Zennyo Ryuo
Encyclopedia
is a rain-god dragon
in Japanese mythology
. According to Japanese Buddhist tradition, the priest Kūkai
made Zennyo Ryūō appear in 824 CE during a famous rainmaking
contest at the Kyoto Imperial Palace.
zen 善 "good, goodness; virtuous", nyo 女 "woman; female" or nyo 如 "like; as if; be like; thus" (differentiated with the "mouth radical" 口), and ryūō 龍王 or 竜王 "dragon king
".
Zennyo is a common theme in Japanese art
, usually depicted as a small dragon but sometimes as a human, either male or female, with a dragon's tail. The "female" representations could explain this variant character
女 (Visser 1913:162). Fowler (1997:155) cites Nishida Nagao 西田長男 that this 女 "woman" in Zennyo was an error for the original character 如. In Japanese Buddhist terminology, nyo 如 "like; thus" is used to translate Sanskrit
words like nyorai 如来 "thus come" for tathāgata
. Compare shinzennyo 近善女 "near goodness female" translating upāsikā
"female disciple; female devotee".
Zennyo 善如 was also the name of a Jodo Shinshu
priest (1333-1389 CE) who was a grandson of Kakunyo
and the fourth chief priest of the Hongan-ji
.
Some legends give the name of Zennyo as Zentatsu 善達 "goodness penetration" with tatsu 達 "penetrate; arrive at; reach; realize" instead of nyo.
" in Nara Prefecture
, which was an ancient locale of Japanese dragon worship and rainmaking ceremonies.
The oldest historical record is the 937 CE Ben’ichizan nenbun dosha sōjō 宀一山年分度者奏上 "Mount Murō Annual Report of Ordained Monks". It states that in 778 CE five Buddhist monks went to the mountain and ceremonially prayed for the health of future Emperor Kammu
(r. 781-806), who later established the Murō-ji Temple in appreciation. This text also states that in 781 CE, (Fowler 1997:147), "a Dragon King (龍王) who had been residing at this site vowed to protect the country and particularly the temple complex. For this gesture the dragon king was honored with a courtly rank, as was commonly offered to deities."
The ca. 1212-1215 CE Kojidan
"Talks about Ancient Matters" specifies this dragon's name and history.
Noting the incongruence of a Buddhist priest establishing a Shinto shrine, Visser (1913:169) suggests that Buddhist authors embellished an ancient Shinto tradition of dragon worship at Mt. Murō and created this legend about a nāga dragon king and the Lotus Sutra
.
Kokan Shiren
's ca. 1322 CE Genkō Shakusho 元亨釈書 "the Genkō era History of Buddhism" has a story about the priest Keien 慶圓 (1143-1223 CE) encountering a beautiful woman who was actually a shapeshifting
Zennyo.
. The scholar priest Kūkai or Kōbō-Daishi (774-835 CE), founder of Shingon "True Word" Buddhism, and his rival priest Shubin 守敏 held a rain-sutra recitation contest. Visser (1913:25) describes the Mahamegha sutra, Japanese Daiunkyō 大雲經 "Great Cloud Sutra" or Daiun Seiukyō 大雲請雨經 "Great Cloud Praying for Rain Sutra", as the "most important of the sūtras, recited by the Northern Buddhists for causing rain in times of drought". In 823 CE, Emperor Saga
(r. 809-823) put Kūkai in charge of the Tō-ji
"East Temple" and Shubin in charge of the Sai-ji
"West Temple". In the next year, a 3-month drought occurred and Emperor Junna
(r. 823-833) ordered Kūkai and Shubin to perform rainmaking ceremonies.
Zennyo is worshipped at the Zennyo Ryūō-sha 善女竜王社 Shinto shrine on an island in the Shinsen'en, reached by crossing the Hōsei-bashi 法成橋 "Dharma Completion Bridge".
