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THIS IS A SIDE PAGE
RETURN TO MAIN JIZO PAGE
Last Update: May 20, 2007
Updated Sainokawara List
Datsueba (Old Hell Hag, Blood Pool)
Sai no Kawara = Japanese Limbo for Children
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 NOTE: This page relies heavily on the wonderful database of the Japanese Architecture & Art Net User System (JAANUS), the writings of longtime Japan resident Dr. Gabi Greve, the research of American anthropologist Ellen Schattschneider (Brandeis University), and many other authors including Lafcadio Hearn, Alan Booth, Elaine Marting, Gorai Shigeru, Kondo Takahiro, Kawamura Kunimitsu, and the publications of the Japanese Journal of Religious Studies, the Institute for Medieval Japanese Studies, and Japan's National Museum of Ethnology. See links for their publications and web pages.
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WHAT'S HERE
- Dousojin. Pre-Buddhist Japanese folk deities (deity) who administer the border between this world and hell; later incorporated into Japanese Buddhist mythology. The Dousojin protect mountain passes, crossroads, and village boundaries, obstructing the passage of evil entities and demons of disease. Jizo Bosatsu is the Buddhist counterpart (honjibutsu 本地仏) of the Dousojin.
 Details here.
- Sai no Kawara Mythology -- Children's Limbo in Japan
Explores Japanese Buddhist mythology regarding the sandy beach called Sai no Kawara (Sainokawara), a riverbed in the netherworld where the souls of departed children do penance; reviews the savior role played by Jizo Bosatsu. Answers various questions, e.g., Why are stones piled around Jizo statues? Why are Jizo statues often found together in groupings of six? Why are Jizo statues garbed in red caps and bibs? Details here.
- Sai no Kawara -- Hymn to Jizo
The Legend of the Humming of the Sai-no-Kawara. A translation by Lafcadio Hearn of the Jizo hymn sung at Sai-no-Kawara rites. This hymn is about 300 years old. Details here.
- Judges of Hell, Ten Kings of Hell, Demons of Hell
Describes the ten judges of hell, who review the behavior of the deceased while s/he was still living, and then send the departed soul back into one of six states of transmigration (reincarnation); introduces the demons who inhabit the lower regions, including the old hag Datsueba (literally "old woman who robs clothes").
Details here.
- List of Sai no Kawara Locations in Japan. A partial list of Japanese locations where Sai-no-Kawara rites are still performed, along with brief details on female shamans (called Itako) who help grieving parents contact their departed children in the neitherworld.
Details here.
- Weddings for the Dead (Sai no Kawara). Details here.
- Kokeshi and Infanticide in Japan. Details here.
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 DOUSOJIN (or DOSOJIN) 道祖神
Shinto Deities) Who Administer
Border Between This World & Hell
Adapted from text by JAANUS
SHINTO MYTHOLOGY. Also called Dourokujin 道陸神, Sae no Kami 塞の神 (also read Sai no Kami), and other less common names. Japanese folk deities (or diety), later incorporated into Buddhism, who administer the border between this world and hell; also associated closely with roads and travel. In their most common Japanese manifestations, Dousojin protect mountain passes, crossroads, and village boundaries, obstructing the passage of evil entities and demons of disease. The Dousojin cult is intermingled with many others, both Shinto and Buddhist, including those practising Sai-no-Kawara 塞の河原 rites (see below) for the souls of departed children, as well as rituals to ward off evil spirits. Dousojin are also associated with matters of fertility both in crops and humans beings. Dousojin is a term used to refer to the many protective stone markers found throughout Japan, especially those that are phallic or carved to show a single figure or a couple who may be in sexual union. In some cases, Dousojin are considered the gods of stone. Click here for more on Dousojin stone markers.
