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Merōfu Kannon and Her Veneration in Zen and Imperial Circles in Seventeenth-Century Japan |
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Author |
Fister, Patricia
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Source |
Japanese Journal of Religious Studies
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Volume | v.34 n.2 |
Date | 2007 |
Pages | 417 - 442 |
Publisher | Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture=南山宗教文化研究所 |
Publisher Url |
http://nirc.nanzan-u.ac.jp/en/
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Location | 名古屋, 日本 [Nagoya, Japan] |
Content type | 期刊論文=Journal Article |
Language | 英文=English |
Note | Patricia Fister is Professor at the International Research Center for Japanese Studies in Kyoto. |
Keyword | Merōfu Kannon; oshie; Isshi Bunshu; Tōfukumon’in; Lotus Sutra |
Abstract | Merōfu Kannon (Ch. Malangfu Guanyin) had a significant following and was the inspiration for numerous poems and religious pictures in China and Japan. This article (1) explores the historical background and origins of Merōfu (“the wife of Master Ma”)—a potent symbol of female lay piety who became regarded as a manifestation of Kannon; (2) provides translations and analyses of some poems by Chan and Zen priests referring to her; (3) focuses on the worship of Merōfu Kannon in the circle of Emperor Gomizuno-o and Empress Tōfukumon’in. The impetus for this article were the delicately crafted oshie images of this deity made by Tōfukumon’in and her step-daughter Shōzan Gen’yō (founder of Rinkyūji Imperial Convent) which I discovered at temples in Kyoto and Shiga prefecture. All seem to be based on the same Chinese prototype. The second half of the article provides descriptions of the five oshie Merōfu Kannon known to me and documentation concerning the circumstances of their creation and donation. Through these images, I try to illuminate the meaning of Merōfu Kannon in imperial circles in seventeenthcentury Japan. |
ISSN | 03041042 (P) |
Hits | 1000 |
Created date | 2008.09.03 |
Modified date | 2017.09.07 |
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