rokuji myougou　六字名号

KEY WORD :　art history / iconography

Lit. Six Character Name. The six Chinese characters used to write 'Namu Amida Butsu 南無阿弥陀仏'. An homage to the Buddha *Amida 阿弥陀, generally referred to as the nenbutsu 念仏, a chant that devotees believed would ensure one's salvation in Amida's Pure Land gokuraku 極楽. The Six Characters may be written in ink, embroidered or printed. Sometimes the Six Characters are incorporated with illustrations of the Six Realms of Reincarnation *rokudou-e 六道絵. A well-known sculpted image is the statue of the priest *Kuuya 空也 (903-72) in Rokuharamitsuji 六波羅密寺 in Kyoto, in which the Six Characters are represented by six miniature images of Amida coming out of the priest's mouth. Kuji myougou 九字名号 (Nine Character Name), refers to a variant name for Amida written with nine characters, 'Namu Fukashigikou Nyorai 南無不可思議光如来.' Written forms of Amida icons also employ Sanskrit letters shuji 種字.

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