Download 去る天平宝字七年（763）十二月二十日、神社の東に井あり

Changing relationship between Buddha and kami
1) Hostility of kami
A. Kami disturbed by reclamation projects (常陸国風土記 Hitachi-no-kuni Fudoki)
An old man who is a native of this local area (Namekata district 行方郡 of
Hitachi Province) told us (the compilers of the topography of the province) the
following story: In the reign of Emperor Keitai (the early sixth century) there was a
man called Matachi 麻多智 from the uji (氏
clan) of Yahazu 箭括. He developed
paddy fields in the reedy meadow in the valley to the west of the site where the
district office is now located. While he was engaged in the project, a large number of
Yato no kami (夜刀の神 deities of the valley) gathered there to prevent people from
entering the paddy fields and cultivating them.
[Editor’s note: People of the area regard snakes as the Yato no kami, or the
deities of the valley. They say that the kami has a snake body and horns on the head.
They believe that, if one should look back at the kami while running away from it,
he will be cursed and left without any offspring, bringing his household to ruin. It is
true that there are many snakes in the field beside the office of this district.]
Matachi, becoming angry at the disturbance, armed himself with armor and a
halberd. He killed some of the divine snakes and chased the others away from the
paddy fields. Then he came to the foot of the mountain and set up a long wooden
stick as a boundary mark in a ditch, which served as borderline between the
mountainous area and the low land. There he said to the divine snakes, “The land
above this boundary mark shall belong to you, the kami. The land below the mark
shall be paddy fields belonging to human beings. I will put myself under an
obligation to enshrine and worship you forever. I wish you neither to do us any harm
nor to resent us.” After that he built a small shrine and dedicated it to the divine
snakes. He also began cultivating the newly developed paddy fields, which
amounted to more than 10 chô (about 30 acres) in all. Until now successive
generation of his offspring have been managing the shrine and worshiped the divine
snakes.
In the reign of Emperor Kôtoku (645-654) Mibu no Muraji Maro 壬生連麿, a
local official appointed by the imperial court, constructed a dam at the lower end of
the valley to make an irrigation pond there. On this occasion many divine snakes
climbed up chinquapin trees around the pond. They stayed there without showing
any sign of moving away. Maro said to the divine snakes in a large voice, “We have
made this pond to help the people of this area. What deities do not accept this policy
directed by our virtuous emperor?” Then, he said to the native people who were
mobilized to construct the dam, “Kill without hesitation worms, fish, or other
creatures you finds here.” As soon as he said these words, the divine snakes
disappeared. …
1
B. Kami disturbed by the construction of a provisional palace (日本書記 Nihon Shoki
661/5/1, 661/7/24, 661/8/1)
5th month, 9th day. The Empress (Empress Saimei 斉明, who engaged in the
campaign in the Korean peninsular to help a prince of Paekche to restore his
country) removed her residence to the palace of Asakura 朝 倉
(in northern
Kyushu). At this time trees belonging to the Shrine of Asakura were cut down and
cleared away in order to build this palace. Therefore the kami was angry and
demolished the building of the palace. Also mysterious fires were witnessed in the
palace. In consequence the Grand chamberlain and many of those in waiting become
ill and died.
Autumn, 7th month, 24th day. The Empress died in the palace of Asakura.
8th month, 1st day. The crown prince (Prince Naka no Ôe 中大兄皇子, Emperor
Tneji after the enthronement), leading the funeral train of the Empress, returned as
far as the palace of Iwase. That evening a mysterious figure like a demon appeared
on the top of Mount Asakura. Wearing a big hat, it looked down on the funeral
proceedings. All the people uttered exclamations of wonder. （See, George Aston,
Nihongi, pp.271-272）
C. Kami disturbed by the construction of a Buddhist temple (大安寺伽藍縁起並流記資財
帳 Daianji Garan Engi narabini Sizaichô)
大日本仏教全書 第 118 冊 寺誌叢書第二 仏書刊行会編名著普及会復刻 昭和５５ 原
文漢文（115－116 ページ）
Emperor Jomei 舒明 was called Prince Tamura 田村 before his enthronement… When
he was young, Empress Suiko 推古 had him visit Prince Umayado 厩戸(known as
Prince Shôtoku in the later period, one of the nephews of Empress Suiko and one of the
grand-uncles of Prince Tamura), who was seriously ill in his residence in Naniwa….