 Dousojin's Honjibutsu 本地仏 (Buddhist counterpart) is Jizo Bosatsu. Dousojin's festival (called Dondo Matsuri ドンド祭, Sai no Kami 塞の神, or Sagichou 左義長) is celebrated on the 15th and 16th of the first lunar month (koshougatsu 小正月) and is a children's festival. <end JAANUS text>
The Japanese countryside is also home to many stone markers called kekkai-ishi (boundary stones 結界石). These stones once demarcated restricted zones inside the holy mountain sites of Japan's Shugendo Sect (mountain ascetics). Shugendo combined elements of ancient pre-Buddhist worship with the doctrines and rituals of Esoteric Buddhism. Mountain worship in Japan is referred to as Sangaku Shinkou 山岳信仰, which literally means "mountain faith." Records suggest such worship emerged well before the introduction of Buddhism to Japan. At first, these restricted zones could not be crossed by any unclean person, but in later centuries these off-limit areas became exclusively closed to only women (Nyonin Kekkai, 如人結界). For example, women were not allowed to scale Mt. Fuji until the time of the Meiji restoration (1868). Today, however, these boundary zones have mostly disappeared. Also probably related to the kekkai-ishi are the uba-ishi (old woman stones or witch stones 姥石), shibari-ishi (binding stones 縛り石), and Shibarare Jizo (string-bound Jizo, 縛られ地蔵). Please click here for a wonderful paper by Gorai Shigeru on Shugendo lore and boundary stones, written for the Japanese Journal of Religious Studies. For more on Dousojin, click here.
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SAI NO KAWARA MYTHOLOGY -- LIMBO FOR CHILDREN
The Role of Jizo Bosatsu in Saving Lost Souls
BUDDHIST MYTHOLOGY. In Japan, Jizo Bosatsu first appears in the Ten Cakras Sutra 大方広十輪経 in the Nara Era (710 to 794 AD). That sutra is now a treasure held by the Nara National Museum. In China, Jizo worship can be traced back to at least the fifth century AD (to the Chinese translation of the Ten Cakras Sutra), which portrays Jizo as the guardian of souls in hell. Chinese artwork thereafter often shows Jizo surrounded by the ten kings/judges of hell to signify Jizo's primary role in delivering people from the torments of hell.
In Japan, the height of Jizo's early popularity was during the late Heian Era (794 to 1192 AD) when the rise of the Jodo Sect (浄土宗 Pure Land Sect devoted to Amida Nyorai) intensified fears about hell in the afterlife and kindled belief in redemption and salvation through Amida Nyorai. The Jodo sect promised all -- monks and laity alike -- the chance for rebirth in Amida's heavenly Western Paradise (Gokuraku 極楽, literally the "Land of Ultimate Bliss," also called Jodo 浄土, or Pure Land).
At the time, fears of hell were fired by a widespread belief in the Age of Mappo (末法 Decline of Buddhist Law). During this period, the "Days of the Dharma" were divided into three periods in Japan (although other schemes were used by the Chinese, with the 500/1000 year pattern most prevalent):
- First phase (Jp. = Shoubou 正法、 しょうぼう) lasting 1,000 years, during which Buddhism gains acceptance and spreads, and followers have the capacity to understand and practice Buddhist law. This is the period following the death of the Historical Buddha. According to the calendar of those days, the Historical Buddha died in 949 BC.
- Second phase lasting 1,000 years, in which Buddhist practice begins to weaken. Called the Period of the Imitation Law (Jp. = Zoubou 象法、ぞうぼう), this phase would last until 1051 AD.
- Last phase lasting 3,000 years, the Age of Mappo (Jp. = Mappou 末法、まっぽう), or the Period of the Decline of the Law, a time when Buddhist faith deteriorates and is completely abandoned.
The Japanese believed the third and final period -- the Age of Mappo (Decline of the Law) -- had begun in 1052 AD. The ensuing decades, moreover, were marked by civil wars, famine, and pestilence. A sense of foreboding thus filled the land, and people from all classes yearned for a gospel of salvation.
These fears gave rise to numerous tales and paintings depicting the torments and demons of hell. Perhaps one of the most popular books of the period, one that sparked vivid paintings of hell and hell beings, was "Essentials of Salvation" (Jp. = Oujou Youshuu 徃生要集), written by the Tendai monk Genshin 源信 (942 - 1017 AD). The book itself focuses on the three main sutras of the Pure Land tradition, and is famous for its descriptions of hell and samsara (the cycle of suffering and rebirth). Even today, there are those who believe the current stage of human history is within the third phase, the Age of Mappo, the age when Buddhist faith deteriorates, is abandoned, and finally disappears.
