Kṣitigarbha (, , Wylie: sa yi snying po) is a bodhisattva primarily revered in East Asian Buddhism and usually depicted as a Buddhist monk. His name may be translated as "Earth Treasury", "Earth Store", "Earth Matrix", or "Earth Womb". Kṣitigarbha is known for his vow to take responsibility for the instruction of all beings in the six worlds between the death of Gautama Buddha and the rise of Maitreya, as well as his vow not to achieve Buddhahood until all hells are emptied. He is therefore often regarded as the bodhisattva of hell-beings, as well as the guardian of children and patron deity of deceased children and aborted fetuses in Japanese culture.
Usually depicted as a monk with either a halo or a crown bearing images of the Five Tathāgatas around his shaved head, he carries a staff to force open the gates of hell and a wish-fulfilling jewel to light up the darkness.
Overview
thumb|Ceramic statue of Kṣitigarbha in the [[Nguyễn dynasty, 19th century.]]
Kṣitigarbha is one of the four principal bodhisattvas along with Samantabhadra, Manjusri, and Avalokiteśvara (Guanyin) in East Asian Mahayana Buddhism.
At the pre-Tang dynasty grottos in Dunhuang and Longmen, he is depicted in a classical bodhisattva form. After the Tang, he became increasingly depicted as a monk carrying Buddhist prayer beads and a staff.
His full name in Chinese is Dayuan Dizang Pusa (), or "Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva of the Great Vow," pronounced Daigan Jizō Bosatsu in Japanese, Jijang Bosal in Korean, Đại Nguyện Địa Tạng Vương Bồ Tát in Vietnamese. This name is a reference to his pledge, as recorded in the sutras, to take responsibility for the instruction of all beings in the six worlds in the era between the parinirvana of the Buddha and the rise of Maitreya. Because of this important role, shrines to Kṣitigarbha often occupy a central role in temples, especially within the memorial halls or mausoleums.
Scriptural sources
As a Brahmin maiden
The story of Kṣitigarbha was first described in the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva Pūrvapraṇidhāna Sūtra, a popular Mahayana sutra. This sutra is said to have been spoken by the Buddha towards the end of his life to the beings of the Trāyastriṃśa Heaven as a mark of gratitude and remembrance for his beloved mother, Maya. The Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva Pūrvapraṇidhāna Sūtra begins, "Thus have I heard. Once the Buddha was abiding in Trayastrimsas Heaven in order to expound the Dharma to his mother."
The Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva Pūrvapraṇidhāna Sūtra was first translated from Sanskrit into Chinese between 695 and 700 CE, during the Tang dynasty, by the Tripiṭaka master Śikṣānanda, a Buddhist monk from Khotan who also provided a new translation of the Avataṃsaka Sūtra and the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra. However, some scholars have suspected that instead of being translated, this text may have originated in China, since no Sanskrit manuscripts of this text have been found. Part of the reason for suspicion is that the text advocates filial piety, which was stereotypically associated with Chinese culture. It stated that Kṣitigarbha practised filial piety as a mortal, which eventually led to making great vows to save all sentient beings. Since then, other scholars such as Gregory Schopen have pointed out that Indian Buddhism also had traditions of filial piety. Currently there is no definitive evidence indicating either an Indian or Chinese origin for the text.
In the Kṣitigarbha Sūtra, the Buddha states that in the distant past eons, Kṣitigarbha was a maiden of the Brahmin caste by the name of Sacred Girl. This maiden was deeply troubled upon the death of her mother, who had often been slanderous towards the Three Jewels.
Iconography
Traditional iconography
thumb|left|Kṣitigarbha painting, [[Goryeo, late 14th century.]]
In Buddhist iconography, Kṣitigarbha is typically depicted with a shaven head, dressed in a monk's simple robes (unlike most other bodhisattvas, who are dressed like Indian royalty).