Prince Umayado said, “…May one of the emperors of the later generations develop a
small Buddhist monastery in the village of Kumagori 羆凝 into a big temple. I want to
submit this petition to the imperial court.” The empress accepted his wish.
In three days Prince Tamura visited Prince Umayado again of his own accord.
Prince Umayado said to him, “How nice that you visit me of your own accord out of care
for my health! I would like to give you treasures. However, treasures are easily decayed
and dispersed. You cannot keep them for a long time.
Only the Three Treasures
(Buddha, Buddhist Law, and the community of those who pursue the Way to Buddha)
would never decay. You can keep it for generations. Therefore I will entrust Kumagori
Temple to you. Undertake it and transmit the Three Treasures to the latter
generations.” Prince Tamura accepted the task with pleasure….
In the second month of the eleventh year of his reign (639) Emperor Jomei destroyed the
shrine of Kobe 子部社 near Kudara River, cleared the ground, and built Buddhist halls,
residential quarters for monks, and a nine-story pagoda there. He also designated the
2
taxes from three hundred households as the resource to cover the expenditure of the
temple, which came to be called Great Temple of Kudara
百済大寺. However the kami
of the destroyed shrine became angry, which was materialized in the form of a fire. The
fire destroyed the pagoda, the main hall, and the decoration on the roofs of the temple.
On the first day of the twelfth month of the second year of the reign of Emperor
Tenmu (673) the emperor appointed Prince Mino as the official in charge of rebuilding
the temple. He abandoned the old land in the Kudara area and moved the temple to the
Takechi area. Temple buildings were constructed in the new place…In the ninth month
of sixth year (676) the court changed the name of the temple into Great Temple of
Takechi 高市大寺 and gave it the title of Great National Temple 大官大寺. (Later the
temple came to be called Daianji 大安寺 and developed into one of the most notable
temples in the capital of Nara.)
2) Buddhist temple built out of gratitude to kami (日本霊異記 Nihon Ryôiki)
Priest Gusai)弘済 came from Paekche 百済. When that country was invaded (by T’ang
China and Silla in 660), an ancestor of the governor of Mitani 三谷 district in Bingo
Province was put in charge of reinforcements and sent to Paekche. At that time the
present governor(s ancestor vowed that he would build a temple to dedicate to the
deities of heaven and earth if he came home safely. Eventually, he escaped harm.
Thereupon, he invited Priest Gusai to return to Japan with him. Mitani-dera 三谷寺 is
the temple that was founded by this priest, and both monks and laymen felt awe and
reverence at its site. (See Miraculous Stories from the Japanese Buddhist Tradition: the
Nihon Ryôiki of the Monk Kyôkai, pp. 116-117)
3) Tales of kami who want to escape from kami state and attain Buddhist
enlightenment
A. Kami of monkey body relied on the power of Buddhist scriptures to escape from
kami state (Nihon Ryôiki, vol.3, no.24)
On the mountain named Mikamu-no-take, in Yasu district, Ômi province 近江国野
州郡御上嶽, there was a shrine called the abode of Taga no Ôkami 陁我大神, or the
Great Kami of Taga. The imperial court endowed the shrine with taxes collected from
six households as its private property. Near the shrine there was a small Buddhist
temple.
During the Hôki era (770-781) Priest Eishô 恵勝 of Daian-ji 大安寺 was staying at
the temple for a retreat when he had a dream in which a man appeared, saying, “Please
read the Buddhist scriptures for me.” When he awake from his sleep, he wondered
about the dream.
The next day a tiny white monkey appeared and came to him, saying, “Stay at this
temple and recite the Hokekyô 法華経, or the Lotus Sutra, for me.” The monk asked the
monkey, “Who are you?” Whereupon the monkey replied, “I was the king of a state in
3
the eastern part of India. In my state about one thousand men became followers of
monks, neglecting agricultural matters. Therefore, I suppressed them, saying, ‘There
should not be so many followers.’ At that time I limited the number of followers, but not
the acts carried out in pursuit of the path to enlightenment. Even if I did not suppress
the practice of Buddhist training, however, to prevent men from following monks was a
sin. This is why I was reborn as a monkey the kami of this shrine. Please stay here and
recite the Lotus Sutra so that I may be released from this state.”
Priest Eishô said, “Then you must make offerings (to Buddha).” The monkey
answered, “I have nothing to offer.”