Due to Jizo's association with the realm of death and suffering souls (hell), Jizo worship became intimately associated with Amida worship, the Pure Land sect, and belief in Amida's Western Paradise (and life in the beyond, in the afterlife). But faith in Amida and Jizo remain largely confined to a small segment of the Japanese population until the Kamakura Era (1185-1333 AD), when both are popularized by new Buddhist sects devoted to ordinary people -- the Pure Land Sects of Honen Shonin (1133 - 1212 AD) and his disciple Shinran (1173 - 1262 AD). Both sects were committed to bringing Buddhism to the illiterate commoner; both expressed concern for the salvation of ordinary people, stressing pure and simple faith over complicated rites and doctrines. Their leaders taught that anyone could attain salvation by faithfully reciting the name of Amida Buddha. The Nichiren Sect, however, which also came to prominence among common folk during the Kamakura Era, rejects the "quick path" to salvation represented by Amida faith. The Nichiren Sect therefore does not revere Amida Nyorai or Jizo Bosatsu. <Editor's Note: For reasons unknown to me, and surprisingly, the Jodo Shinshu (New Jodo Sect devoted to Amida) does not revere Jizo Bosatsu. This must be researched more fully.>
 SAI NO KAWARA LEGEND.
WHY ALL THE STONES?
The legend of Sai no Kawara is attributed to the Jodo Pure Land Sect from around the 14th or 15th century AD. According to the legend, children who die prematurely are sent to the underworld as punishment for causing great sorrow to their parents. They are sent to Sai no Kawara, the riverbed of souls in purgatory, where they pray for salvation by building small stone towers, piling pebble upon pebble, in the hopes of climbing out of limbo into paradise. But hell demons, answering to the command of the old hag Shozuka no Baba (also called Datsueba, or Jigoku no Baba), soon arrive and scatter their stones and beat them with iron clubs. But no need to worry, for Jizo comes to the rescue.
According to the Flammarion Iconographic Guide to Buddhism: "In Japan, popular belief holds that a hideous creature by the name of Shozuka-no-Baba strips children of their clothing, then encourages them to make piles of stones to build a stairway to paradise. Jizo consoles the afflicted children and, to save them, hides them in the wide sleeves of his robe. The Japanese in the countryside often attach small pieces of children's clothing to Jizo statues, believing that Jizo can thus clothe the children in his protection." <end Flammarion quote>
Even today, Jizo statues in some places in Japan are covered -- sometimes from top to bottom -- in pebbles placed there by sorrowing parents, who believe that every stone tower they build on earth will help the soul of their dead child in performing his/her penance. Also, you will often find statues of Jizo Bosatsu decked in red caps or bibs. For more on this "red" tradition, please see The Color Red in Japanese Mythology.
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Below drawings from comic book
by Daido Publications, Tokyo
 
(L) Children Piling Stones of Prayer; (R) Demon Attacker.
Saying prayers for father, they heap the first tower.
Saying prayers for mother, they heap the second tower.
Saying prayers for their brothers, their sisters, and all
whom they loved at home, they heap the third tower.
 
Jizo Bosatsu Comes to the Rescue
 
Jizo says:
"In this land of the shades,
I am your father and your mother.
Trust me morning and evening."
JIZO AND THE SIX REALMS
CHILDREN IN LIMBO MUST UNDERGO JUDGEMENT
Below text adapted from writings of Kondo Takahiro
Jizo Bosatsu vowed to save or relieve the suffering of all souls in each of the Six Realms of Existence (reincarnation), in particular those in hell, and is thus often shown in groupings of six in Japan. Such groupings are called Roku Jizo 六地蔵 -- literally the "Six Jizo." Each of the six Jizo is assigned to one of the six realms, to save souls wandering in each specific realm. The six realms start with the lowest three states, called the three evil paths. They are the states of (1) people in hell, (2) hungry ghosts, and (3) animals. Above these are the states of (4) Asuras, (5) Humans, and (6) Devas. All six realms are stages of suffering, even the heavenly realm of the Deva, who it is said suffer from pride. Click here for details on the six realms, which are also called the Six Paths of Transmigration or Reincarnation, the Wheel of Life (Tibet), or the Cycle of Suffering (samsara in Sanskrit). There is a corresponding group known as the Six Kannon, one each for the six realms, which may have pre-dated the Six Jizo grouping (requires further investigation). Chinese Tendai texts refer to these Six Kannon as early as 594 AD. Click here for details on the Six Kannon.
Jizo Bosatsu guards not only adult souls -- Jizo also guards the souls of children, particularly those of stillborn and aborted children, or of children who died early in life. These children, even if innocent, must still pass through the netherworld and undergo judgement by the Juo (十王 = じゅうおう = Ten Kings of Hell).
Above: Roku Jizo (Six Jizo) at Hase Dera in Kamakura
Modern statues of Jizo often appear cute and loveable.