In his left hand, Kṣitigarbha holds a tear-shaped jewel or cintamani (), which is a wish-granting jewel that symbolizes enlightenment or salvation. In his right hand, he holds a Khakkhara (), which is used to alert insects and small animals of his approach so that he will not accidentally harm them as well as to open the gates of Hell. This staff is traditionally carried by Buddhist monks. Like other bodhisattvas, Kṣitigarbha usually is seen standing on a lotus base, symbolizing his release from rebirth. Kṣitigarbha's face and head are also idealised, featuring the third eye, elongated ears and the other standard attributes of a buddha. He is frequently shown wearing a plain monk’s robe and standing on a lotus base, reflecting purity and spiritual liberation.
In the Chinese tradition, Kṣitigarbha is often depicted wearing a Five Buddha crown (Chinese: 五佛冠, pinyin: Wǔfó Guān), which is a crown that bears the images of the Five Tathāgatas. His image is similar to that of the fictional character Tang Sanzang from the classical novel Journey to the West, so observers sometimes mistake Kṣitigarbha for the latter. In China, Kṣitigarbha is also sometimes accompanied by a dog. This is in reference to a legend that he found his mother reborn in the animal realm as a dog named Diting, which the Bodhisattva adopted to serve as his steed and guard.
In Japan, Kṣitigarbha's statues are often adorned with bibs, kerchiefs or kasa hat on his head, and sometimes dressed with a haori. Tōsen-ji in Katsushika, Tokyo, contains the "Bound Kṣitigarbha" of Ōoka Tadasuke fame, dating from the Edo period. When petitions are requested before Kṣitigarbha, the petitioner ties a rope about the statue. When the wish is granted, the petitioner unties the rope. At the new year, the ropes of the ungranted wishes are cut by the temple priest.
thumb|right|Painting of Kṣitigarbha as the Lord of the Six Ways from [[Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang.]]
Kṣitigarbha as Lord of the Six Ways
Another category of iconographic depiction is Kṣitigarbha as the Lord of the Six Ways, an allegorical representation of the Six Paths of Rebirth of the Desire realm (rebirth into hell, or as pretas, animals, asuras, men, and devas). The Six Paths are often depicted as six rays or beams radiating from the bodhisattva and accompanied by figurative representations of the Six Paths. Many of these depictions in China can be found in Shaanxi province, perhaps a result of Sanjiejiao teachings in the area.
A Japanese variation of this depiction is the Six Kṣitigarbhas, six full sculptural manifestations of the bodhisattva. An example of this can be found in Konjikidō, the ‘Hall of Gold,’ in the Chūson-ji temple.
In some later East Asian and Vajrayāna traditions, Kṣitigarbha is also depicted with multiple arms (notably six), each holding symbolic implements associated with the salvation of beings in the six realms of rebirth. This form parallels other multi-armed bodhisattvas and reflects the doctrine of skillful means (upāya). Such representations can be found especially in Taiwan and Vietnam, in certain tantric contexts.
In Buddhist traditions
Indian and Tibetan traditions
thumb| Amitabha Buddha with the Eight Great Bodhisattvas
In the early Indian and Indo-Tibetan traditions, Kṣitigarbha (Sanskrit: क्षितिगर्भ, Tibetan:སའི་སྙིང་པོ / ས་ཡི་སྙིང་པོ, “Essence of the Earth”) is counted among the Eight Great Bodhisattvas (byang chub sems dpa’ chen po brgyad), together with Mañjuśrī, Avalokiteśvara, Vajrapāṇi, Samantabhadra, Ākāśagarbha, Maitreya and Sarvanīvaraṇaviṣkambin.
The cult of the Eight Great Bodhisattvas originated in India during the early development of Mahāyāna Buddhism and became especially popular in Central Asia and Tibet. One of the earliest surviving sources to describe their rituals and iconography is the Aṣṭamaṇḍalaka-sūtra, translated into Chinese by the esoteric master Amoghavajra (8th century). The Eight Bodhisattvas, each associated with one of the eight directions, were venerated both for spiritual blessings and for protection against disease, famine, and war. Beyond painted thangkas, images of the eight Bodhisattvas are also found on the walls of several Tibetan monasteries such as Iwang, Samding, Dolma, and Lakhang, attesting to the widespread popularity of their cult.