Some versions of this Kūkai story record Zennyo coming from Mount Murō and others from Lake Anavatapta
, which is at the center of the world in Buddhist cosmology
. Anavatapta was also the name of a Nāga
"snake; dragon" king, a Nagaraja
"Dragon King", who lived in this namesake lake. According to Mahayana
tradition (Visser 1913:4), Anavatapta was one of the Hachi-ryūō 八龍王 "8 Dragon Kings" that first heard the Buddha preach the Lotus Sutra.
Various early Japanese texts record legends about Kūkai invoking the rain-dragon Zennyo. The 835 CE Goyuigō 御遺告, which records Kūkai's last words, first describes Zennyo (Fowler 1997:154) as, "a golden snake measuring eight sun 寸 (approx. 24 cm) riding on the head of a dragon measuring nine shaku 尺 (approx. 2.7 m). This description is repeated in several other literary sources."
The early 12th-century Konjaku Monogatarishū
"Collection of Tales About Times Now Past" gives this account.
The Kojidan elaborates the rainmaking story, It says the Emperor first permitted Shubin's request to practice the rain sutra ceremonies, but this only caused showers in the Kyoto area. Kūkai promised to make it rain throughout Japan, and after reciting sutras for seven days without rainfall, he went into mediation and realized that his rival had secretly used magical tantra
to capture all the dragons and shut them up in a pitcher. He continued reciting rain prayers for two more days, and said,
The ca. 1372 CE Taiheiki
"Record of the Great Peace" expands the rainmaking story and says Shubin became jealous of Kūkai's successes after returning from China in 806 CE. He magically caused the 824 drought by using tantras to capture "all the dragon-gods of the inner and outer seas".
Kūkai constructed a straw dragon effigy and declared he would transform it into a dragon king who would return to Lake Anavatapta, thus causing the original rain-dragon to stay in the park. He instructed his Shingon priests to pray to Zennyo whenever Japan suffered from droughts. Fowler (1997:157-159) contrasts the present-day autumn festival at Ryūketsu Shrine, where abstract dragons are fashioned out of straw cords and maple leaves, but are no longer associated with rain prayers to Zennyo.
Japanese dragon
Japanese dragons are diverse legendary creatures in Japanese mythology and folklore. Japanese dragon myths amalgamate native legends with imported stories about dragons from China, Korea and India. The style of the dragon was heavily influenced by the Chinese dragon...
in Japanese mythology
Japanese mythology
Japanese mythology is a system of beliefs that embraces Shinto and Buddhist traditions as well as agriculturally based folk religion. The Shinto pantheon comprises innumerable kami...
. According to Japanese Buddhist tradition, the priest Kūkai
Kukai
Kūkai , also known posthumously as , 774–835, was a Japanese monk, civil servant, scholar, poet, and artist, founder of the Shingon or "True Word" school of Buddhism. Shingon followers usually refer to him by the honorific titles of and ....
made Zennyo Ryūō appear in 824 CE during a famous rainmaking
Rainmaking
Rainmaking refers to the act of attempting to artificially induce or increase precipitation, usually to stave off drought.In the US, rainmaking was attempted by traveling showmen. It was practiced in the old west but may have reached a peak during the dust bowl drought of the American West and...
contest at the Kyoto Imperial Palace.
Name
The dragon name Zennyo Ryūō is written with JapaneseJapanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
zen 善 "good, goodness; virtuous", nyo 女 "woman; female" or nyo 如 "like; as if; be like; thus" (differentiated with the "mouth radical" 口), and ryūō 龍王 or 竜王 "dragon king
Dragon King
The four Dragon Kings are, in Chinese mythology, the divine rulers of the four seas . Although Dragon Kings appear in their true forms as dragons, they have the ability to shapeshift into human form...
".
Zennyo is a common theme in Japanese art
Japanese art
Japanese art covers a wide range of art styles and media, including ancient pottery, sculpture in wood and bronze, ink painting on silk and paper and more recently manga, cartoon, along with a myriad of other types of works of art...
, usually depicted as a small dragon but sometimes as a human, either male or female, with a dragon's tail. The "female" representations could explain this variant character
Variant Chinese character
Variant Chinese characters are Chinese characters that are homophones and synonyms. Almost all variants are allographs in most circumstances, such as casual handwriting...