…
The priest said, “How can I recite the
scripture without any offering?” The monkey answered, “In that case I will join a group
of several monks in Asai district 浅井郡 (a district in the same province) who are going
to read the Rokkanshô 六巻抄 (a Buddhist perceptual writing).”
Priest Eishô, in wonder and doubt, went to the Great master Man’yo 満預 of
Yamashinadera temple 山階寺 and told him what the monkey had asked. (It seems
that in the temple a group of monks were going to read the Rokkanshô.) The latter,
disbelieving it, said, “These are merely the words of a monkey. I do not believe what you
say. Nor will I accept nor admit the monkey into the group.”
When he was preparing for the recitation of the scripture, an acolyte and a lay
brother of the temple came to him in haste, saying, “There was a tiny white monkey on
the roof of the Buddhist Hall. Then we saw the great hall nine ken long (nine ken is
about eighteen yards, 16 meters.) fall down in pieces, along with all the Buddha images
and residential quarters.” He went out to discover that all had been destroyed as
reported. Thereupon, Man’yo conferred with Eishô, built a hall seven ken long, and,
believing the words of the monkey which revealed him as the Great Kami of Taga,
accepted the monkey among the audience for the recitation of the Rokkanshô according
to the request of the kami. From that time until the vow was fulfilled, there was never
any trouble. …(Miraculous Stories from Japanese Buddhist Tradition, pp.253-55)
B. Tale of a kami who escaped from the kami state and attain the state of bodhisattva
thanks to the power of Buddhist scripture. (Dainihon Hokke Genki 大日本法華験記)
There was once a Priest Dôkô of Tnnnôji 天王寺 sho had accumulated merit for
a long time by his revering the Hokekyô, or the Lotus Sutra. He often visit the
mountainous area of Kumano to go on summer retreat, and once, on his way back to
his temple, he took shelter for the night under a large tree near the beach at
Minabe.
Late that night he heard twenty of thirty people ride up to the tree. One of
them asked, “Is the old man here?”
“Yes, I am here,” Dôkô heard someone under the tree reply.
Another voice from among the riders then said, “Come quickly and act as our
guide!”
4
The old man’s voice made an excuse, “My horse has broken its legs and so I
cannot ride. I will see to him tomorrow, or else get another horse and join you. Since
I am aged and weak, I am afraid I cannot accompany you on foot.”
Then Dôkô heard the horsemen leave.
In the morning Dôkô was curious and searched under the tree. He found an old
and broken male image of a sae no kami 塞の神 (kami believed to expel evil sprits
at the entrance of the village, and to assist travelers in finding their way). In front of
the image was an ema 絵馬, or a votive tablet of a painted horse. The forelegs of the
painted horse were damaged. The priest examined it, mended the broken part of the
tablet with thread, and left it as it was.
Dôkô wished to learn more about the incident, and so he spent the day there
and again sheltered under the tree that night. Just as on the previous occasion, he
heard several riders approach the tree. The old man mounted his horse, and all rode
away.
Toward dawn the old man returned to the tree and said to Dôkô, “Those riders
were the deities of epidemics. I am the guardian of travelers in this area. Whenever
these deities go around the country, they make me guide them. If I refuse, they will
punish me, whipping me and abusing me with harsh words. You treated my horse’s
legs., and so thanks to you, O holy man, I was able to safely fulfill my duty. I will
never forget your favor.”
To show his gratitude the old man offered Dôkô various gifts. …and continued,
“I would like to leave this inferior state of Sae no kami and obtain a decent and
virtuous state. I am now undergoing much sufferings, and would like to attain my
wish through your power.”
Dôkô replied, “Alas, it is beyond my power to help you.”
The kami then said, “Stay and recite the Lotus Sutra under this tree for three
days and nights. Through the efficacy of this sutra, I will change my suffering state
into a pure and serene one.”
And so, in accordance with this request, Dôkô recited the sutra single-mindedly
for three days and nights. On the fourth day the kami paid homage and bowed to him,
saying, “Thanks to your merciful deeds, I will be released from my mean status and
obtain a superior one. Furthermore, I will join those related to Kannon Boddhisattva
by ending my days in the world of Fudaraku, (the land of Kannon) and I will be
ranked as a bodhisattva. All of this was made possible by a mysterious efficacy gained
by listening to the recitation of the sutra. If you wish to know the truth, make a boat
out of tree branches, place my statue in the boat, float it out to sea, and you will see
what happens.”