In the Nyingma tradition, particularly in the Longchen Nyingtik lineage, the Eight Great Bodhisattvas appear together around Śākyamuni Buddha in the Refuge Field (Tib. tshogs shing). This arrangement visually expresses their role as manifestations of enlightened compassion and as peaceful counterparts to the Eight Herukas of the Mahāyoga system.
In the Nyingma Mahāyoga system of Tibet, each of the Eight Great Bodhisattvas (aṣṭa mahāsattva) is considered to have a wrathful counterpart among the Eight Herukas (bka’ brgyad), the central meditational deities of the Eight Heruka mandalas. These Herukas represent the dynamic, transformative aspects of the same enlightened principles embodied in the peaceful Bodhisattvas of the Mahāyāna.
thumb|Wrathful Ksitigarbha
thumb|The Tantra of Lokastotrapūja, Practice text of Wrathful Ksitigarbha
Kṣitigarbha appears as Lokastotrapūjā-nātha (Tib. འཇིག་རྟེན་མཆོད་བསྟོད་ ’Jig rten mchod bstod ), one of the Eight Great Herukas (བཀའ་བརྒྱད་ Kagyed) — specifically the deity of ‘Mundane or Worldly Praises’, better known in the Tibetan tradition as Destroyer of Haughty Ones (Tib. དྲེགས་པ་ཀུན་འདུལ dregs pa kun ’dul).
This wrathful Kṣitigarbha is depicted dark blue in colour, with a fierce expression, adorned with bone ornaments, and surrounded by flames of pristine awareness. the right face yellow, the left purple. six arms, four legs, and two wings. holds a vajra and a skull bowl (kapāla). other hands hold severed heads. He embraces his blue consort "Universal Tamer of the Three Realms of Existence" (Tib. ཁམས་གསུམ་སྤྱི་འདུལ Khamsum Chidul), who holds a khatvanga and a skull-cup.
He embodies the dynamic, protective energy of the awakened Earth and is invoked to pacify the disturbances of the subterranean and earthly spirits.
Mantra : ཨོཾ་བཛྲ་ཙཎྜ་སརྦ་དུཥྚཱ་ནྟ་ཀ་ཧཱུྃ་ཕཊཿ om benza tsenda sarva dushtentaka hung pé:
According to Rob Mayer (2012), the Nyingma tradition classifies Lokastotrapūjānātha (’Jig rten mchod bstod) as one of the Eight Great Herukas (bka’ brgyad).
Although its name literally means “Worldly Offerings and Praises”, it is not considered a mundane spirit, but an enlightened manifestation of Heruka that subdues worldly forces.
Mayer, citing Rang ’byung pad ma snying thig by Dilgo Khyentsé Rinpoche, clarifies that these “Three Mundane Deities” (’Jig rten pa’i sde gsum) are regarded as transcendent aspects of enlightenment, equal in status to the “Five Wisdom Deities”.
thumb|Ksitigarbha on Tibetan Xylography
Unlike the later East Asian representations of Kṣitigarbha as a monk with a pilgrim’s staff, in the Indo-Tibetan context he appears as a young Indian prince, richly adorned with the silks, jewels, and long hair characteristic of the sambhogakāya bodhisattvas.
In Tibetan iconography he is usually white in color, sometimes described as green-blue in tantric sources such as The Great Chariot (’Gro ba chen po’i shing rta chen po). He is portrayed as peaceful, smiling, and compassionate, with one face and two hands:
- The right hand holds a young sprout (myu gu) at the level of the heart, symbolizing growth and renewal;
- The left hand holds an upturned bell (dril bu), resting at the hip, symbolizing the sound of the Dharma and the wisdom of emptiness.
He is seated in a half-lotus posture, radiating gentle light.
thumb|Ksitigarbha in Bardo Thodol
Kṣitigarbha is also mentioned in several ritual texts associated with Prithvī Devī, the Earth goddess, invoked for agricultural prosperity and the protection of crops. In those texts he appears only as a companion deity, representing the male or awakened aspect of the Earth principle.
