Click here for
Copyright / Usage Policies

DAINICHI NYORAI
Represents the Center or Zenith
The Cosmic Buddha, The Great Buddha
The All-Encompassing Buddha
Also identified with Birushana Nyorai
Skt. Vairocana or Mahavairocana Tathagata
Dainichi's messengers are the Myo-O

Especially important to Shingon Sect of Esoteric Buddhism
Central deity among the Five Tathagata (Godai Nyorai)
These five appear most frequently in Japanese Mandalas
Also see Mudra Page (hand positions) for more details

The life force that illuminates the universe

 Dai Nichi, Heian Era 1176, at Enjyo-ji in Nara
Photo Courtesy "Handbook on Viewing Buddhist Statues"


Mantra for Dainichi (Kongokai Mandala)


 Mantra for Dainichi (Taizoukai Mandala)

As early as the Heian Period (794 - 1192 AD), devotees of Esoteric Buddhism worshipped Dainichi Nyorai (Skt. Mahavairocana) as the central Buddha of the universe, the Cosmic Buddha. Dainichi (or Dai Nichi) is especially important to the Shingon sect of Esoteric Buddhism, but among non-esoteric sects, Dainichi is known as Birushana Nyorai. Like many Japanese deities, Dainichi was adopted from Indian Buddhism.

Dainichi's characteristic hand gesture (although not always) is the mudra of the six elements -- the index finger of the left hand is clasped by the five fingers of the right. This mudra symbolizes the unity of the five worldly elements (earth, water, fire, air, and metal) with spiritual consciousness. For a review of the most common mudra in Japan, please visit the Mudra page.

Images of Dainichi are often surrounded by the Myo-O, warlike protectors who represent the Dainichi's wrath against evil and serve as messengers of the Nyorai. Says Ed Jacobs (see link at bottom of this page):

"Although not terribly common or popular, the Dainichi Nyorai is the most important of all Buddhas. In fact, it is said to be everywhere and everything, so all other Buddhas and divine beings are actually emanations or aspects of this Nyorai."  

 Dainichi Nyorai, 12th Century AD, Chuson-ji Temple

DAINICHI NYORAI
An exception to the rule
Images of the Nyorai are rarely shown wearing jewellery or ornaments, but this is not always the case. Dainichi Nyorai, in fact, is one of the exceptions to the rule. Not only does the mudra of six elements help to identify Dai Nichi, but also images of Dai Nichi often show the deity wearing a crown and jewels. I'm not sure why, though.

One of the most famous examples of Dainichi can be found at Todai-ji in Nara (see photo at right). This is the world-famous Daibutsu of Nara, supposedly the largest bronze statue in the world. But it is actually Birushana Nyorai, not Dainichi Nyorai -- the two are actually manifestations of the same deity. It is likely that Dainichi was "derived" from Birushana. Click here for more on Birushana, more photos, and a history of the Big Buddha of Nara.

DAINICHI - The Cosmic Buddha and Mandalas Below text courtesy of: www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/ANCJAPAN/GALLERY.HTM Esoteric Buddhism was founded on the principle that the two aspects of Buddha, both the unchanging cosmic principle and the active, physical manifestation of Buddha in the natural world, were one and the same. The truth of the cosmic order, which is contained in the relationships between the Cosmic Buddha and all his manifestations, cannot be known verbally. One method for understanding this truth was to comprehend it visually and symbolically; to this end, Japanese esoteric Buddhists imported the mandala (in Japanese, mandara), or circle, to express symbolically the order of the universe related to the cosmic Buddha. Since the Buddha occupied two separate realms, the mandala form that the esoteric priests imported was the Mandala of the Two Worlds, or Ryokai mandara (Ryo=two, kai=world, mandara=mandala). On the east side of the temple would be placed the Diamond World (Kongokai in Japanese, Vajradhatu in Sanskrit), which represented the world of the transcendental Buddha. It was called the Diamond World because it embodied a static, crystal clear, and adamantine truth of the universe. In the Diamond World, the Cosmic Buddha (Dainichi Nyorai in Japanese), sits in the center of assemblies of Buddhas arranged in a three by three square. Detail from Taizokai (Womb World). The Ryokai Mandara is the oldest color mandala still in existence in Japan. It is believed to have been a copy made in China and brought to Japan in 859 AD by the Tendai priest, Enchin. Photo courtesy of Washington State University. Photo Courtesy of: www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/ ANCJAPAN/GALLERY.HTM   The other world, the Womb World (Taizokai in Japanese, Garbhadhatu in Sanskrit), was the world of physical phenomenon. In this mandala, the Dainichi Nyorai sits in the middle in relationship to all his physical manifestations ranged in several courts radiating outward from him. In the detail here, we see nine physical manifestations from the Lotus Holder's Court (which sits on the right side of the Court of Eight Petals, which is the court of the Cosmic Buddha). The physical manifestations of the Lotus Holder's Court represent the purity of all things. In the picture, you can see Buddha in several different aspects. To the bottom right, he is a three-headed, angry creature that represents the Buddha's ability to overcome evil (the three heads symbolize vigilance over evil). Most of the Buddhas, however, represent compassion or mercy. Not only are all the Buddhas surrounded by unique symbols, each one has a unique pairing of hand gestures, called mudras. The mudras are key in Buddhist practice; they recreate hand gestures from the life of Buddha. Not only did Buddha teach in words, he taught symbolically in hand gestures. Like all Buddhist art, a large part of the symbolic meaning is located in these hand gestures. For instance, the middle figure is making the semuiin gesture with his right hand (in Sanskrit, abhayamudra ). This means "fear not." Yes, an esoteric devotee could name each and every hand gesture in the picture you're looking at! An esoteric devotee would be asked to starre and meditate on each of these Buddhas in turn. He would meditate on their symbolic meaning as it is represented visually and he would meditate on that deity's relationship to the other deities as those relationships are represented visually. When he's fiinished with the Taizokai Mandara, he would move on to the Kongokai Mandara. Once he's meditated and, through visual and symblic understanding, come to comprehend all the Buddhas and their relationships across the two worlds, he will have unified himself with the Cosmic Buddha. Beginning priests would be asked to throw a blossom at each of the two mandalas; the deity that the blossom landed on would be adopted as that person's personal deity for the course of his study. The Ryokai Mandara is the oldest color mandala still in existence in Japan. It is believed to have been a copy made in China and brought to Japan in 859 by the Tendai priest, Enchin.

Photo Courtesy of:
Kyoto National Museum
 www.kyohaku.go.jp/tokuten/elegance/hp6-41e.htm

LEARN MORE

• Click here for more photos of Dainichi (Birushana Nyorai)
   
• Japanese Mandara (Mandala). Dainichi is the central figure in mandalas of the Shingon Sect of Japanese Esoteric Buddhism. Dainichi Nyorai is typically surrounded by four other Nyorai, each representing one of the directions of the compass. The five, with Dainichi Nyorai at the center, are known as the Godai Nyorai (Five Tathagatas)
   
• www.shingon.org  (Official Shingon Homepage)
   
• www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/ANCJAPAN/GALLERY.HTM
   
• Buddhist Sculpture - A Beginner's Guide by Ed Jacobs
  www3.tky.3web.ne.jp/~edjacob/sculpture.html
   

Copyright Mark Schumacher. Email Mark.
All stories and photos, unless specified otherwise, by Mark
www.onmarkproductions.com