Dôkô made a boat sped as he was told and launched it. Although there was
neither wind nor waves, the boat sped away toward the south. (Kannon’s land was
believed to be located to the south of the ocean.)
5
One night an old man of that district dreamed that the statue of the sae no
kami had become a bodhisattva and, radiating golden beams and to the
accompaniment of ceremonial music, ascended into the southern sky.
Dôkô heard this story and fully believed in. He returned to his temple and told
it to every body. All those who heard the story greatly rejoiced and their piety
increased. (Dykstra, “Miraculous Tales of the Lotus Sutra”, Monumenta Nipponica,
vol.32, no.2, pp.208-210)
C. Tale about the origin of Tado Jingûji ( 伊 勢 国 多 度 神 宮 寺 伽 藍 縁 起 並 資 財 帳
Isenokuni Tado Jingûji Garan Engi narabini Sizaichô)
In 763, on the 20th day of the twelfth month, …a priest called Mangan 満願 lived
near the shrine (of Tado 多度). He made an image of Amida Buddha with the height of
one jo six shaku (about 4.8 meters). At the time a certain person was possessed by the
kami and said, “I am the kami of Tado. Because I have committed grave offences over
many kalpas (a long, long time), I have received the karmic retribution of being born as
a kami (jindo). Now I wish to escape from my kami state once and for all, and take
refuge in the Three Treasures (Buddha, his teachings, and the community of those who
adopt the teachings).”… Priest Mangan cut the trees of the southern side of the
mountain where the kami was dwelling, built a small Buddhist hall, and enshrined the
image of the kami there. He called the kami Tado Daibosatsu 多度大菩薩, or the Great
Bodhisattva of Tado. Then Moitori Tsukitari 水取月足, an official of this district with
outer junior seventh rank lower grade, made a bronze bell and its plinth and donated
them to the temple. Next Niimaro 新麿, an local notable of Mino Province, built a
three-story pagoda and donated it to the temple. Then in 780, on the 13th day of the
eleventh month, the imperial court dispatched its officials there to ordain four people.
Next in the twelfth month of 781 a privately ordained monk called Hôkyô 法教
encouraged both monks and laymen from the four provinces of Ise, Mino, Owari, and
Shima to build a Buddhist Hall, a monastery, and a bathhouse (where the monks
offered bathing to people for medical purposes). Until now many monks and ascetics
carried out rites and donated properties necessary for the temple.
(Ise no kuni
Kuwana-gun Tado Jinguji garan engi narabi ni sizaicho, Zoku Gunshoruiju 27 ge,
pp.350-51)
4)
Kami offering support to Buddhism
(八幡宇佐宮御託宣集 Hachiman Usa-gû
Gotakusenshû)
In 746 Emperor Shômu revealed his great wish to construct a huge Buddhist hall and
put an image of Vairocana Buddha in it in the hope of transferring the merit to all the
beings in the world and promoting the eight Buddhist schools… In 747 the emperor sent
his deputy to Usa Shrine (of Hachiman). The emperor had him pray in front of the
shrine and tell the kami in the prayer that the great wish must be realized. Then the
6
kami gave the following oracle. “I, the kami, will lead the kami of heaven and earth to
ensure the safe completion (of the project)… I will make the molten copper (as easy to
handle) as water. I will not hesitate make my body stained with straw, timber, and soil
so that the (project will be) completed without problems.”
The emperor wanted to send an envoy to T’ang China to have him buy gold to
use as the material to make the Buddhist image. To pray for the safe journey of the
envoy to China the emperor sent a deputy to Usa Shrine. Then the kami gave the
following oracle.
“Gold that you want will come out from the soil of this country. Do not send an envoy to
T’ang China.”
In 749 the governor of Mutsu province, Keifuku of the junior fifth rank coming
from Paekche, donated gold to the imperial court. The gold was found in Oda district of
the province. The amount of gold that he donated to the court was as much as 900 ryô (1
ryô is about 40 grams). The emperor granted junior third rank to Keifuku in reward.
