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International Research Centre for Japanese Studies, National Institute for the Humanities
From Bodhidharma to Daruma: The Hidden Life of a Zen Patriarch

Author(s): Bernard Faure
Reviewed work(s):
Source: Japan Review, No. 23 (2011), pp. 45-71
Published by: International Research Centre for Japanese Studies, National Institute for the Humanities
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Japan Review 23 (2011): 45-71
From
Bodhidharma
The Hidden
to Daruma:
Life of a Zen
Patriarch
Bernard Faure
ColumbiaUniversity,
U.S.A.
as thefounding
ThemonkBodhidharma
(Jap.Daruma)is usuallypresented
he
has
become
a
favorite
theme
patriarchof the Chan/Zentraditionand
In earlymodernJapan,however,anotherimageof
of Zen ink-paintings.
Bodhidharmabecameimmensely
popular:thatof the tumblingDaruma
usedas charmsto protectchildrenagainstsmalldolls,whichwereinitially
ofgood luck,
ofchildrenand bringer
pox. Darumathusbecamea protector
with
connotations
attested
his
was
also
sexual
and
(as
bythe
image
fraught
motifof"Darumawitha courtesan")
and embryological
symbolwidespread
theevolution
thatled fromthe
ism.Thispaperis an attempt
to understand
Zen patriarch
to thesmallpoxdeityand fortune
orthodox
god oftheEdo peto
which
Bodhidharma
riod.A clueis foundin theChan tradition
according
had beenpoisonedbyhis rivals.Fromthelikelihoodthatthecircumstances
ofhisdeathledto thebeliefthathe becamea malevolent
spiritthatneededto
an epidemic
be propitiated,
theimagedevelopsintothatofa crossroad
deity,
like
those
ofShotoku
and
a
of
fortune.
Other
and
deity,
god
legends myths
to thisdevelopment.
Taishi and ShinraMyojinmayhavecontributed
By
to
Daruma fromhis habitualcontext(thatof theZen tradition)
removing
we are
placehimin anothercontext(thatof popularreligionand folklore),
his emergence
as a "fashionable
betterable to understand
(
)
god" hayarigami
to
in Edo culture.The heuristic
here
also
allows
us
interpretation
suggested
the
one widespread
artistic
reconsider
motif,thatof "Bodhidharma
crossing
River
on
a
reed."
Yangzi
Key words: BodhidharmaiHHf,Daruma iSJif,Daruma dolls jitlUA,
ShinraMyojin
Chan/Zen#,ShotokuTaishi
Juzenji+
crossroad
) iltffi#,
deity(dosojin
smallpoxdeity(hosogami)
) fSSf
(ekibyd
) JSS, smallpox(hdsd
epidemics
The patriarch
is a well-known
Bodhidharma
figureof Chan/Zen,and one of thefavorite
themesof theso-called"ink-painting"
^KfiB). His sternfaceis supposedto
(suibokuga
to reachawakeningthroughthepractice
theZen practitioner's
determination
represent
ofseatedmeditation.
darkermeaning.Bymaking
Yet,as we willsee,it mayhaveanother,
in Chinaaroundthe
itsfounding
thenewChan schoolthatemerged
Bodhidharma
father,
45
Bernard
Faure
as a
seventh
itself
defined
century
keenon
distinct
current,
religious
It is this"willto
its orthodoxy.
thatled thisschool,
orthodoxy"
evenas it multipliedthe iconographicvariantsof theimageof
itsfoundingpatriarch,
to maintainit withina strictframework
definedbyZen practice.But the
or rather
imageofBodhidharma,
of Daruma jSt (Ch. Damo),
as he cameto be calledin Japan,
veryearlyon overflowedthat
1.Darumadolls.(Photo:
B. Faure)
frameworkand went through Figure
reincarnations
strange
(Figure1).