The first judge is Shinko-o. The dead who are found innocent can walk atop a bridge to cross the River Sanzu (River of Three Crossings | 三途の川 | さんずのかわ | the River Styx in Western myth), which lies between the first and second Judges of Hell (between the kings Shinko-o and Shoko-o). In most accounts, Jizo Bosatsu guides the innocent children across the bridge. The guilty, however, must swim across deep water and the less guilty must ford a rapid stream. In other accounts, Jizo helps the children wade the river safely. The story goes like this. When the souls of the deceased young children attempt to swim across the River Sanzu, they are overcome, for the river is too long or flowing too fast to cross. So instead, they build stone towers, pebble by pebble, as penance and prayer to receive salvation. But to no avail. For demons appear out of nowhere and destroy their stone towers -- thereby destroying any hope of crossing the river. However, if living parents and relatives have faith in Jizo Bosatsu, Jizo will come to their aid, and help their lost children wade the river safely, avoiding the terrible fury of the demons. Jizo statues, moreover, typically hold the shakujo -- a six-ringed staff -- a staff that is used by Jizo to fathom the river, and a staff that signifies Jizo's protection for all trapped in the six realms. In some traditions, Jizo shakes the staff to awaken us from our delusions.
Jizo as depicted in the Tateyama Mandala
Even today, this folklore about hell prompts many Japanese parents into action. They imagine their little babies lingering at the riverbed, unable to cross the river, unable to gain salvation. Japanese parents therefore feel a great need to do something to alleviate their child's suffering, to do something to improve the child's chance of redemption. Thus the great cult of Jizo Bosatsu in Japan. Everywhere, throughout the country, at roadsides, in graveyards, in temples, at busy intersections, one can find little Jizo statues clothed in small bibs, adorned with toys, wearing tiny hats, protected by scarfs, and piled high with tiny stones offered by sorrowing parents. Parents cloth the Jizo statues in hopes that Jizo will clothe the dead child in his protection. Small pebbles are piled around the Jizo statue as well, offered by sorrowing parents as a prayer to Jizo to help the suffering soul of their deceased child.
Some temples, without doubt, take advantage of this folklore. They say to the traumatized parents: "Your lost child will continue to suffer. Your lost child will never be saved unless you take action to soothe their troubled souls. You must buy statuettes and offer religious services to alliviate their suffering." In Japan, this Buddhist tendency toward mercy and prolonged mourning means that many grieving parents buy expensive statuettes and pay exorbitant fees for memorial services -- the temples thus prosper from such patronage. <end text adapted from writings of Kondo Takahiro>
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Jizo Wasan (和 讃 = Wasan = Hymn or Psalm)
The Legend of the Humming of the Sai-no-Kawara
from "Glimpses of an Unfamiliar Japan" by Lafcadio Hearn
First published in 1894. ISBN: 0781230713
"Now there is a wasan of Jizo," says Akira, taking from a shelf in the temple alcove some much-worn, blue-covered Japanese book. "A wasan is what you would call a hymn or psalm. This book is two hundred years old. It is called Sai-no-Kawara-kuchi-zu-sami-no-den, which is, literally, The Legend of the Humming of the Sai-no-Kawara. And this is the wasan." And he reads me the hymn of Jizo -- the legend of the murmur of the little ghosts, the legend of the humming of the Sai-no-Kawara, rhythmically, like a song:
Not of this world is the story of sorrow.
The story of the Sai-no-Kawara,
At the roots of the Mountain of Shide;
Not of this world is the tale; yet 'tis most pitiful to hear.
For together in the Sai-no-Kawara are assembled
Children of tender age in multitude,
Infants but two or three years old,
Infants of four or five, infants of less than ten:
In the Sai-no-Kawara are they gathered together.
And the voice of their longing for their parents,
The voice of their crying for their mothers and their fathers
-- "Chichi koishi! Haha koishi!" --
Is never as the voice of the crying of children in this world,
But a crying so pitiful to hear
That the sound of it would pierce through flesh and bone.
And sorrowful indeed the task which they perform.
Gathering the stones of the bed of the river,
Therewith to heap the tower of prayers.
Saying prayers for the happiness of father, they heap the first tower;
Saying prayers for the happiness of mother, they heap the second tower;
Saying prayers for their brothers, their sisters, and all whom they
loved at home, they heap the third tower.
Such, by day, are their pitiful diversions.
But ever as the sun begins to sink below the horizon,
Then do the Oni, the demons of the hells, appear,
And say to them:
What is this that you do here?
Lo! your parents still living in the Shaba-world
Take no thought of pious offering or holy work
They do nought but mourn for you from the morning unto the evening.
Oh, how pitiful! alas! how unmerciful!
