The Japanese Buddhist pantheon designates the multitude (the pantheon) of various Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and lesser deities and eminent religious masters in Buddhism. A Buddhist pantheon exists to a certain extent in Mahāyāna. Still, it is especially characteristic of Vajrayana Esoteric Buddhism, including Tibetan Buddhism and, in particular, Japanese Shingon Buddhism, which formalized it to a great extent. In the ancient Japanese Buddhist pantheon, more than 3,000 Buddhas or deities have been counted, although now most temples focus on one Buddha and a few Bodhisattvas.Religion of the Samurai Kaiten Nukariya p.87
History
Pre-sectarian Buddhism had a somewhat vague position on the existence and effect of deities. Indeed, Buddhism is often considered atheistic on account of its denial of a creator god and human responsibility to it. However, nearly all modern Buddhist schools accept the existence of deities of some kind; the main point of divergence is the influence of these deities. Of the major schools, Theravada tends to de-emphasize the deities, whereas Mahayana and Vajrayana do not.
The rich Buddhist pantheon of northern Buddhism ultimately derives from Vajrayana and Tantrism.An Introduction to Buddhist Esoterism Benoytosh Bhattacharyya p.120 The historical devotional roots of pantheistic Buddhism seem to go back to the period of the Kushan Empire.Buddhist art & antiquities of Himachal Pradesh, up to 8th century A.D. Omacanda Hāṇḍā p.82 The first proper mention of a Buddhist pantheon appears in the 3rd–4th-century Guhyasamāja, in which five Buddhas are mentioned, the emanations of which constitute a family:An Introduction to Buddhist Esoterism Benoytosh Bhattacharyya p.121
By the 9th century, under the Pala king Dharmapala of Bengal, the Buddhist pantheon had already swelled to about 1,000 Buddhas.Buddhist art & antiquities of Himachal Pradesh, up to 8th century A.D. Omacanda Hāṇḍā p.83 In Japan, Kūkai introduced Shingon Esoteric Buddhism and its Buddhist pantheon, also in the 9th century.The body: toward an Eastern mind-body theory Yasuo Yuasa, Thomas P. Kasulis p.125
Hierarchical structure The Buddhist pantheon in Japanese Buddhism is defined by a hierarchy in which the Buddhas occupy the topmost category, followed in order by the numerous Bodhisattvas, the Wisdom Kings, the Deities, the "Circumstantial appearances", and lastly, the patriarchs and eminent religious people.Notice at Musée Guimet
LevelCategoryJapanese nomenclatureLevel 1BuddhasLevel 2BodhisattvasLevel 3Wisdom KingsLevel 4Heavenly deitiesLevel 5Circumstantial appearancesLevel 6Religious masters
A famous statue group, the mandala located at Tō-ji temple in Kyōto, shows some of the main elements and structure of the Buddhist Pantheon. The mandala was made in the 9th century and offered to Kūkai.Musée Guimet exhibit A duplicate was brought to Paris, France, by Emile Guimet at the end of the 19th century, and is now located in the Musée Guimet.
Japanese Buddhism incorporated numerous Shintō deities in its pantheon and reciprocally. Japanese Shingon also has other categories, such as the Thirteen Buddhas.Sources of Japanese tradition William Theodore De Bary, p.338 Zen Buddhism however clearly rejected the strong polytheistic conceptions of orthodox Buddhism.Religion of the Samurai Kaiten Nukariya p.88
Level 1: Buddhas (Nyorai-bu) A Buddha is one who has attained enlightenment and reached the state of nirvana. Buddhas are distinct from Bodhisattvas because they have chosen to leave earth.
Five Wisdom Buddhas
The five Wisdom Buddhas (五仏) are centered around Mahāvairocana (Japanese: Dainichi Nyorai, 大日如来), the supreme Buddha. Each of the four remaining Buddhas occupies a fixed cardinal point. Each of them is a manifestation of Buddhahood, and each is active in a different world-period, in which they manifest themselves among Bodhisattvas and humans.Religion in Nepal by K. R. van Kooij p.22 An enlightened being is one who embodies the qualities of the five Buddha Families, or the five Wisdom Buddhas, and in doing so has shed the negative emotions which cause pain and suffering throughout life. These five key emotions are known as “disturbing” emotions and they include: attachment, anger, ignorance, pride, and envy. When these emotions are exercised they cause ourselves and others around us harm and suffering and can potentially cause a lower level reincarnation in the next life. Therefore, by eliminating these emotions allow one to attain enlightenment by recognizing and becoming one with the five Wisdom Buddha.
Fukūjōju Nyorai (north)Amida Nyorai (west)Dainichi Nyorai (principal deity)Ashuku Nyorai (east)Hōshō Nyorai (south)
These "Dhyani Buddhas" form the core of the Buddhist pantheistic system, which developed from them in a multiform way. At the Musée Guimet, the five Buddhas are surrounded by protective Bodhisattvas. The five Wisdom Buddhas are known as, Akshobhya, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha, Amogasiddha, and Mahāvairocana. They each have varying characteristics and attributes specific to their purpose.
The first Buddha, Akshobhya, is colored blue and sits in a vajra posture with his hand touching the ground. The color blue and the vajra posture symbolize changelessness and permanance which is particular to him because he focuses on easing emotions that spur from anger. His wisdom is known as the “mirror-like” wisdom because when one is freed from anger and the feelings accompanied with anger, one is able to have an unbiased awareness of our daily experiences. "Mirror-like" wisdom is the idea that one can see things for how they really are instead of having a blurred perspective that is caused from one's anger getting in the way of seeing the truth.
