Acala

or Achala (, "The Immovable", ), also known as (, "Immovable Lord") or (, "Noble Immovable Lord"), is a wrathful deity and dharmapala (protector of the Dharma) prominent in Vajrayana Buddhism and East Asian Buddhism.

Originally a minor deity described as a messenger or acolyte of the buddha Vairocana, Acala later rose to prominence as an object of veneration in his own right as a remover of obstacles and destroyer of evil, eventually becoming seen as the wrathful manifestation of either Vairocana, the Buddha Akṣobhya, or the Bodhisattva Mañjuśrī. In later texts, he is also called (, "Violent Wrathful One", ) or (, "Violent One of Great Wrath", ), the names by which he is more commonly known in countries like Nepal and Tibet.

In East Asian esoteric Buddhism, Acala is classed among the Wisdom Kings () and is preeminent among the five Wisdom Kings of the Womb Realm. Accordingly, he occupies an important hierarchical position in the Mandala of the Two Realms. In China, he is known as (, "Immovable Wisdom King", the Chinese translation of Sanskrit ), while in Japan, he is called Fudō Myōō, the on'yomi reading of his Chinese name. Acala (as Fudō) is one of the especially important and well-known divinities in Japanese Buddhism, being especially venerated in the Shingon, Tendai, Zen, and Nichiren sects, as well as in Shugendō.

Acala has been worshiped throughout the Middle Ages and into modern times in Nepal, Tibet, China and Japan, where sculptural and pictorial representations of him are most often found.), where he is described as a servant or messenger of the buddha Vairocana:<blockquote>The first from the west in the northern quadrant is the acolyte Acala (). In his left hand he grasps a noose and in his right hand he holds a sword. He is seated in the half-lotus position.</blockquote>

More well-known, however, is the following passage from the (also known as the or the ) which refers to Acala as one of the deities of the Womb Realm Mandala:

The deity was apparently popular in India during the 8th-9th centuries as evident by the fact that six of the Sanskrit texts translated by the esoteric master Amoghavajra into Chinese are devoted entirely to him.

left|thumb|380x380px|12th century Tibetan ([[Kadam (Tibetan Buddhism)|Kadampa school) painting of Acala stepping on Vighnarāja, the "Lord of Obstacles"]]

While some scholars have put forward the theory that Acala originated from the Hindu god Shiva, particularly his attributes of destruction and reincarnation, Bernard Faure suggested the wrathful esoteric deity Trailokyavijaya (whose name is an epithet of Shiva), the Vedic fire god Agni, and the guardian deity Vajrapani to be other, more likely prototypes for Acala. He notes: "one could theoretically locate Acala's origins in a generic , but only in the sense that all Tantric deities can in one way or another be traced back to ."

Acala is said to be a powerful deity who protects the faithful by burning away all impediments () and defilements (Kleshas (Buddhism)|), thus aiding them towards enlightenment. In a commentary on the Mahāvairocana Tantra by Yi Xing, he is said to have manifested in the world following Vairocana's vow to save all beings, and that his primary function is to remove obstacles to enlightenment.

From a humble acolyte, Acala evolved into a powerful demon-subduing deity. In later texts such as the , Acala - under the name ("Violent Wrathful One") or ("Violent One of Great Wrath") - is portrayed as the "frightener of gods, titans, and men, the destroyer of the strength of demons" who slays ghosts and evil spirits with his fierce anger. In the Sādhanamālā, the gods Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma and Kandarpa - described as "wicked" beings who subject humanity to endless rebirth - are said to be terrified of Acala because he carries a rope to bind them. He is thus sometimes depicted in South Asian art wearing a crown with an effigy of Akṣobhya. He has a consort named Viśvavajrī in both the Nepalese and Tibetan traditions, with whom he is at times depicted in yab-yum union. In this system, the five chief vidyārājas or Wisdom Kings (, ), of which Acala is one, are interpreted as the wrathful manifestations (, , lit. ""embodiments of the wheel of injunction") of the Five Great Buddhas, who appear both as gentle bodhisattvas to teach the Dharma and also as fierce wrathful deities to subdue and convert hardened nonbelievers. Under this conceptualization, vidyārājas are ranked superior to , a different class of guardian deities. However, this interpretation, while common in Japan, is not necessarily universal: in Nichiren-shū, for instance, Acala and Rāgarāja (Aizen Myōō), the two vidyārājas who commonly feature in the mandalas inscribed by Nichiren, are seen as protective deities (, ) who respectively embody the two tenets of ("original enlightenment") doctrine: "life and death (saṃsāra) are precisely nirvana" (, ) and "worldly passions (kleśa) are precisely enlightenment (bodhi)" (, ).

