This is the long-awaited part 3 entry of Maroudo Shrine in Ohira town.
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| Ohira Shrine in Ohira town |
It is definitely time to divulge my thoughts (delusions?) on the identity of Maroudo Daimyojin (客人大明神) and close this issue.
Listed below are the pieces of facts I gathered through the fieldwork and Google search.
- The area had, as had been seen elsewhere in an ancient era, under the influence of the syncretism of Shinto and Buddhism that our present-day common sense is prone to overlook.
- The archives filed in the local library indicate the enshrined deity in the Maroudo Shrine is Takeminakata, from which a part of his divinity was transferred on the 20th of October from the Isoyama Suwa shrine (see part one entry).
- However, the stone monument standing in front of the shrine does not articulate the enshrined deity.
- As far as I am concerned, the most prestigious annual festival takes place on the 20th of October in THREE Maroudo shrines (this and the second in Chiba, and the third in Ehime)
- As mentioned in the part one entry, the enshrined deity in Kyaku Jinja (客神社) in Ehime is Kukurihime (喜玖理媛命/菊理媛神)
- Similarly, the enshrined deity in Maroudo Shrine (客人神社) in Chiba is Izanami
- One more, the enshrined deity in Maroudo Shrine in Nakasaki is Ohyamatsumi
- In the temples of the Tendai sect, Hokke sect, and Nichiren sect, there is a syncretic tradition of enshrining the `Thirty Guardian Deities (Sanju-banshin/Dharmapala)` as daily rotating protective deities.
- The assigned guardian (Daimyojin) on the 20th is Maroudo Daimyojin (客人大明神) in the Tendai sect at Mount Hiei (Hiyoshi Taisha)
- In proximity to the Maroudo shrine, Taisanji temple (大山寺), which was the Tendai sect until 1675, is there.
Herein, roughly 10 pieces of scattered findings are listed above. Let’s sort them out, try to give them meanings, and unveil what has been overlooked over time.
As far as I am concerned, the concise and easiest interpretation to account for who the heck is Maroudo Daimyojin is the ritual being integrated into the Buddhist practice called "Sanju-banshin" (三十番神) in Enryakuji temple. Unfortunately, there is no English Wiki for Sanju-banshin. Yet thanks to the AI technology, I was able to save time by asking ChatGPT to translate it into English (with my tiny cosmetic makeup corrections),
ChatGPT said:
The term "Sanju-banshin" (三十番神) refers to a group of "Thirty Guardian Deities" in Japan's syncretic tradition of Shinto and Buddhism. Each deity is believed to take turns daily to protect the nation and its people, corresponding to the thirty days of a lunar month.
In the temples of the Tendai sect, Hokke sect, and Nichiren sect, there is a syncretic tradition of enshrining the Thirty Guardian Deities as daily rotating protective deities for followers of the Lotus Sutra. Because of this, many temples have halls named "Sanju-banshindo" (Thirty Guardian Deities Hall), "Banshindo" (Guardian Deities Hall), or "Banshingu" (Guardian Deities Shrine). However, many of these halls were demolished during the anti-Buddhist movement (Haibutsu Kishaku) , [(my personal opinion) which I personally regard it a Japanese version of The Cultural Revolution following the Meiji Restoration to enforce Capitalism, militarism, and sycophancy to the Modern Era Western world].
The concept originated when Saichō (Dengyō Daishi), the founder of the Tendai sect, enshrined these deities on Mt. Hiei. By the Kamakura period, the belief had become widespread. In later periods, particularly within the Nichiren and Hokke sects, these deities were revered as protectors (Dharmapala) of the Lotus Sutra. This integration is attributed to Nichiren's disciple (Nichiren sect), Nichizō, who adopted the Sanju-banshin from Mount Hiei to aid in propagating Nichiren Buddhism in Kyoto.
End of ChatGPT.
The following table lists the thirty deities as recognized in the original Enryakuji temple. version:
Shown below is the location of the thirty shrines listed in the Thirty Deities of Enryakuji temple version. The numbers correspond to the ones on the Table above. Inset magnifies the capital region as the majority of shrines are located there. The hearts in the pink background signify the four utmost shrines highly prioritized in the practice of the thirty deities, stars in the yellow background indicate ones located in the capital region, whereas flags in green are those situated outside. Note that those corresponding to the 17th through the 21st are in the sanctified precinct of Hiyoshi Taisha, hence none pinned on the map.
It is worthwhile stating that the Hakusan Hime shrine indicated as a star in the pink background (20) is the only exception that the spirituality of the enshrined deity was brought into the precinct of Hiyoshi Taisha as a `GUEST (=Maroudo)` at the Maroudo Palace!
<Summary Part One>
It appears to me that the enshrined Maroudo (客人)/Monkyaku (門客) deities used to be the Maroudo Daimyojin (客人大明神) that had been dispatched nationwide by the Buddhist missionary monks who took advantage of the `Thirty Guardian Gods` practice that originated from Enryakuji temple.