The second Buddha, Ratnasambhava, is concerned with the enrichment of oneself. When one has been cleansed of the disturbing emotion of pride, one's ego becomes objective and this enables fairness and equality in regards to all aspects of one's life. This Buddha is a yellowish, gold color and he holds a wish-fulfilling jewel in his hand. The golden color is meant to symbolize wealth in a fulfilled sense and the wish-fulfilling jewel symbolizes his activity of enrichment because it is able to grant any desirable wish. This Buddha sits in vajra posture which represents fulfillment and suggests supreme generosity by giving the mudra hand gesture.
The third Buddha, Amitabha, is focused on the elimination of the strong feeling of desire. Desire is one of the five disturbing emotions that causes one to have neverending wants and ultimately cultivates suffering. If one cannot attain his desires then he will feel unfulfilled and empty. The loss of great desire allows one to rise above to a more simplistic way of life with overwhelming gratitude. With recognition of this Buddha one will be able to find appreciation in the small things and see things for their true worth with an unbiased perspective. Buddha Amitabha is from the lotus family and is seated in vajra posture with his hands placed in the meditative posture for mental clarity.
The fourth Buddha, Amogasiddha, is focused on the strength of wisdom and the elimination of jealousy. Jealousy is a hindrance in which infringes on and distracts from ones wisdomly abilities. Buddha Amogasiddha’s activity is “meaningful accomplishment” which spurs from undistracted and engaged wisdom. With great wisdom, one is able to observe and overcome trivial uprisings in an intelligent and calm manner. His right hand is gesturing "fearless protection" from things that may hinder one's wisdom.
The fifth Buddha, Mahāvairocana, is focused on the elimination of ignorance from one's mental state. Ignorance makes one’s perspective unclear and causes one to make judgements from a subjective view. Buddha Mahāvairocana holds the wheel of dharma, the symbol of buddhist law, in his hands. The gesture of the wheel of dharma serves the purpose of symbolizing uninterrupted knowledge of how the world works. The wheel represents knowledge of the Buddhas teachings which lead one to enlightenment.
There is also a multitude of other Buddhas, such as Yakushi, the Buddha of medicine. Buddha Yakushi was widely worshipped during the Heian Period in Japan. Yakushi was known as the Medicine Buddha and people would pray to him for protection against vengeful spirits and natural disaster. Yakushi can be recognized in Buddhist art by the iconography of the medicine jar which he holds in his hand.
Level 2: Bodhisattvas (Bosatsu-bu)
A bodhisattva is one who has attained enlightenment and has chosen to stay on earth and spread his knowledge of enlightenment to others so that they too can gain enlightenment. Bodhisattvas are paragons of compassion in Mahayana Buddhism. In the Buddhist Pantheon, besides the past and future Buddhas, there are numerous Bodhisattvas as well.The Hero with a Thousand Faces Joseph Campbell p.129
Sometimes, five main "Matrix" Bodhisattvas are determined (五大菩薩), grouped around a central Bodhisattva, Kongō-Haramitsu (金剛波羅蜜菩薩) in the case of Tōji Temple.
Miroku (north)Kannon (west)Kongō-Haramitsu (principal deity)Fugen (east)Monju (south)
Beyond these five main Bodhisattvas, there exists a huge number of other Bodhisattvas, all beings who have postponed enlightenment for the benefit of helping mankind.
Level 3: Wisdom Kings (Myōō-bu)
The Wisdom Kings (Vidyârâjas) were initially divinities of Esoteric Buddhism but were then later adopted by Japanese Buddhism as a whole. These Gods are equipped with superior knowledge and power that give them influence on internal and external reality. These Kings became the object of personification, either peaceful in the case of female personifications, and wrathful in the case of male personifications. Their aggressivity expresses their will to get rid of negative forces in devotees and in the world. They are therefore an expression of the Buddha's compassion for all beings.
Five Wisdom Kings
The Five Wisdom Kings (五大明王) are emanations of the Buddhas and protect them. They are usually represented as violent beings. They represent the ambivalent in nature, and seem to derive from ancient Yaksa and Brahmanical tradition.Tantric Buddhism and altered states of consciousness Louise Child p.109
Kongō-Yasha (north)Daiitoku (west)Fudō-Myō (principal deity) Gosanze (east)Gundari (south)
Beyond the five principal kings, numerous other Wisdom Kings exist with a great variety of roles.
Other Wisdom Kings Many more Wisdom Kings also exist with numerous functions. In general, the Wisdom Kings are viewed as the guardians of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.
Level 4: Heavenly deities (Ten-bu)
Gods, although benefiting from an exceptional longevity, nevertheless are submitted to the cycle of rebirths, and remain outside of the world of enlightenment and Nirvana. They are aiming to reach Nirvana eventually, however, and therefore endeavour to help Buddhism and its devotees. According to Buddhist cosmology, adopted from Indian cosmology, the deities live in the Three Worlds and are positioned hierarchically according to their position in respect to the cosmic axis of Mount Sumeru. High above the mountain resides Brahma, on the summit reside the Thirty Three Gods with Indra as their king, at half-height reside the God Kings of the Orient, and at the bottom inferior deities. Numerous deities are included in the Buddhist pantheon.
The term Ten (天) is the equivalent of the Indian Deva and designated the higher divinities from the Four Heavenly Kings up. The term Jin (神) designated lower-level deities.
The Four Heavenly Kings are an important part of these deities.
Incomplete list of Mikkyō devas which were originally Indian Hindu deities:
Agni (Katen ) – Lord of Fire; Guardian of the South East, Part of Twelve Devas Brahmā (Bonten ) – Lord of the Heavens; Guardian of the Heavens (upward direction), Part of Twelve Devas Chandra (Gatten ) – Lord of the Moon, Part of Twelve Devas