女 (Visser 1913:162). Fowler (1997:155) cites Nishida Nagao 西田長男 that this 女 "woman" in Zennyo was an error for the original character 如. In Japanese Buddhist terminology, nyo 如 "like; thus" is used to translate Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
words like nyorai 如来 "thus come" for tathāgata
Tathagata
Tathāgata in Pali and Sanskrit) is the name the Buddha of the scriptures uses when referring to himself. The term means, paradoxically, both one who has thus gone and one who has thus come . Hence, the Tathagata is beyond all coming and going – beyond all transitory phenomena...
. Compare shinzennyo 近善女 "near goodness female" translating upāsikā
Upasaka
Upāsaka or Upāsikā are from the Sanskrit and Pāli words for "attendant". This is the title of followers of Buddhism who are not monks, nuns, or novice monastics in a Buddhist order, and who undertake certain vows...
"female disciple; female devotee".
Zennyo 善如 was also the name of a Jodo Shinshu
Jodo Shinshu
, also known as Shin Buddhism, is a school of Pure Land Buddhism. It was founded by the former Tendai Japanese monk Shinran. Today, Shin Buddhism is considered the most widely practiced branch of Buddhism in Japan.-Shinran :...
priest (1333-1389 CE) who was a grandson of Kakunyo
Kakunyo
Kakunyo is the great-grandson of Shinran, founder of Jodo Shinshu Buddhism, and the third caretaker, or Monshu of the family mausoleum, which gradually became the Hongwanji Temple in Kyoto, Japan...
and the fourth chief priest of the Hongan-ji
Hongan-ji
, also archaically romanized as Hongwanji, is the collective name of the largest school of Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism...
.
Some legends give the name of Zennyo as Zentatsu 善達 "goodness penetration" with tatsu 達 "penetrate; arrive at; reach; realize" instead of nyo.
Mount Murō
Zennyo or Zentatsu 善達 supposedly lived in the Ryūketsu 龍穴 "Dragon Hole/Cave" on Murōyama 室生山 "Mount MurōMuro, Nara
was a village located in Uda District, Nara Prefecture, Japan.As of 2005, the village had an estimated population of 5,939 and a density of 55.00 persons per km². The total area was 107.99 km²....
" in Nara Prefecture
Nara Prefecture
is a prefecture in the Kansai region on Honshū Island, Japan. The capital is the city of Nara.-History:The present-day Nara Prefecture was created in 1887, making it independent of Osaka Prefecture....
, which was an ancient locale of Japanese dragon worship and rainmaking ceremonies.
The oldest historical record is the 937 CE Ben’ichizan nenbun dosha sōjō 宀一山年分度者奏上 "Mount Murō Annual Report of Ordained Monks". It states that in 778 CE five Buddhist monks went to the mountain and ceremonially prayed for the health of future Emperor Kammu
Emperor Kammu
was the 50th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Kammu reigned from 781 to 806.-Traditional narrative:Kammu's personal name was . He was the eldest son of Prince Shirakabe , and was born prior to Shirakabe's ascension to the throne...
(r. 781-806), who later established the Murō-ji Temple in appreciation. This text also states that in 781 CE, (Fowler 1997:147), "a Dragon King (龍王) who had been residing at this site vowed to protect the country and particularly the temple complex. For this gesture the dragon king was honored with a courtly rank, as was commonly offered to deities."
The ca. 1212-1215 CE Kojidan
Kojidan
is a Japanese collection of setsuwa. It was authored by Minamoto no Akikane between 1212 and 1215 during the early Kamakura period.The text is six volumes in length and contains 462 setsuwa stories. It was extremely popular and influenced a number of following collections beginning with the 1219...
"Talks about Ancient Matters" specifies this dragon's name and history.