In these practices, the goddess is described as yellow in colour, with her upper body bare, holding a jewel and a vase; while Kṣitigarbha is depicted as white, dressed in bodhisattva attire, holding a sprout in the right hand and a bell in the left, seated in a half-lotus posture.
In the Mandala of the Forty-Two Peaceful Deities described in the Bardo Thödol (Tibetan Book of the Dead), Kṣitigarbha is depicted seated to the right of Vajrasattva-Akṣobhya, in the eastern direction, associated with the vajra family, the water element, and the mirror-like wisdom (me long ye shes). In this mandalic context, his color corresponds to the blue or white hue of the vajra family, depending on the lineage and interpretive system
Because there are few Tibetan tantric texts or sādhana cycles devoted specifically to him, Kṣitigarbha does not have a fixed iconography in Tibetan art. His depictions may vary between white, green-blue, or jewel-blue, reflecting both symbolic and regional interpretations.
Chinese traditions
thumb|Statue of Dizang at [[Shishuang Temple in Hunan, China. Depicted with a Five-Buddha crown.]]
In certain Chinese Buddhist legends, the arhat Mulian (目連) acts as an assistant to Ksitigarbha, known as Dizang, in his vow to save the denizens of hell. As a result, Mulian is usually also venerated in temples that enshrine Dizang. In folk beliefs, Dizang has a mount called Diting, who is a divine beast that can distinguish good from evil, virtuous and foolish. In iconographic form, it is often enshrined at the side of Ksitigarbha, or portrayed with Ksitigarbha riding on its back as a mount.
Due to his scriptural row as a saviour of hell-beings and his vow of not attaining Buddhahood until the hells are empty, Dizang is commonly invoked in Chinese Buddhist rituals involving the salvific liberations of sentient beings in saṃsāra, such as the Yujia Yankou rite and the Shuilu Fahui ceremony.
In some areas, the admixture of traditional religions has led to Kṣitigarbha being also regarded as a deity in Taoism and Chinese folk religion. Kṣitigarbha Temples () are Taoist temples that usually enshrine Kṣitigarbha as the main deity, along with other gods typically related to the Chinese netherworld Diyu, such as Yanluo Wang and Heibai Wuchang. Believers usually visit these temples to pray for the blessings of the ancestors and the souls of the dead. The 30th day of the seventh month of the Chinese calendar is celebrated as his birthday.
In modern East-Asian and Chinese sources a related notion of blue radiance appears. During the English translation (1959) of the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva Pūrvapraṇidhāna Sūtra, translator Pitt Chin Hui reported the appearance of “electric-blue light” in the locked shrine of Kṣitigarbha at Poh Ern Si Temple, Singapore, and noted that “Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva’s colour is a jewel blue of the shade referred to in modern times as electric blue.” The vision recalls older textual images comparing the Bodhisattva’s eyes to blue-lotus petals (utpala), and can be interpreted as a poetic expression of his association with the vajra family’s blue-white luminosity rather than a literal bodily colour.
The Guān Dìzàng Púsà Gōngdé Jīng (觀地藏菩薩功德經, Sūtra on the Contemplation of the Merits of Kṣitigarbha), Taishō vol. 13 no. 412, describes Kṣitigarbha emitting “a blue lotus light illuminating the ten directions” (放青蓮光明遍照十方).
Association with Mount Jiuhua
thumb|Colossal statue of Dizang bodhisattva at his [[bodhimaṇḍa of Mount Jiuhua in Anhui, China.]]
Chinese Buddhist traditions hold that Mount Jiuhua, one of the Four Sacred Mountains of China, was chosen by Dizang himself to serve as his bodhimaṇḍa. These traditions stem from historical accounts from biographical sources such as the Jiuhua shan Huacheng si ji (九華山化城寺記, lit: "Record of Huacheng Monastery on Mt. Jiuhua") by Fei Guanqing (費冠卿, active circa 9th century) and the Song gaoseng zhuan (宋高僧傳, lit: "Biographies of Eminent Monks of the Song dynasty") by the scholar monk Zanning<sup>[zh]</sup> (贊寧, 919-1001).
