Hakusan mandara　白山曼荼羅

KEY WORD :　art history / iconography

Devotional paintings of the cult of Hakusan 白山 (white mountains), a group of mountains that border Gifu, Fukui, Ishikawa, and Toyama prefectures. It is considered one of the principal mountain sites of Japan, and having a permanent cap of snow it is visible from far away. The site of Hakusan was regarded as sacred from very early times. Hakusan is celebrated in the MAN'YOUSHUU 万葉集 which was compiled in the 8c, and the first oracle from the deity was said to have been received in 719 by Taichou 泰澄, the founder of the cult kaizan 開山. The cult of asceticism mountain developed in the Heian period and the mountain's religion was a form of Shinto/ Buddhist syncretism. From the 12c Hakusan was ruled over by Enryakuji 延暦寺 on Mt. Hiei 比叡 Kyoto, the head Tendai 天台 temple. For this reason the pattern of the Sannou 山王 shrines, with upper, middle, and lower groups of seven shrines adding up to 21 shrines, was copied in Hakusan (see *Sannou mandara 山王曼荼羅). The main deity, Shirayamahime 白山比売, has her own Shrine known as Hakusan Honguu 白山本宮, or Hakusanji 白山寺 which contains three deities although none of them is called after her. The main group of seven deities, including that of Honnguu was called the Hakusan Shichi Gongen 白山七権現. The Hakusan Sansho Gongen 白山三所権現 may be the deities of the mountains (Bessan 別山, Gozenpou 御前峰, and Oonanjimine 大汝峰) whose Buddhist counterparts *honjibutsu 本地仏 may be identified as *Shoukannon 聖観音, *Juuichimen Kannon 十一面観音 and *Amida 阿弥陀, although they are sometimes vary. There are two famous paintings of the cult of Hakusan. In one of these the central figure is Shirayamahime 白山姫 called Myouri Daibosatsu 妙理大菩薩 who was the main deity of Hakusan. Below her and to either side are another female and a male deity of the main group placed before screens. Above are the bonji 梵字 (Siddham letters used as sound symbols of the deities) *Dainichi 大日 (for the male), Juuichimen Kannon (for Myouri Daibosatsu) and *Senju Kanon 千手観音. In the other painting the three peaks of Hakusan are shown above clouds while the Hakusan Shichi Gongen and several deities of minor shrines are shown below them. At the bottom of the painting Taichou sits on a rock at the foot of a waterfall.

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