(especially Shingon Mikkyō
and the Tendai
sect) and traditional Japanese shamanism
. He is venerated as a bosatsu (a bodhisattva
) Jinben Daibosatsu (神変大菩薩).
Authorship of the non-canonical Sutra
on the Unlimited Life of the Threefold Body is attributed to En no Gyōja. Due to his mythical status as a mountain saint, he was believed to possess many supernatural
powers.
Mysticism
Mysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
, traditionally held to be the founder of Shugendō
Shugendo
is a highly syncretic Buddhic religion or sect and mystical-spiritual tradition which originated in pre-Feudal Japan, in which enlightenment is equated with attaining oneness with the . This perception of experiential "awakening" is obtained through the understanding of the relationship between...
, a syncretic religion incorporating aspects of Taoism
Taoism
Taoism refers to a philosophical or religious tradition in which the basic concept is to establish harmony with the Tao , which is the mechanism of everything that exists...
, Shinto
Shinto
or Shintoism, also kami-no-michi, is the indigenous spirituality of Japan and the Japanese people. It is a set of practices, to be carried out diligently, to establish a connection between present day Japan and its ancient past. Shinto practices were first recorded and codified in the written...
, esoteric Buddhism
Vajrayana
Vajrayāna Buddhism is also known as Tantric Buddhism, Tantrayāna, Mantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Esoteric Buddhism and the Diamond Vehicle...
(especially Shingon Mikkyō
Shingon Buddhism
is one of the mainstream major schools of Japanese Buddhism and one of the few surviving Esoteric Buddhist lineages that started in the 3rd to 4th century CE that originally spread from India to China through traveling monks such as Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra...
and the Tendai
Tendai
is a Japanese school of Mahayana Buddhism, a descendant of the Chinese Tiantai or Lotus Sutra school.Chappell frames the relevance of Tendai for a universal Buddhism:- History :...
sect) and traditional Japanese shamanism
Shamanism
Shamanism is an anthropological term referencing a range of beliefs and practices regarding communication with the spiritual world. To quote Eliade: "A first definition of this complex phenomenon, and perhaps the least hazardous, will be: shamanism = technique of ecstasy." Shamanism encompasses the...
. He is venerated as a bosatsu (a bodhisattva
Bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva is either an enlightened existence or an enlightenment-being or, given the variant Sanskrit spelling satva rather than sattva, "heroic-minded one for enlightenment ." The Pali term has sometimes been translated as "wisdom-being," although in modern publications, and...
) Jinben Daibosatsu (神変大菩薩).
Authorship of the non-canonical Sutra
Sutra
Sūtra is an aphorism or a collection of such aphorisms in the form of a manual. Literally it means a thread or line that holds things together and is derived from the verbal root siv-, meaning to sew , as does the medical term...
on the Unlimited Life of the Threefold Body is attributed to En no Gyōja. Due to his mythical status as a mountain saint, he was believed to possess many supernatural
Supernatural
The supernatural or is that which is not subject to the laws of nature, or more figuratively, that which is said to exist above and beyond nature...
powers.
Modern references
- In the historical fantasyHistorical fantasyHistorical fantasy is a sub-genre of fantasy and related to historical fiction, which makes use of specific elements of real world history. It is used as an umbrella term for the sword and sorcery genre and sometimes, if fantasy is involved, the sword-and-sandal genre too...
film Tokyo: The Last MegalopolisTokyo: The Last Megalopolisis a tokusatsu historical fantasy film produced in 1987 by Exe and distributed in 1988 by Toho Studios. It is the first live-action adaptation of the Teito Monogatari series by Hiroshi Aramata.-Plot:...
(based on the novel Teito MonogatariTeito Monogatariis a massive Japanese historical fantasy epic written by Hiroshi Aramata.-Overview:The story is a retelling of the history of Edo from an occultist perspective. The premise is based on the idea that the curse of Taira no Masakado greatly influenced the city's history from its inception to the...
by Hiroshi AramataHiroshi Aramatais a Japanese author, translator, and screenplay writer, as well as a specialist in natural history and cartography.His most popular novel was Teito Monogatari , which has sold over 3.5 million copies in Japan alone. He also wrote Alexander Senki, a novel which eventually evolved into the anime...
) the antagonist Yasunori KatoYasunori Katois a fictional character, the antagonist of the Japanese historical fantasy series Teito Monogatari, created by Hiroshi Aramata.Since his first cinematic appearance in 1988, Yasunori Kato has gone on to become a well known and well respected archetype in Japanese popular culture having inspired a...
claims to be a descendant of Ozunu.
- In PS1 game Oni Zero: Fukkatsu, the main antagonist is En no Gyōja, the whole story of the game is based on him and the history around that era.
- In Koji SuzukiKoji SuzukiKoji Suzuki is a Japanese writer, who was born in Hamamatsu and currently lives in Tokyo. Suzuki is the author of the Ring cycle of novels, which has been adapted into a manga series. He has written several books on the subject of fatherhood...
's novel RingRing (Suzuki novel)is a Japanese horror novel by Koji Suzuki, first published in 1991, and set in modern day Japan. It was the basis for a film of the same name , and two remakes: a Korean version and an American version ....
, Shizuko Yamamura draws a statuette of En no Gyōja up from the sea, upon which she receives supernatural powers such as precognitionPrecognitionIn parapsychology, precognition , also called future sight, and second sight, is a type of extrasensory perception that would involve the acquisition or effect of future information that cannot be deduced from presently available and normally acquired sense-based information or laws of physics...
. Because her daughter Sadako was born with these powers, some have suggested that En no Gyōja (referred to as En no Ozunu in the novel) is meant to be seen as Sadako's father.
- In the anime series of Naruto Shippuden, En no Gyōja appears as an old and powerful ninja who secluded himself on a mountain in the later years of his life.
External links
- Introducing places of interest: Yoshino-Kumano National Park || National Parks of Japan [MOE] (Ministry of the Environment (Japan)Ministry of the Environment (Japan)The ' of Japan was formed in 2001 from the sub-cabinet level Environmental Agency established in 1971. The minister is a member of the Cabinet and is chosen by the Prime Minister, usually from the Diet., the current is Goshi Hosono...
Retrieved on March 17, 2009) - JNTO Website | Find a Location | Nara | Yoshino (Japan National Tourist OrganizationJapan National Tourist OrganizationThe or JNTO provides information about Japan to promote travel to and in the country. Its headquarters are in Yūrakuchō, Chiyoda, Tokyo. It operates Tourist Information Centers as well as a website. The JNTO disseminates information about transportation, lodging, food and beverage, and sight-seeing...
Retrieved on March 17, 2009)