I willtherefore
notdeal herewiththeBodhidharma
oftheZen tradition,
butwithhis
elusivedouble,as it developedin thepopularcultureoftheEdo period.The questionthat
we haveto answeris twofold:
"How did theBodhidharma
ofZen givebirthto thepopular
in theEdo period?"Afterall, the
Daruma?"and "Whatexplainsthelatter'spopularity
Daruma appearsmostnotablyundertheunexpected
formofa smallpoxdeityand eventubecame
a
icon
of
culture
and
one
ally
popular
politics: addspupilsto theeyesoftheblind
Darumadoll to ensurethesuccessofenterprises
(forinstance,in contemporary
Japan,on
ofan electoral
theevening
victory).1
Thislatterimageseemsto haveappeared,as iffromnowhere,
aftera longperiodof
in thisdomain- whichis thatof thehistoryof
incubation.The lack of documentation
- condemnsus to speculations
methodthat
and to a heuristic
symbolsand of mentalites
to thetraditional
historianin searchof textualevidence.Evenif I
mayseemfrustrating
in myattempt
seemto proceedchronologically
to bridgethegapbetweentheTangand the
Edo periods,betweentheChan patriarch
and the"deityin vogue"(hayarigami
my
- as one coulddo in thecase oftheChan/Zenpatriarch
aim is notto tracea genealogy
to suggest
butrather
thesinuousandshifting
a
of
contours
of network, whatonecouldcall,
to borrowa termfromGillesDeleuzeand FelixGuattari,
a "rhizome."2
One can ofcourse,
whenever
or groupsthat
institutions,
possible,emphasizetheroleof certainindividuals,
havecontributed
to thisevolution.
and the
But theirhinterland
mustremainanonymous,
of
individualism
traditional
is
methodological
scholarship potentially
misleadingin this
thetruelogicis elsewhere;
case.As in anyemergence,
itis a formof"swarmthinking"
that
a different
requires
approach.
Whatis therelationship
betweentheBodhidharma
in
legend,as it developsinitially
Chan duringtheTangperiod,and Daruma,thepopulardeityoftheEdo period?In other
everbecomea tumbler
doll?It is a complicated,
words,howdid theaustereChan patriarch
and obscurestory.To understand
we
have
to
unravel
it,
manystrandsthatwerewoven
intoonefigure.
Darumawillthusappearto us successively
as:
together
1
2
Thispractice
theeyesofBuddhist
statues
toanimate
them.
Onthisquestion,
see
goesbackto"dotting"
Faure
1991andStrickmann
1996.
Deleuze
andGuattari
1987.
46
toDaruma:TheHiddenLifeofa ZenPatriarch
FromBodhidharma
- a malevolent
^11)
spirit(onryo
- a crossroad
withsexuality
iSfi#) associated
deity(dosojin
- a placentagod (enakdjin
- an astralgodofdestiny
humandestiny
?#)
(shukujin
controlling
- a "foreign"
Mt.
related
to ShinraMyojin
of
Song
epidemicdeity(ekijin#): god
rnmww
- a smallpoxdeity{hosdgami
orhososhin
- a godoffortune
te#)
{fukujin
to his posthumous
Otherelementscontributed
success,amongwhich,somewhatat
randomare:
- sexualsymbolism
- thesymbolism
and itsrelationwith
of komori
fl, incubation,
reclusion,
gestation,
on
the
other
one
silkworms
and
sericulture
on
the
childbirth
hand,
easy
- thecolorcode(red)andthespatialcode (south):fire,exorcism,
yang,smallpox
- thetumbling
ofrebirth
and itssymbolism
dolldevice(withitssexualconnotations
orrecovery)
This gradualintertwining
of motifswas essentiallyrealizedduringthe medieval
order.
main
an approximately
will
examine
the
We
ones,following
chronological
period.
thatmayneverhavecometo the
associations
Thereareonlya fewclues,revealing
symbolic
- or,iftheydid,wereeventually
Zen interpretaovershadowed
forefront
bythe"official"
which
transmitted
the"onemind
even
within
tion.Thisinterpretation
Tendai,
prevailed
thefirst
from
which
isshinkai
and
of
Bodhidharma"
JitHS(Daruma
emerged
precepts
the"Darumaschool"(DarumashuiS^).3 Becausethe"other
Zen schoolcalled,precisely,
- thedarkside- was alwayssubmerged,
reconstructhefollowing
side"of Bodhidharma
of
thanan accuratedescription
tionis perhapsmorean exercisein heuristic
imagination
the
indicate
direction
it
raises
a
and
historical
But
at
least,
reality.
question, may
legitimate
ifthereeveris such
startat thebeginning,
in whichwe lookforan answer.Let us therefore
in
of
and
a thing therealm myth legend.