During the Tang dynasty (618-709), Buddhism flourished and spread widely across China, eventually spreading to Korea. At the time, monks and scholars arrived from those countries to seek the dharma in China. One of these pilgrims was a former prince from Silla named Kim Gyo-gak, who became a monk under the Chinese name Dizang ("Kṣitigarbha"), pronounced Jijang in Korean. He went to Mount Jiuhua in present-day Anhui. After ascending, he decided to build a hut in a deep mountain area so that he could cultivate the dharma. At one point, the goddess of Mount Jiuhua transformed herself into a scorpion and stung Jijang seriously. However, he remained unaffected and continued his practice without interruption. Noticing the monk meditating in the hut, they went and took a look at his condition. They had noticed that his bowl did not contain any food, and that his hair had grown back. Taking pity on the monk, Zhuge decided to build a temple as an offering to him. The whole group descended the mountain immediately to discuss plans to build the temple. Mount Jiuhua was also property of a wealthy person named Minrang (閔讓), who obliged to build a temple on his mountain. Jizō’s worship developed significantly and became more widespread in Japan during the Heian (794–1185) and Kamakura (1185–1333) periods. During these periods, people were afraid of the period that is known as mappō, the decline and disappearance of Dharma, which was propagated by Pure Land Buddhism as a period in which it is impossible to understand the original Buddhist teachings anymore and attain enlightenment through traditional means. This foundation supported the role among people of Kṣitigarbha as he helped those who were in danger of falling into hell realm in hearing their confessions and to ensure their salvation. The Konjaku Monogatarishū includes many tales about him and another collection of tales, Jizō Bosatsu Reigenki, consists of twenty-five stories that focus on miracles performed by Jizō. The devotees described in these stories recite the Lotus Sutra.
The statue at Kenchō-ji Temple, crafted in the 15th century, signifies the longstanding tradition of enshrining Jizō where the doomed or suffering were memorialized. Artistic examinations, such as Hank Glassman’s The Face of Jizō, reveal how medieval Japanese society integrated Jizō imagery into both elite and folk religious practice, blending Buddhist doctrine with local traditions and boundary guardian cults (like Dōsojin).
In contemporary Japan, His statues are a common sight, especially by roadsides and in graveyards. Jizō is celebrated as the protector of children (including deceased and unborn), travelers, pilgrims, and the souls suffering in the realms of the dead. He is usually depicted as a humble monk holding a staff with six rings and a wish-fulfilling jewel.
Ryōki
The Ryōki (c. 822 CE), the earliest known collection of setsuwa or tales, contains a story about Fujiwara Hirotari. After he dies he catches sight of his wife suffering in the Land After Death, and with the aid of Jizō he returns to life and lifts the burden of suffering from his wife by copying the Lotus Sutra.
thumb|Sentai-Jizō or 1000 Jizō Statues at [[Nasu, Tochigi. This landscape is compared to Sai no Kawara.]]
This concept of Sai no Kawara, or children's limbo, first appeared in the Otogizōshi during the Muromachi Period, and the "Tale of the Fuji Cave", discussed above, is part of the Otogizōshi. despite temple pamphlets (engi, or accounts of the founding of temples) claiming that it dates back to the 9th century, when the priest Ennin supposedly established a place of worship for Jizō at Osorezan, then known as Usorizan.
Lost pregnancies
Jizō is also worshipped as the guardian of the souls of mizuko ("water children"), stillborn, miscarried, or aborted children, in the ritual of . In this context, he is worshipped under the form of Mizuko Jizō.
Offerings
thumb|A small shrine of Kosodate-Jizō or Childcare-Kṣitigarbha at [[Nishi-Shinjuku, Tokyo.]]
Statues of Jizō are sometimes accompanied by piles of stones placed on or by them in the hope that the time that dead children have to suffer in the underworld may be shortened.
Mantra
In mainstream Chinese Buddhism and Japanese Shingon Buddhism, the mantra of Kṣitigarbha comes from the "Treasury of Mantras" section of the Mahavairocana Tantra. The effect of this mantra is producing the "Samadhi Realm of Adamantine Indestructible Conduct." This mantra is the following: