Jizo: Japan’s Beloved Savior of Lost
Souls
Buddhistdoor International Meher McArthur 2015-05-15
The Buddhist deity Kshitigarbha, or “He who
encompasses the Earth,” has a powerful and ubiquitous presence in
Japan, where figures of him depicted as a bald-headed priest and
often wearing red bibs or other articles of clothing are common not
only in Buddhist temples, but also along the sides of roads all
over the country. Known in India as early as the 4th century, this
bodhisattva is believed to have vowed to save all beings from the
torments of Hell during the interim between the passing of the
historical Buddha, Shakyamuni (the Buddha of our age), and the
arrival of the future Buddha, Maitreya. In the Himalayan Tantric
schools, he is worshipped as one of the Eight Bodhisattvas and is
represented there as a crowned, bejeweled bodhisattva figure seated
on a lotus and holding a sacred jewel in his right hand. However,
he was never a popular figure of worship in either India or the
Himalayas.
In East Asia, and in Japan in particular, on the
other hand, he has been revered from an early date. As the “good”
Judge of Hell, he is believed to rule over Yama and the nine other
Kings or Judges of Hell, and in this capacity, is credited with
being able to save souls from the punishments issued by these ten
infernal judges. Because of this power, together with additional
abilities that have been ascribed to him over the centuries, he has
become one of Japan’s most widely loved and worshipped deities, and
his presence is felt there well beyond the grounds of Buddhist
temples.
Kshitigarbha was introduced to Japan in the 8th
century, when a statue of him was brought from China and placed in
an important Buddhist shrine in the ancient capital of Nara. Known
in Japan as Jizo, this deity’s early popularity reached a peak
during the late Heian era (794–1192), when the rise of the Pure
Land (J. Jodo) Sect intensified fears among the people about Hell
in the afterlife. Along with the Buddha associated with the Pure
Land Sect, Amitabha (J. Amida), who promised rebirth in his
glorious Western Paradise, Jizo, since he was believed to be able
to save devotees from the torments of Hell, gained a significant
following among Japanese Buddhists. It was probably around this
time that he was first depicted as a priest, with a shaved head and
priest’s robes, and carrying a staff in his right hand and a sacred
jewel in his left. Such a representation is unique among
bodhisattvas, and may originate from the belief that the
bodhisattva first appeared to the Buddha in the form of a
priest.
Sometime around the 14th or 15th century in Japan,
Jizo became associated in particular with the souls of dead
children, who, according to popular Buddhist belief, became
stranded in a limbo known as Sai no Kawara, the “River Beach of
Sai.” There, they were forced to construct towers of pebbles as a
way of attaining rebirth, only to see them knocked down daily by
the Old Hag of Hell, Datsueba, who guards the Sanzu Gawa, the
Buddhist equivalent of the Greek mythical River Styx. Since this
time, images of Jizo have been commissioned by bereaved parents and
placed in temple graveyards in the hope that Jizo will travel to
Sai no Kawara and relieve the souls of their children from these
tortuous labors. These small stone figures of Jizo often wear
clothing or hold toys belonging to the children. Major temples,
such as the Hasedera in Kamakura, have sections of their graveyards
filled with row upon row of such figures, smiling sweetly and
dressed in children’s clothing, donated by parents as a prayer for
the repose of their lost children.
Other, larger figures of Jizo can be found dressed
in red bibs and caps, but are not necessarily connected with the
death of children. In Japan, the color red has for many centuries
been worn protectively to quell demons and cure illnesses, and has
also become associated with deities of healing, fertility, and
childbirth. As well as being associated with saving the souls of
children, Jizo has been believed to aid women wishing to conceive,
and worshipped as a holy physician with the power to cure various
illnesses. So, images of him are often decked in red to signify his
protective healing powers and to invoke his powers to heal the
loved ones of worshippers. At many temples, including the famous
Zenko-ji in Nagano, a group of Six Jizos (Roku Jizo) carved from
stone or cast in bronze and adorned with red bibs and caps offers
protection to worshippers. The number in this group refers to his
role as Master of the Six Buddhist Realms of Rebirth (namely the
realms of humans, gods, animals, the warlike beings known as
ashuras, hungry
ghosts, and Hell) and his ability to penetrate all of these
locations to relieve suffering.
Perhaps because of his ability to cross from one
Buddhist realm to another, Jizo has also long been associated with
travel and regarded as a protector of travelers. This function of
Jizo merged at some point in Japan with the native Shinto belief in
gods of borders and transitions called dosojin (“road
ancestor spirits”). Originally phallic stones symbolizing
fertility, these dosojin were erected at the edge of a
village or at a crossroads in Japan to protect against evil
influences. Over time, many of these figures were replaced by
figures of Jizo, sometimes solitary but often, again, in groups of
six. Now, throughout the countryside and even in large cities,
small Jizo figures can be seen lining Japan’s roads and pilgrimage
routes as protectors of travelers and of anyone living close
by.
Even today, many Japanese believe in Jizo’s powers, extending even
beyond the protection of travelers, children, the sick, and lost
souls in Hell. He is prayed to at hundreds of temples throughout
the country to bring rain, to guarantee long life and good fortune,
to help farmers and fishermen, and even to provide protection in
battle. Although typically depicted as a young, bald-headed,
sweet-faced priest, he is occasionally depicted surrounded by
children, wearing armor, or even in female form, depending on the
particular power he is believed to possess at a particular temple.
Because of his lovable appearance and function as protector of
children, it is not surprising that he is also often depicted as a
cute, cartoon-like figure. There is no disrespect in these
representations; rather, they demonstrate how beloved the deity
Jizo is to the people of Japan.