The dragon cave on Mt. Murō is the dwelling place of the Dragon King Zentatsu 善達. This Dragon King previously lived in Sarusawa 猿沢 pond. Long ago when a palace lady (uneme 采女) drowned in the pond, the Dragon King fled to Mt. Kōzen 高山 (Mt. Kasuga), where he lived until the corpse of a low-ranking person was thrown into this pond. Then the Dragon King again fled to reside in a cave on Mt. Murō, where the Buddhist prelate Kengyō was practicing religious austerities. Kengyō was the master of the prelate Shūen 修円. Years later the priest Nittai 日對 wished to view the venerable form of the Dragon King. He entered the dragon cave and went about three or four chō 町 in darkness. Then he arrived at a palace under a blue sky. To the south he saw a bright light through a jeweled window screen. When the screen fluttered in the wind, he saw a section of the Lotus Sutra resting upon a jeweled table. Then he heard a voice asking him who he was and where he came from. Nittai answered that he wished to see the form of the Dragon King and announced his name. The Dragon King answered, “You will not be able to see me in this place. Leave this cave and go about three chō from the entrance.” Nittai left the cave and at the agreed-upon place he saw the Dragon King, dressed in a robe and crown, rise out of the ground and then vanish. Nittai built a shrine (社) to the Dragon King on that spot which still exists. When rain prayers are offered and sutras are read at this shrine, a black cloud forms over the cave and, spreads through the sky, and rain falls. (tr. Fowler 1997:149, cf. Visser 1913:168-9)
Noting the incongruence of a Buddhist priest establishing a Shinto shrine, Visser (1913:169) suggests that Buddhist authors embellished an ancient Shinto tradition of dragon worship at Mt. Murō and created this legend about a nāga dragon king and the Lotus Sutra
Lotus Sutra
The Lotus Sūtra is one of the most popular and influential Mahāyāna sūtras, and the basis on which the Tiantai and Nichiren sects of Buddhism were established.-Title:...
.
Kokan Shiren
Kokan Shiren
Kokan Shiren , 1278–1347), Japanese Rinzai Zen patriarch and celebrated poet in Chinese, was the son of an officer of the palace guard and a mother of the aristocratic Minamoto clan. At age eight he was placed in the charge of the Buddhist priest Hōkaku on Mt. Hiei. At age ten he was ordained...
's ca. 1322 CE Genkō Shakusho 元亨釈書 "the Genkō era History of Buddhism" has a story about the priest Keien 慶圓 (1143-1223 CE) encountering a beautiful woman who was actually a shapeshifting
Shapeshifting
Shapeshifting is a common theme in mythology, folklore, and fairy tales. It is also found in epic poems, science fiction literature, fantasy literature, children's literature, Shakespearean comedy, ballet, film, television, comics, and video games...
Zennyo.
The Buddhist priest Keien lived for a thousand days as a hermit near the Dragon-hole on Mount Murōbu. On his way from there to another place he crossed a bridge over a river, when suddenly a lady, noble looking and beautifully dressed, came and, without showing her face, politely asked him for the mudrā (mystic finger-charm) used to become at once a Buddha. At his question as to who she was, she answered: "I am the Dragon Zennyo". Then he taught her the mudrā, whereupon she said: "This is exactly the same mudrā as that of the seven former Buddhas"; and when the priest requested her to show him her face, she replied: "My shape is so terrible that no man can look upon it. Yet I cannot refuse your wish". Thereupon she rose into the air and stretched out the little finger of her right hand. It proved to be a claw, more than ten shaku long, which spread a five-coloured light. Then she vanished at once. (Visser 1913:170)
Shinsen'en
The best-known appearance of Zennyo was during an 824 CE Buddhist rainmaking competition at the Shinsen'en or Shinzen'en 神泉苑 "Divine Spring Garden" in KyotoKyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
. The scholar priest Kūkai or Kōbō-Daishi (774-835 CE), founder of Shingon "True Word" Buddhism, and his rival priest Shubin 守敏 held a rain-sutra recitation contest. Visser (1913:25) describes the Mahamegha sutra, Japanese Daiunkyō 大雲經 "Great Cloud Sutra" or Daiun Seiukyō 大雲請雨經 "Great Cloud Praying for Rain Sutra", as the "most important of the sūtras, recited by the Northern Buddhists for causing rain in times of drought". In 823 CE, Emperor Saga
Emperor Saga
was the 52nd emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Saga's reign spanned the years from 809 through 823.-Traditional narrative:...