Iconography

thumb|A 14th century (early [[Malla period) Nepalese depiction of a kneeling Acala]]

thumb|Tibetan depiction of Acala Vidya-Raja

alt=Seated Acala Statue with Kurikara Sword|thumb|Seated statue of Acala with the Kurikara Sword and a noose at [[Waterloo Street, Singapore.]]

The 's description of Acala is a good summary of the deity's depiction in South Asian Buddhist art.

In Nepalese and Tibetan art, Acala is usually shown either kneeling on his left knee or standing astride, bearing a noose or lasso () and an upraised sword. Some depictions portray him trampling on the elephant-headed Vighnarāja (lit. "Ruler of Hindrances", a Buddhist equivalent to the Hindu god Ganesha, albeit interpreted negatively as one who causes obstacles), signifying his role as the destroyer of impediments to enlightenment. He may also be shown wearing a tiger skin, with snakes coiled around his arms and body.

thumb|325x325px|Statue of Acala in the Lecture Hall (Kōdō) of [[Tō-ji in Kyoto]]

By contrast, portrayals of Acala () in Japan generally tend to conform to the description given in the Amoghapāśakalparāja Sūtra and the Mahāvairocana Tantra: holding a lasso and a sword while sitting or standing on a rock (, ) or a pile of hewn stones (, ), with his braided hair hanging from the left of his head. He may also be depicted with a lotus flower - a symbol of enlightenment - on his head (, ). Unlike the South Asian Acala, whose striding posture conveys movement and dynamism, the Japanese Fudō sits or stands erect, suggesting motionlessness and rigidity. In some cases, he is seen holding the "Kurikara sword" (, ), a sword with the dragon () king Kurikara (; Sanskrit: or ) coiled around it. The flaming nimbus or halo behind Acala is commonly known in Japanese as the "Garuda flame" (, ) after the mythical fire-breathing bird from Indian mythology.

There are two main variations in the iconography of Acala / Fudō in Japan. The first type (observable in the earliest extant Japanese images of the deity) shows him with wide open, glaring eyes, straight hair braided in rows and two fangs pointed in the same direction; a lotus flower rests above his head. The second type (which first appeared in the late 9th century and became increasingly common during the late Heian and Kamakura periods), by contrast, portrays Acala with curly hair, one eye wide open and/or looking upwards, with the other narrowed and/or looking downwards, an iconographic trait known as the (), "heaven-and-earth eyes". Similarly, one of his fangs is now shown as pointing up, with the other pointing down. In place of the lotus flower, images of this type may sport seven topknots.

Although the squinting left eye and inverted fangs of the second type ultimately derives from the description of Acala given in the and Yi Xing's commentary on the text ("with his lower tooth he bites the upper-right side of his lip, and with his left his lower lip which sticks out"), these attributes were mostly absent in Chinese and earlier Japanese icons.

Acala's mismatched eyes and fangs were allegorically interpreted to signify both the duality and nonduality of his nature (and of all reality): the upward fang for instance was interpreted as symbolizing the process of elevation towards enlightenment, with the downward fang symbolizing the descent of enlightened beings into the world to teach sentient beings. The two fangs also symbolize the realms of buddhas and sentient beings, yin and yang, and male and female, with the nonduality of these two polar opposites being expressed by Acala's tightly closed lips.

thumb|12th century painting of Yellow Acala (, ) in [[Manshu-in in Kyoto, based on an image (not available to public view) kept at Mii-dera in Shiga Prefecture]]

Acala is commonly shown as having either black or blue skin (the describes his color as being "like that of the (flax) flower," which may be either yellow or blue), though he may be at times portrayed in other colors. In Tibet, for instance, a variant of the kneeling Acala depiction shows him as being white in hue "like sunrise on a snow mountain reflecting many rays of light". In Japan, some images may depict Acala sporting a red (, ) or yellow (, ) complexion. The most famous example of the portrayal is a painting kept at Myōō-in on Mount Kōya (Wakayama Prefecture) traditionally attributed to the Heian period Tendai monk Enchin. Legend claims that Enchin, inspired by a vision of Acala, painted the image using his own blood (thus explaining its red color), though recent analysis suggests that the image may have been actually created much later, during the Kamakura period. The most well-known image of the type, meanwhile, is enshrined in Mii-dera (Onjō-ji) at the foot of Mount Hiei in Shiga Prefecture and is said to have been based on another vision that Enchin saw while practicing austerities in 838. The original Mii-dera is traditionally only shown to esoteric masters (; , ) during initiation rites and is otherwise not shown to the public, though copies of it have been made. One such copy, made in the 12th century, is kept at Manshu-in in Kyoto.