Verily the cause of the pains that you suffer
Is only the mourning, the lamentation of your parents.
And saying also, "Blame never us!"
The demons cast down the heaped-up towers,
They dash the stones down with their clubs of iron.
But lo! the teacher Jizo appears.
All gently he comes, and says to the weeping infants:
Be not afraid, dears! be never fearful!
Poor little souls, your lives were brief indeed!
Too soon you were forced to make the weary journey to the Meido,
The long journey to the region of the dead!
Trust to me! I am your father and mother in the Meido,
Father of all children in the region of the dead.
And he folds the skirt of his shining robe about them;
So graciously takes he pity on the infants.
To those who cannot walk he stretches forth his strong shakujo;
And he pets the little ones, caresses them, takes them to his loving bosom
So graciously he takes pity on the infants.
Namu Amida Butsu!
<end quote Lafcadio Hearn>
<also see Beauregard Parish Library E-text Initiative>
For more on Wasan (hymns),
please visit below links.
西院河原地藏和讚」成立攷
Sainokawara Jizo Wasan
Vernacular Hymns Dedicated to Jizo
at the Sai River Beach and Their Possible Age of Compilation
by Manabe Kouzai 真鍋廣濟, ISBN/ISSN: 0287-6000
Click here for a listing of Japanese Wasan
Big Jizo Statue
大地蔵, 新潟県小木町
Niigata Prefecture, Sado Island, Ogi Town
17.5 Meters in Height. Made of Concrete.
Located near Mt. Iwayasan (Wayasan) 岩谷山
Photo Courtesy this J-Site.
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JUU-OU (JUO) 十王 = じゅうおう
THE TEN KINGS / TEN JUDGES OF HELL / JIZO BOSATSU
King Shokou, the 2nd Judge of Hell
100 centimeters tall, wood, 1251 AD
Treasure of Enno-ji Temple, Carved by Koyu
Now housed at Kamakura Museum (Kamakura Kokuhokan)
JUU-OU (JUO) 十王 TEN JUDGES OF HELL
Adapted from writings of Kondo Takahiro
The Juo (lit. = 10 kings) concept is based on Chinese Taoism and was introduced to Japan during the Heian Period (794-1185 AD). In Kamakura, it flourished in the 14th century, and seems to be the Buddhist counterpart of the Roman Catholic concept of purgatory, the latter stemming in large part from Dante's Inferno. According to the Juo teachings, a wicked person goes to hell after death while a good person goes to paradise. Those whose fate is not yet certain after their death are subject to weekly trials, during which their deeds while living are determined and classified. They are judged by the Ten Kings (the Juo) in the courts of the netherworld. Jizo Bosatsu defends those on trial before the Ten Kings and works to mitigate their punishment. This manifestation of Jizo is known as the Excuse Jizo, for he attempts to make excuses that shed a more favorable light on the behavior of the defendant while still alive.
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Enmei Jizo (central image) surrounded by Ten Kings of Hell
Enmei Jizo = long life; prolonger of life; protector of souls in hell
Kamakura Era, Treasure of Nouman-in Temple (能満院), Nara
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The Trials of Hell are Staged in the Following Order:
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Judgement
Timeframe
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Name
of Judge
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Kanji &
Hiragana
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Honjibutsu
Buddhist counterpart
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7th day after funeral; 初七日
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Shinkou-ou
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秦広王
しんこうおう
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不動明王
Fudo Myo-o
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14th day
二七日
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Shokou-ou
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初江王
しょこうおう
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釈迦如来
Shaka Nyorai
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21st day
三七日
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Soutei-ou
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宋帝王
そうていおう
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文殊菩薩
Monju Bosatsu
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28th day
四七日
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Gokan-ou
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五官王
ごかんおう
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普賢菩薩
Fugen Bosatsu
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35th day
五七日３５日
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Enma-ou
Yama (Skt.)