(r. 809-823) put Kūkai in charge of the Tō-ji
To-ji
is a Buddhist temple of the Shingon sect in Kyoto, Japan. Its name means East Temple, and it once had a partner, Sai-ji . They stood alongside the Rashomon, the gate to the Heian capital. It is formally known as which indicates that it previously functioned as a temple providing protection for the...
"East Temple" and Shubin in charge of the Sai-ji
Sai-ji
or the West Temple was one of the two large Buddhist temples established in Kyoto, Japan.-History:Sai-ji was founded in the early Heian period. The temple dates from 796, two years after the capital moved to Heian-kyō. Sai-ji was established together with the other temple, Tō-ji...
"West Temple". In the next year, a 3-month drought occurred and Emperor Junna
Emperor Junna
was the 53rd emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Junna reigned from 823 to 833.-Traditional narrative:Junna had six Empresses and Imperial consorts and 13 Imperial sons and daughters...
(r. 823-833) ordered Kūkai and Shubin to perform rainmaking ceremonies.
Zennyo is worshipped at the Zennyo Ryūō-sha 善女竜王社 Shinto shrine on an island in the Shinsen'en, reached by crossing the Hōsei-bashi 法成橋 "Dharma Completion Bridge".
Some versions of this Kūkai story record Zennyo coming from Mount Murō and others from Lake Anavatapta
Anavatapta
Anavatapta is the lake lying at the center of the world, according to an ancient Buddhist cosmological view. The name Anavatapta means "heat-free"; the waters of the lake were thought to be able to soothe the fires that torment beings...
, which is at the center of the world in Buddhist cosmology
Buddhist cosmology
Buddhist cosmology is the description of the shape and evolution of the Universe according to the canonical Buddhist scriptures and commentaries.-Introduction:...
. Anavatapta was also the name of a Nāga
Naga
Naga or NAGA may refer to:* Nāga, a group of serpent deities in Hindu and Buddhist mythology.-People:* Nayan / Nayar/Nair people of Kerala Society* Naga people, a diverse ethnic identity in Northeast India...
"snake; dragon" king, a Nagaraja
Nagaraja
Nagaraja is a Sanskrit word from naga and raj meaning King of Snakes. It is applied to three main deities, Anantha , Takshak, and Vasuki. Anantha, Vasuki and Takshak are brothers, children of Kashyap and Kadru, who are the parents of all snakes...
"Dragon King", who lived in this namesake lake. According to Mahayana
Mahayana
Mahāyāna is one of the two main existing branches of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophies and practice...
tradition (Visser 1913:4), Anavatapta was one of the Hachi-ryūō 八龍王 "8 Dragon Kings" that first heard the Buddha preach the Lotus Sutra.
Various early Japanese texts record legends about Kūkai invoking the rain-dragon Zennyo. The 835 CE Goyuigō 御遺告, which records Kūkai's last words, first describes Zennyo (Fowler 1997:154) as, "a golden snake measuring eight sun 寸 (approx. 24 cm) riding on the head of a dragon measuring nine shaku 尺 (approx. 2.7 m). This description is repeated in several other literary sources."
The early 12th-century Konjaku Monogatarishū
Konjaku Monogatarishu
is a Japanese collection of over one thousand tales written during the late Heian period . The entire collection was originally contained in 31 volumes, of which only 28 remain today...
"Collection of Tales About Times Now Past" gives this account.