The deity is usually depicted with one head and two arms, though a few portrayals show him with multiple heads, arms or legs. In Japan, a depiction of Acala with four arms is employed in subjugation rituals and earth-placating rituals (, ); this four-armed form is identified in one text as "the lord of the various categories ." An iconographic depiction known as the "Two-Headed Rāgarāja" (, or ) shows Acala combined with the wisdom king Rāgarāja (Aizen).

Acolytes

left|thumb|305x305px|The 'Blue Acala' (, ) of [[Shōren-in in Kyoto, showing Acala with his two attendants Kiṃkara (Kongara, right) and Ceṭaka (Seitaka, left)]]

Acala is sometimes described as having a retinue of acolytes, the number of which vary between sources, usually two or eight but sometimes thirty-six or even forty-eight. These represent the elemental, untamed forces of nature that the ritual practitioner seeks to harness.

The two boy servants or () most commonly depicted in Japanese iconographic portrayals are and , who also appear as the last two of the list of Acala's eight great .

Āryācala Sūtra (, )

: A summarized version of the above sutra. Translated into English, it runs as follows:

: To this text is often appended two litanies of the names of Acala's young acolytes (, ), the 'thirty-six dōji (, ) and the 'eight great (, ).

Bīja and mantra

left|thumb|115x115px| (), Acala's seed syllable () written in [[Siddhaṃ script]]

The bīja or seed syllables used to represent Acala in Japanese Buddhism are ( / ) and ' ( / ), the latter being a combination of the two final in his mantra: ' (). Hāṃ is sometimes confounded with the similar-looking (), prompting some writers to mistakenly identify Acala with other deities. The syllables are written using the Siddham script and is conventionally read as () and ().

Three mantras of Acala are considered to be the standard in Japan. The most widely known one, derived from the Mahāvairocana Tantra and popularly known as the "Mantra of Compassionate Help" (, or ), goes as follows:

{| class="wikitable"

!Sanskrit

!Shingon pronunciation

!Tendai pronunciation

!English translation

|Homage to the all-encompassing Vajras! O violent one of great wrath (), destroy!

thumb|180x180px|The seed syllable(s) () in Siddhaṃ script

The "Short Mantra" (, ) of Acala - also found in the - is as follows:

{| class="wikitable"

!Sanskrit

!Shingon pronunciation

!Tendai pronunciation

!English translation

|Homage to the all-encompassing Vajras!

The longest of the three is the "Great Mantra" of Acala, also known as the "Fire Realm Mantra" (, / ):

{| class="wikitable"

!Sanskrit

!Shingon pronunciation

!Tendai pronunciation

!English translation

| (or )

Another mantra associated with the deity is , found in the . The text describes it as the "king of mantras" that dispels all evil and grants "whatever the follower of Mantrayāna desires".

Worship

left|thumb|340x340px|Painting of Red Acala () in Myōō-in temple on [[Mount Kōya, traditionally attributed to Heian period monk Enchin]]

Japan

thumb|402x402px|Five variant depictions of Acala, from a 12th century [[handscroll]]

(Acala), was never popular in Indian, Tibetan or even Chinese Buddhism, but in Japan it became the object of a flourishing cult with esoteric overtones.

The cult of Acala was first brought to Japan by the esoteric master Kūkai, the founder of the Shingon school, and his successors, where it developed as part of the growing popularity of rituals for the protection of the state. While Acala was at first simply regarded as the primus inter pares among the five wisdom kings, he gradually became a focus of worship in his own right, subsuming characteristics of the other four vidyarājas (who came to be perceived as emanating from him), and became installed as the main deity () at many temples and outdoor shrines.

Acala, as a powerful vanquisher of evil, was regarded both as a protector of the imperial court and the nation as a whole (in which capacity he was invoked during state-sponsored rituals) and the personal guardian of ritual practitioners. Many eminent Buddhist priests like Kūkai, Kakuban, Ennin, Enchin, and Sōō worshiped Acala as their patron deity, and stories of how he miraculously rescued his devotees in times of danger were widely circulated.