TheLegendofBodhidharma
an Indianmissionary
to China whomChristian
The BuddhistmonkBodhidharma,
was
seen
as
an
arhatand an avatarofthe
mistook
for
the
missionaries
apostleThomas,
long
As thefounding
oftheChan/Zenschool,he cameto
Avalokitesvara.4
bodhisattva
patriarch
to
as an equal (andalmosta double)oftheBuddhahimself.
be revered
eventually
According
was thesonofa southern
Indianking.Having
theGoldenLegendofChan,Bodhidharma
he leftforChina in orderto converttheChinese,and arrivedin
obtainedenlightenment,
His encounter
withEmperorLiangWudi
Cantonat thebeginningof thesixthcentury.
was a shortand
on beinga piousBuddhist,
ISSS'Sr(r.502-49), a rulerwhopridedhimself
3
4
seeFaure
Onthis
1987.
school,
SeeFaure
1993,
pp.45-50.
47
Faure
Bernard
inauspiciousone. Bodhidharma,showingwhat
somewouldconsidera certainlack of tactfulness,
declaredthattheemperor's
piousworkswereof no
The latter,notsurprisingly,
valuewhatsoever.
was
notpleased,andBodhidharma
deemeditprudent
to
leaverightawayforNorthChina.He is saidto have
crossedtheYangziRiveron a reed,an elementthat
madeitswayintoZen iconography.
He eventually
settledon Mt. Song,wherehe practiced
meditation
nine
a
wall.
His
yearsfacing
during
uncompromising teachingwon him a fewdisciples,but also
some powerfulenemies,and we are told thathe
was eventually
poisonedby two rivals.Soon after
his death,however,
a Chineseemissaryreturning
fromIndia claimedto havemethimon thePamir
plateau.WhenBodhidharma's
gravewas opened,it
was foundto be empty withtheexception
ofone
of his shoes.This episodeled to thebeliefthathe
2. Bodhidharma
Mincho
byKitsusan
wasa sortofImmortal,
and thathisdeathhad been Figure
Collection
ofTofukuji.
rflil^lS(1352-1431).
a feigned
death.
with
(Reproduced
permission)
Such,in its outline,is the imageof Bodhidharmaas it had developedin the Chan tradition
toward
theeighth
ThelegendoftheIndianpatriarch,
todevelop
continued
however,
century.5
as shownbytheattribution
outsideofBuddhism,
to thismasterofseveralDaoistworks,as
wellas hispromotion
totherankoffounder
ofmartial
arts.6
IftheBodhidharma
as
worshiped
thefirst
in
of
Chan
China
has
little
to
do
with
the
Indian
monk
of
the
same
name,
patriarch
mentioned
as admiring
thepagodaoftheYongning monastery
in Luoyang$5 at the
ofthesixthcentury,
thedistancebetweentheJapanese
Darumaand hisChinese
beginning
seems
even
prototype
greater.
to a laterJapanese
Bodhidharma
did notreturn
to Indiabuttravtradition,
According
eledon to Japan.Thisversion,
the
Tendai
associates
Bodhidharma
school,
by
propagated
withShotokuTaishi
to be considered
an avatarof
(574-622),whocamehimself
theTiantaimaster,
(517-77).We aretoldthatShotokuTaishione
NanyueHuisi
a poemwith
daymeta starving
beggarat thefootofMt. Kataoka(inNara),and exchanged
him.Thestrange
literate
was
first
identified
as
an
immortal
in
the
Nihon
shoki0^
beggar
His
further
identification
with
Bodhidharma
rested
another
HIE.
upon
widespread
legend,
towhichHuisihadoncebeenBodhidharma's
meton
according
disciple.Whenthetwofirst
MountTiantai
thattheywouldbothmeetagainin a nextlife
, Bodhidharma
predicted
inJapan.ThislegendgrewwiththecultofShotokuTaishiin themedievalperiod,andthere
- a monastery
is stilla Daruma temple
at Kataoka,notfarfromHoryuji
associated
withShotokuTaishi.7
5
6
7
Onthis
seeFaure
and1986b.