[I]n a time of heavy drought the Emperor ordered [Kōbō-Daishi ] to cause rain, and the saint for seven days practised the Doctrine of the Rain-praying-sūtra in the Sacred Spring Park. Then there appeared on the right side of the altar a snake, five shaku long, carrying a little gold-coloured snake, about five sun in length, and after a while both disappeared into the pond. Only four of the twenty priests who were sitting in a row could see the apparition. One of these elected ones asked what it meant, whereupon another answered that the appearance of the Indian dragon-king Zennyo, 善如, who lived in India in the Anavatapta pond and was now living in the pond of the Sacred Spring Park, was a sign that the doctrine would be successful. And really, a dark cloud rose up in the Northwest, and soon the rain was pouring down. Thenceforth, whenever drought prevailed, the same doctrine was practised in the park, and never in vain. (tr. Visser 1913:162)
The Kojidan elaborates the rainmaking story, It says the Emperor first permitted Shubin's request to practice the rain sutra ceremonies, but this only caused showers in the Kyoto area. Kūkai promised to make it rain throughout Japan, and after reciting sutras for seven days without rainfall, he went into mediation and realized that his rival had secretly used magical tantra
Tantra
Tantra , anglicised tantricism or tantrism or tantram, is the name scholars give to an inter-religious spiritual movement that arose in medieval India, expressed in scriptures ....
to capture all the dragons and shut them up in a pitcher. He continued reciting rain prayers for two more days, and said,
"In this pond is a dragon, called Zennyo, who pities mankind. To him I have prayed, and now I see him rising out of the midst of the lake, gold-coloured, about eight sun long, seated on the head of another dragon, eight shaku in length". This was reported to the Emperor, who soon sent a messenger with offerings for the Dragon-King. And when the seven days of the new vow had expired, a heavy thunderstorm broke forth and a torrent of rain came down all over the country, so that the water of the pond overflowed the altar. As a reward for having saved the people from starvation, Kūkai was elevated to the rank of Shōsōzu, bishop. (Visser 1913:163)
The ca. 1372 CE Taiheiki
Taiheiki
The is a Japanese historical epic , written in the late 14th century. It deals primarily with the Nanboku-chō, the period of war between the Northern Court of Ashikaga Takauji in Kyoto, and the Southern Court of Emperor Go-Daigo in Yoshino....
"Record of the Great Peace" expands the rainmaking story and says Shubin became jealous of Kūkai's successes after returning from China in 806 CE. He magically caused the 824 drought by using tantras to capture "all the dragon-gods of the inner and outer seas".
Then Kōbō-Daishi reported to the Emperor that there was only one dragon, a Bodhisattva of higher rank than Shubin, namely the Dragon-king Zennyo of the Auavatapta pond in Northern India, who was not in Shubin's power. Immediately a pond was dug before the Palace and filled with pure water, whereupon Kōbō invited the dragon-king to come and live there. And behold, a gold-coloured dragon, eight sun long, appeared, seated on the head of a snake, more than nine shaku in length, and entered the pond. When Kōbō had reported this lucky news, the Emperor sent a messenger with all kinds of offerings in order to worship the Dragon-king. The result was marvellous, for soon it rained for three days all over the Empire. (Visser 1913:164)
Kūkai constructed a straw dragon effigy and declared he would transform it into a dragon king who would return to Lake Anavatapta, thus causing the original rain-dragon to stay in the park. He instructed his Shingon priests to pray to Zennyo whenever Japan suffered from droughts. Fowler (1997:157-159) contrasts the present-day autumn festival at Ryūketsu Shrine, where abstract dragons are fashioned out of straw cords and maple leaves, but are no longer associated with rain prayers to Zennyo.
External links
- Zennyo ryuuou 善女竜王, Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users SystemJapanese Architecture and Art Net Users SystemJapanese Architecture and Art Net Users System or JAANUS is a dictionary of Japanese architecture and art terms compiled by Dr. Mary Neighbour Parent. It contains about eight thousand cross-referenced terms from all fields of Japanese art and architecture....
- Zennyo Ryūō, Monstropedia
- Zennyo, The Dragon Stone
- 善女龍王図, Muromachi periodMuromachi periodThe is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate, which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi shogun, Ashikaga Takauji, two years after the brief Kemmu restoration of imperial...
Zennyo Ryūō, Isikawa Nanao Art Museum