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閻魔王
えんまおう
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地蔵菩薩
Jizo Bosatsu
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42nd day
六七日
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Henjyou-ou
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変成王
へんじょうおう
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弥勒菩薩
Miroku Bosatsu
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49th day
七七日49日
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Taizan-ou
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泰山王
たいざんおう
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薬師如来
Yakushi Nyorai
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100th day
百カ日
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Byoudou-ou
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平等王
びょうどうおう
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観世音菩薩
Kannon Bosatsu
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1st year
一周忌
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Toshi-ou
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都市王
としおう
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勢至菩薩
Seishi Bosatsu
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2nd year
三回忌
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Gotoutenrin-ou
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五道転輪王
ごどうてんりんおう
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阿弥陀如来
Amida Nyorai
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OVERVIEW. In Japan, a memorial service is held on the 28th day after one's death, presided over by the Thirteen Buddhas (Juusanbutsu 十三仏). On the 35th day following death, Enma-ou (Skt. = Yama, the 5th judge, often shown holding the Wheel-of-Life in Tibetan Tanka) makes his ruling after hearing the judgments passed down by the first four kings. Offerings by living relatives are especially important on the 35th day following death, as this is the day the defendant is sentenced by Enma to one of six realms of existence -- (1) Hell; (2) Hungry Ghosts; (3) Animals; (4) Asura; (5) Human Beings; (6) the heavenly Deva realm. All six realms are stages of suffering, even the heavenly realm of the Deva, who it is said suffer from pride. The sixth judge of hell, Henjo-o, decides your placement within the realm you are sentenced (reborn) into. For example, for those to be reborn into the human realm, Henjo-o may sentence you to be reborn as a wealthy or poor person, as a peaceful or violent person. The 7th judge, Taizan-o, dictates the conditions of rebirth, such as one's life span and one's sex, male or female. During the seven weeks following one's death, tradition asserts that the soul wanders about in places where it used to live. On the 50th day, however, the wandering soul must go to the realm where it was sentenced (one of the six realms). Even so, for those sentenced to the lower realms, there is a way out. Among believers of the Jodo Pure Land sect, those sentenced to the realm of hell, hungry ghosts, animals (beasts), or Asura (the realm of anger) may gain salvation, but only if they remain religious and only if their living relatives hold a mass on the 100th day following their death, and another mass on the first year following their death, and yet another mass on the second year following their death. Enma is considered the most important of the ten judges, and in artwork Enma is thus frequently placed in the center.
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At Ennoji Temple in Kamakura, one can view statues of the Excuse Jizo and the 10 Judges of Hell. Most of these statues were made in the Edo Period (1603-1868 AD). Ennoji Temple is the 8th site on the Pilgrimage to 24 Kamakura Sites Sacred to Jizo. Statues of the Ten Kings can also be seen at Engakuji Temple. The Kamakura Museum (Kamakura Kokuhokan, inside Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine) also exhibits a number of hell-related statues from Ennouji Temple.
100 centimeters tall, wood, 1251 AD
Treasure of Enno-ji Temple, Carved by Koyu
Now housed at Kamakura Museum (Kamakura Kokuhokan)
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Kushoujin 倶生神
くしょうじん、くじょうじん、ぐしょうじん、ぐしょうしん
Assisting the 10 Kings are the Kushoujin. Of Hindu and/or Chinese Taoist origin, but later incorporated into Buddhism, the Kushoujin (also read Kujyoujin or Gushoujin) are two deities who keep a complete record of our life. Once a baby is born, the pair records the child's behavior until the child's death. One records only good behavior, while the other records only bad behavior. Some sources say their reports are presented to Shinkou-ou, the first of ten judges in hell. However, most sources say their records are instead presented to Enma-ou, the fifth judge of hell. The Japanese believe that the Kushoujin stand on our shoulders from the moment we are born until the moment we die, keeping careful accounts of our actions. In some accounts, the deity standing on the left shoulder is male, named 同名 or 同名天 (Shimei). He records our good actions. On the right shoulder stands 同生 or 同生天 (Shisei), female, who records our bad actions.
The Kushoujin (treasures of Ennoji Temple in Kamakura).
Kamakura Era (1185-1333); now at the Kamakura Museum.
Once a baby is born, the Kushojin keep records
of the child's behavior until the child's death. One Gushojin
records only good behavior, while the other records bad behavior.
Their reports are used by the Ten Kings to pass judgement.
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PHOTOS OF THE KINGS OF HELL
King Enma and Attendants
Treasures of Hoshaku-ji Temple, Kyoto.
Photo courtesy Kyoto National Museum
Color on wood, Height 110.5 cm, Kamakura Era (13th Century)
The museum, however, gives different names to the Kushoujin.
Shimei (museum = Ankoku-doji) lists the sins of the dead person.
Gusho-shin (museum = Kushoujin) lists up the good deeds.
The legends reported above about these two thus differ, so
I'm unsure of the exact iconography & naming conventions.
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Kisoutsu, Jailer in Hell
Wood, Enno-ji Temple, Kamakura Era
On display at the Kamakura Museum (Kamakura Kokuhokan)
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