At temples dedicated to Acala, priests perform the , or ritual service to enlist the deity's power of purification to benefit the faithful. This rite routinely involves the use of the

Acala also tops the list of Thirteen Buddhas. Thus Shingon Buddhist mourners assign Fudō to the first seven days of service. and became widespread by the following century, Iconography of Acala has been depicted in temples and grottoes from the Tang through to contemporaneous times, usually as part of a set depicting the Eight Wisdom Kings or Ten Wisdom Kings. He has also commonly been depicted in Shuilu ritual paintings, which are a style of traditional Chinese painting depicting figures in Buddhist cosmology that are used during the eponymous Chinese Buddhist Shuilu Fahui ceremony where these figures are invoked.

In modern times, he continues to be regularly invoked during Chinese Buddhist rituals with esoteric elements, such as the Shuilu Fahui ceremony, along with the other Wisdom Kings where they are given offerings and intreated to expel evil from the ritual platform. He is also revered as one of the eight Buddhist guardians of the Chinese zodiac and specifically considered to be the protector of those born in the year of the Rooster.

File:Tang Acala Vidyaraja (14372153865).jpg

File:Tang Acala Vidyaraja (14185590020).jpg

File:Tang Acala Vidyaraja (9912784335).jpg

</gallery>

In popular culture

Gary Snyder's 1969 poem Smokey the Bear Sutra portrays Smokey Bear (the mascot of the U.S. Forest Service) as an incarnation of Vairocana (the "Great Sun Buddha") in a similar vein as Acala. Indeed, Acala's Mantra of Compassionate Help is presented in the text as Smokey's "great mantra."
Sailor Mars from the Sailor Moon series invokes Acala through the Sanskrit chant of the Mantra of Compassionate Help during her "Fire Soul Bird" attack. Acala is flashed multiple times as a shadowed figure in flames, consistent with Japanese iconography, and in line with Sailor Mars's element of fire.

Gallery

File:Dazu 2007 777.jpg|12th century Song dynasty statues of Acala (left) and Yamantaka (right) at the Dazu Rock Carvings in Chongqing, China.

File:永安寺传法正宗殿忿怒大威德马首明王.jpg|Ming dynasty(1368-1644) mural of Acala, one out of a set depicting the Ten Wisdom Kings, in Yong'an Temple<sup>[zh]</sup> in Hunyuan, Shanxi, China

File:Acala at Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum.JPG|Acala () at Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum (Chinatown, Singapore).

File:Achala statue from Tibet, 15th-16th century, gilt bronze, Honolulu Museum of Art.JPG|Gilt bronze statue from Tibet, 15th-16th century, Honolulu Museum of Art

File:Hermitage Museum XX-2375 Achala.jpg|Thangka from Khara-Khoto, Western Xia, 13th century, Hermitage Museum

File:Hermitage Museum XX-2374 Achala.jpg|Thangka depicting four-armed Acala, from Khara-Khoto, 13th-14th century

File:Fudō Myōō.jpg|Kamakura period painting at Daigo-ji, Kyoto showing Acala with Kiṃkara and Ceṭaka

File:Fudo Myoo 8 Acolytes (Nara National Museum).jpg|Acala with eight acolytes, Kamakura period, Nara National Museum

File:Sword Dragon Kurikara (Nara National Museum).jpg|The Kurikara sword flanked by Kiṃkara and Ceṭaka, Kamakura period, Nara National Museum

File:四臂不動 - Four-Armed Acala (Fudō).jpg|Drawing of four-armed Acala, from the (1245)

File:法華寺 (岐阜市)-三田洞弘法-両頭愛染明王坐像Mitahorakobo028.jpg|Statue of Two-Headed Rāgarāja, the combined form of Acala and Rāgarāja, at Hokke-ji (Mitahora Kōbō) in Gifu

File:Fudo, Ichikawa Ebizo V as the Mystical Image of Fudo Myoo.jpg|Kabuki actor Ichikawa Ebizō V as Acala, by Utagawa Kunisada

File:Kounominezi03.jpg|Red-skinned Acala at Kōnomine-ji, Yasuda, Kōchi Prefecture

File:Narita Shinsho-ji Große Friedenspagode Innen Altar 3.jpg|Statue at the Great Peace Pagoda in Shinshō-ji, Narita, Chiba Prefecture

File:Hombre con horimono Fudō Myō-ō en pecho.jpg|A man with an irezumi tattoo of Acala

Iconography

Acolytes

Bīja and mantra

Worship

Japan

In popular culture

Gallery

See also

References

Bibliography

External links