It appears to me that the enshrined Maroudo (客人)/Monkyaku (門客) deities used to be the Maroudo Daimyojin (客人大明神) that had been dispatched nationwide by the Buddhist missionary monks who took advantage of the `Thirty Guardian Gods` practice that originated from Enryakuji temple.
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| Haiden Hall of Shirayama Hime Shrine, the most prestigious shrine in Kaga Province |
Question: Who on earth is Maroudo Daimyojin?
Answer: Well, it seems to be Eleven-faced Kannon (Buddhism)= Nine-headed Dragon (Buddhism)= Izanami (Shinto) in the Mt. Hakusan worship (白山信仰). Monks on Mt. Hiei exploited Hakusan worship and transferred the spirit of Hakusai Myori Daigongen to Hiyoshi Taisha and built the Maroudo (= guest) Palace in 858.
Again, ChatGPT translates the Hakusan Worship in Japanese Wiki.
ChatGPT said:
Mt. Hakusan (=White mountain), long known as "Koshi no Shirayama" (the White Mountain of Koshi region), has been celebrated in poetry and song. It is counted among the "Three Famous Mountains of Japan," alongside Mt. Fuji and Mt. Tate, and is renowned for its stunning, graceful peak.During the Nara period, ascetic practitioners (shugenja) began establishing sacred mountains for spiritual practice across Japan. On Mt. Hakusan, the ascetic Taicho ascended the mountain and founded its sacred practices. What was once a primitive form of worship of Mt. Hakusan evolved into the more systematized form of Shugendo, and what is today recognized as the "Hakusan faith" came to be.In 717, the ascetic monk Taicho climbed to the summit of Mt. Hakusan, the main peak of Hakusan and meditated. During his meditation, the Nine-headed Dragon King (Kuzuryūō), a manifestation of the Eleven-faced Kannon (Ekadasamukha), appeared from the Ryokuheki (aqua-green) Pond (also known as Suigai-ike Pond) and proclaimed itself to be the incarnation of the Shinto Goddess Izanami, declaring itself as Hakusan Myōri Daibosatsu (the Great Bodhisattva of Hakusan) and revealing its divine form. This event is said to be the origin of the founding of the Hakusan Shugendo site, which later became the basis for Hakusan worship.In the following year, 718, Taicho built a shrine on the summit of the mountain and enshrined the Hakusan Myōri Daigongen (Great Incarnation) there.
End of ChatGPT translation
it is not contradictory to the fact that the Maroudo shrine in Ohira town was founded after the establishment of the Thirty Deity worship. As shown in the chronological Table above, Shirayama Hime Shrine and its Jingu-ji temple (shrine temple) that originated Hakusan worship and introduced it to Enryakuji temple belonged to the auxiliary branch of the Tendai sect in 1147 and the practice of the Thirty Deities worship was exploited not only by Tendai but also Nichiren monk missionaries for propagation in Kaga Province.
It is not so unrealistic to ponder that Buddhist missionaries propagated the practice of the Thirty Deities worship in Mt. Ohira as well and built Maroudo shrine there...
<Summary Part Two>
Animistic awe of the stunning Mt. Hakusan (white mountain) seeded the Hakusan worship that fascinated Monk Taicho, who, during his practice, went through the revelation of Nine-headed Dragon, introducing itself manifestation of the Eleven-faced Kannon.
In Shinto, this sacred and spiritual incident is interpreted as the emergence of the Shinto Goddess, Izanami. Hence, Izanami was enshrined in the Okumiya located on the summit of Mt. Hakusan. Later on, the enshrined deity was misinterpreted to Kukurihime. I will explain in the new entry.
When Saicho, a founder of Tendai sect in the Enryakuji temple, imported the cutting-edge wisdom of Tendai sect Buddhism from Tang Dynastiy in an ancient China and launched the headquater temple of the Tendai sect on Mt. Hiei, Emperor Kammu was the patron and Fujiwara clan backed him up politically and financially, hence shrines related to them were integrated into the Thirty Deities worship in the 10th century.
Hiyoshi Taisha engulfed the Hakusan worship by circulating the rumor of the emergence of Hakusan Myori Daigongen in the precinct of Enryakuji temple in 858 and invited Myori Daigongen as a guest deity, who later on, settled herself in the Maroudo Palace, took part in the Thirty Deities worship as a guardian of the 20th.
Thanks to the support from the power, Enryakuji temple grew into a superpower of Buddhism enough to have Shirayama Hime Shrine under its control.
Several Buddhist sects filed their own Thirty Deities, most of which were almost identical though, and used them for the mission during Kamakura era. That was how Maroudo Daimyojin was disseminated as the cutting-edge tenet then.
<Take-home Message>
With that, probably I am the only one Homo sapiens postulating that the true nature of Maroudo Daimyojin originated from (1) and is `disguised` as (4) here and now...
3b) Kukurihime (Shinto) -misinterpretted
4) Maroudo Daimyojin/deity
fin and quod erat demonstrandum