1986a
legend,
Onthedevelopment
ofthelegend
inChina,
seeDurant-Dastes
2000.OnBodhidharma
andthemartial
ofShaolin
tradition
seeShahar
2008.
monastery,
Nishimura
1985,
pp.299-310.
48
FromBodhidharma
Let us leap tencenturies

forward.
Daruma
becamean extremely
populardeityduringthe
ofchildren
and bringer
Edo periodas a protector
theIndian
ofgoodluck.In thisfolkloric
version,
has
come
a
of
Chan/Zen
patriarch
longway.He
has beenrepresented
sincethattimeas a legless,
talisman
dollwhich,as thesayinggoes,
tumbling
"fallsseventimesand riseseighttimes"{nana
Thispopularrepresentaoki
korobiya
tionofDarumatracesitsoriginbackto thebelief
in
towhichBodhidharma,
after
sitting
according
fornineyearsin a caveon Songshan
meditation
cametolosehislegs.
SiU-J,
This representation
lent itselfto sexual
the
until
thus,
symbolism:
Meijiperiod,phallic
of Daruma in stoneor papier
representations
macheweresold.9The name"Daruma"wasalso
a nickname
givenintheEdo periodtoprostitutes,
likethedoll,thesespecialists
of
because,
perhaps
theway.
tumble
couldraisetheenergy
oftheircustomers.10Figure3. Darumadoll- pointing
B.Faure)
(Photo:
in comical
Darumais indeedoftenrepresented
- somefashionin thecompanyof a prostitute
timesevenas a transvestite
oras a woman.He isalsosometimes
partofa moreorlesslegitimate
In
cases
his
is no otherthanthechubby
called
"Mr.
and
Mrs.
Daruma."
some
couple
partner
Okame
Otafuku
(a.k.a.
thepopularrepresentation of the goddess Ame no
Uzume no Mikoto
These Darumadollsprotected
childrenagainstillnessessuch
as smallpox
andweresupposed,
to facilitate
amongotherthings,
childbirth,
bringgoodharvests,
and more generally bring
totheirowners.
There
prosperity
is also in Zen iconographya
representationof the "erect
Bodhidharma." The sexual
4. OnnaDaruma
(Courtesan
Daruma)
Figure
impersonating
symbolismis played out in byKitagawa
- 1806).
Utamaro
Collection
ofTochigi
(1753?
whereDarumaappears City.
with
ukiyo-e,
(Reproduced
permission)
8
toa variant,
"Daruma
time
hefalls."
Seealsothevariant
every
bythechildrens'
grows
provided
According
- "Da.ru.
- were
whose
ma.sa.n.ga.
ko.ro.
n.da("Daruma
hasfallen
usedbychildren
down")
syllables
song,
tocount
from
onetoteningames
ofhideandseek.
andIto1967,
9 SeeRichie
p.226.
10 McFarland
1986,
p.171.
49
Faure
Bernard
asa courte5.Daruma
Figure
cross-dressing
sanbyTakeda
Harunobu
(mid-Edo
Color
onsilk;
scroll.
62.5x
period).
hanging
Price
Los
31.6cm.JoeandEtsuko
collection,
with
(Reproduced
permission)
Angeles.
6.Daruma
Figure
gateodasu
Daruma
a Smoke),
1765bySuzuki
(Giving
Harunobu
27.6x 19.3
(1725-1770).
cm.Woodblock
(nishiki-e
); inkand
print
color
onpaper.
Collection
ofTabacco
& Salt
Museum.
withpermission)
(Reproduced
From
ChibaCityMuseum
ofArtandHagi
Seishun
no
eds.andpub.,
Museum,
Uragami
shiSuzuki
Harunobu
ukiyo-e
,2002,p.65.
- a courtesan
- ora transvestite
inwhichone
as a woman
4, 5 and6). A representation
(Figures
seeshimin thecompany
oftwoprostitutesmaleand female on a boatmadefroma reedleafassociates
thesexualmotif
withthatofthecrossing
oftheYangziRiver.
