jaki　邪鬼

KEY WORD :　art history / iconography

Sk: yaksa. Evil spirits believed to harm human beings and hinder Buddhist teaching. Usually appear in sculptures as small figures being crushed under the feet of *shitennou 四天王. Early examples like those in Houryuuji 法隆寺 Nara (6-7c) show the jaki crouching squarely on all fours supporting the statue. This posture changed in the Tenpyou period ; the jaki suffers an uncomfortable lying position, with the guardian king trampling his shoulder, back, stomach or head with both feet. Good examples are the 8c Shitennou in Toudaiji 東大寺, Nara. The figure of *Tobatsu Bishamonten 兜跋毘沙門天 is sometimes shown with two jaki , Niranba 尼藍婆 and Biranba 毘藍婆, at his feet. These are exceptional, as they are usually considered to be benevolent demons. Examples can be seen under the *Bishamonten 毘沙門天 figure in Touj 東寺 (Kyouougokokuji 教王護国寺), Kyoto ( 8-9c).

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