Deeply impressed by the miraculous power of the kami the emperor offered 120 ryô of
gold to the shrine. (Shinto Taikei, Jinja-hen, vol. 47, Usa, pp.79-80)
5) Kami as the traces of Buddha and bodhisattva
A. The originals of the kami (Sintô Taikei 神道大系, Bungaku-hen 文学編, vol.1, p.5, p.7)
When we examine the originals (honji 本地) of kami (sinmeijindô 神明神道)、[we
wind that] they are various Buddhas and bodhisattvas. Traces and transformations of
various Buddhas and bodhisattvas is the kami. We must keep it in mind that Buddhas
and kami are the same. They are synonymous with each other like the Chinese
characters of gan 眼 and moku 目 (two different charactors both meaning “eye”). We
must know it. A question is raised. “For what purpose do Buddhas and bodhisattvas
appear in the form of kami?” The answer is, “Buddhas and bodhisattvas are so
compassionate that they are willing to transform themselves into various different
forms to give benefit to and save various sentient beings.” (p.5)
Sentient beings living in the corrupt world of the Final Age of Buddha’s Law
are not afraid of the retribution in their next life. Their only concern is glory in this life,
and for that purpose only do they visit Buddhist temples and perform rituals to the
kami. They only believe what they see with their own eyes, and they are not concerned
with the afterlife. For the benefit of such people (Buddhas and bodhisattvas) dim the
radiance of their original mind and transform into the dust (material bodies) of various
different beings. (p.7)
(See, Mark Teeuwen and Fabio Rambelli, Buddhas and Kami in Japan: Honji Suijaku
as a Combinatory Paradim, pp.19-20)
B. Tale about the appearance of fearsome Kami (日本古典文学大系、沙石集 I: 3)
In antiquity, when En no Gyôja 役行者（an ancient religious figure known as the
7
founder of Shugendô, or mountain asceticism）was practicing austerities on Mt. Yoshino
and the form, the form of Shakamuni (Sakya, the founder of Buddhism who was
believed to attain Buddhahood) appeared before him. The ascetic said, “In this august
form it will be difficult to convert the people of this country.
You should conceal
yourself.” Then the form of Miroku (Maitreya, a bodhisattva who will appear in this
world, attain enlightenment, become the Buddha, and save sentient beings in the
future) appeared to him. But he said, “This likewise will not do.” However, when the
Buddha manifested a fearsome shape as Zaô Gongen 蔵王権現, he responded, “Truly,
this is one who can convert our land to Buddhism.” And today the Buddha manifests
this trace. … In our country people have faith and reverence toward kami since the
kami clearly reveal their decisions for better or worse. There are foolish people who
seldom place their reliance on the buddhas and bodhisattvas, whose benefits are more
moderate than those of the skillful means of the kami, the traces of buddhas and
bodhisattvas with softened light.
(See, Robert Morris, Sand and Pebbles, State University of New York Press, pp.80-81)
5) Isolation of kami from Buddhism (沙石集、Shasekishû 1:1)
While I was on a pilgrimage to the Great Shrine of Ise during the Kôchô era (1261-64),
an official explained to me why words associated with the Three Treasures of Buddhism
(the Buddha, the Law, and the Order) were forbidden at the shrine, and why monks
could not closely approach the sacred buildings.
In antiquity, when this country did not yet exist, the deity of the Great Shrine
(Amaterasu, the deity of the sun), guided by a seal of Dainiti 大日, or the Great Sun
Buddha, inscribed on the ocean floor, thrust down her august spear. Brine from the
spear coagulated like drops of dew, and this was seen from afar by Mâra, the Evil One,
in the Sixth Heaven of Desire. “It appears that these drops are forming into a land
where Buddhism will be propagated and people will escape from the round of
birth-and-death (by attaining enlightenment),” he said, and came down to prevent it.
Then the deity of Great Shrine met with the demon king. “I promise not to
utter the name of the Three Treasures, nor will I permit them near my person. So
return quickly back to the heavens.” Being thus mollified, he withdrew.
Monks to this very day, not wishing to violate that august promise, do not
approach the sacred shrine, and the sutras are not carried openly in its precincts.
Things associated with the Three Treasures are referred to obliquely: Buddha is called
“tachisukumi (the Cramp-Legged One or the Immobile-Legged One)”; the sutras,
“somegami (colored paper)”; monks, “kaminaga (longhairs)”; and temples, “koritaki
(incense burners)”, etc. Outwardly the deity is estranged from the Buddha’s Law, but
inwardly she profoundly supports the Three Treasures. Thus Japanese Buddhism is
under the special protection of the deity of the Great Shrine.
(See Robert Morris, Sand and Pebbles, State University of New York Press, pp.73-74)
8