As HartmutRotermund
has pointedout,theimageofDarumastandingup (okiagari
froman illness,of
Daruma
connotesmetaphorically
the factof recovering
it
and
Before
mere
Daruma
dolls seemto
toys,
overcoming rapidly
lightly.11
becoming
havebeeninitially
) placedon domesticaltars(kamidana).The
goodluckobjects(engimono
(okiagari
) and newbeginokiagariDarumaalso becamea popularsymbolofperseverance
Another
at
first
is
that
in
the
Kantoregion,
association,
which,
nings.
glancesurprising,
him intoa talismanforsericulture:
connectsDaruma withsilkworms,
and transforms
thewhitecocoonshavetheformof a Daruma,or perhapsone shouldsaythatDaruma
are
is cocoon-like.12
cocoonscalledmayuDaruma,on whichDaruma features
Engimono
painted,are stillsold today;and thisis perhapsrelatedto the factthat,as we will see,
bothDarumaand thesilkworm
weresymbolsof gestation.However,thisembryological
which
connects
Daruma
withthesilkworm,
refers
also perhapsto thepractice
symbolism,
ofmushiokuri
or
"insect
it
be
a
offunerary
kind
ritualforthese
9
dispatching":may
in largenumbersduringthespinningprocess,and which
whichare sacrificed
creatures,
11 Rotermund
1991,
p.196.
12 Bycontrast,
intheKansai
wasaboveallrelated
tothemerchant
Daruma
andapparently
class,
region,
totheagricultural
totheNewYear
unrelated
(inparticular
Festival).
cycle
50
FromBodhidharma
onemayfearlesttheybecome"resentful
spirits."
The imagesused in thesymbolicfightagainst
smallpox
duringtheEdo periodoftenshowa Daruma
dolland a puppydog,symbolofgoodhealth.In one
onechildstandson hishandson Daruma's
example,
another
rideson thedog.Theyareaccompanied
head,
by poemssuchas: "Near thesickchild,struckby
a lightgame,a paperDarumaand
smallpox/playing
theluckycharmdog."Or: "ThefellowDaruma,with
hisgentleface,doesnotstaylyinginbed."Behindthe
notionofgame,one findsthemagicalinvocation
of
healthforchildren.
TheimageofDarumarising
again
a rapidrecovery.
alsosuggested
There werealso children'sillustratedbooks
againstsmallpox.In one of them,Darumaand his
thetoys,organizea bazaarin conjunction
friends,
withthefestival
ofthesmallpoxdeities;in another,
ofHdsdgami (1843-47)
7.Detail
Figure
NishikiDaruma and his fellows,amongwhichis an owl, byUtagawa
Kuniyoshi
ofinfections.
32x 42 cm.
arescoldedbythewarrior
Minamotono Tametomo e,Colorprints
Collection
ofKatagiri
Seiryudo
forgivingfreereinto thesmallpoxdemons, (Reproduced
with
From
permission)
Hayari^
p. 19.
therebyprovokingravagesamong the infantile yamaitonishiki-e *9
NaitoMuseum
ofPharmaceutical
Science
population.13
2001.
andIndustry,
Thesestories,
studiedin detailbyRotermund,
show that,by the beginningof the Edo period,
Daruma had becomea protector
againstsmallpox,and his roleconsistedin watching
that
thesmallpoxdemonsso thattheywouldnotharmchildren.Thissuggests,
however,
was initially
as a kindofgodofsmallpox(hdsdgami
Darumahimself
We
perceived
- herethehdsdgami
- whowereseenas thecauseof
recallthatthesamespiritualentities
intoprotectors
transformed
epidemicdiseaseswereeventually
againstthesesamediseases.
Likethem,Darumawas enrolledin thefight
he
retainssomeaspectsfrom
but
againstevil,
he is shownplayhispast.Forinstance,
whileappearing
to followtheordersofTametomo,
inga doublegameandimplicitly
sidingwiththedemons.
withotherauspicious
At anyrate,in Edo Japana Daruma doll was usuallyoffered
in
to
sick
children.
We
must
note
this
context
the
of
toys
importance thecolorredwhich
other
measles.
The
altar
to
the
with
symbolizes,
smallpoxgodwas decorated
among
things,
redpaperstrips(gohei
a
daruma
and
an
sometime
also
with
a
doll
called
doll,
owl;
),
shojo
thesickchildhadtoweara redhood(Figure7).
Furthermore,
(orang-outan).
A MalevolentSpirit
I havesuspectedthatthechoice,at
Evenbeforeencountering
theJapanesematerials,
first
of the
of theIndianmonkBodhidharma
as thefirst
arbitrary,
patriarch
glancerather
of thetypedescribedby Rene
Chan schoolmaybe theresultof a scapegoatmechanism
13 Rotermund
1991,
pp.162-78.
51
Faure
Bernard
and theSacred.uWhatever
Girardin Violence
happened
to therealBodhidharma,
thebeliefthathe had been
poisonedby rivalsspreadveryearlyon, and it was in
a waythelogicalconclusionof theseriesof hardships
monk.The rumoraboutthistragic
metbytheforeign
laterin Edo Japanby
be
echoed
centuries
figuremay
thescholarTominagaNakamoto
(1715-46),
whosawhimas a pitiful
His attempt
to convert
figure.
theChinesewas doomedfromthestart,and resulted
in his murder"PitifulBodhidharma!"15
Thus,it seems
that
some
of
Bodhidharma's
plausible
contemporaries
consideredhim to be a potentially
dangerousspirit,
on revenge.
intent
The Japanesetraditionaboundsin storiesabout
monkswho,becauseoftheresentment
charismatic
they
feltat the timeof deathforsome injusticesuffered,
as malevolent
orgoryo
return
(onryo
), orsuccumb
spirits
in particular
thatoftengu^$0, those
to evildestinies,
8. TotdTenjin
zo
awW
witha beakora longphal- Figure
demoniacbeingsrepresented
noMichizane).
Collection
of
(Sugawara
lic nose.AlthoughBodhidharma
is neverdescribedas Kyoto
ofArts.
University
City
a tenguas such,theassociation
was suggested
to me by
a verybeautiful
netsuke
keptin theVictoriaandAlbert
a bird-like
Museum(signedMasakazu,19thcentury).
Thisnetsuke
represents
tengu
hatching
of
resembles
the
froman egg,yetthisegg-shaped
popularrepresentations
figure
strikingly
betweenBodhidharma
and thetengumaynotmatterso
Daruma.However,theaffinities
is thatBodhidharma's
much:whatis essential
death,in as muchas itwasnotsimplydenied
Theimportance
ofthese
immortality,
byitspresumed
spirit.
gavehimtheauraofa vengeful
divinizedunderthenameofgoryo
, grewconsiderably
spirits,
duringtheNara and Heian
periods.The mostfamouscase is thatof thestatesman
Sugawarano MichizaneIfJJKiliJf
was
after
he
was
to therankof HeavenlyDeity
whose
elevated
(845-903),
spirit placated
16
was
to
him
and
the
Kitano
shrine
was
consecrated
(Figure8). Bodhidharma
(tenjin^tt)
to takea different
path,moreobscureand tortuous.
Daruma at theCrossroads
We haveseenhowthefigure
ofBodhidharma
inserted
itself
intothelegendofShotoku
Taishithrough
theintermediary
oftheKataokabeggar.According
to Rotermund,
Shotoku
Taishi'sgiftof a poem was perhapsaimed at revivifying
thevitalspirits(tama) of the
man. ShotokuTaishialso allegedlygavehis coat to thebeggar.This act,which
starving
intowhich
calls to mindSaintMartin'sgift,has givenriseto all kindsof interpretations
I cannotenterhere.Rotermund
weremade in placesdeemed
notesthatclothofferings
and passes,and he suggests
thatwe maybe dealingherewith
suchas crossroads
dangerous,
14 SeeGirard
1979.
15 Ibid.
16 Onthis
seeComo2008,pp.107-108.
question,
52
FromBodhidharma
an actdestinedtoplacatethedead.17
to MichaelComo,thisepisodeofShotoku's
According
legendmayhavebeenintended
to cooptpreexisting
ritesofpurification
at thecrossroad
(chimataft).18At theintersection
ofroadsconnecting
NaniwawiththeAsukaregion,
wherethecourtwaslocatedat thetime,
Kataokawas an important
Scholars
have
oftenarguedthattheShotokuTaishi
ritualspace.
whoseentirefamily
cultitselfmayhaveintended
to placatethevengeful
spiritoftheregent,
himself
wasbyno means
his
Shotoku
hadbeendecimated
However,
by politicalopponents.
rites
an innocent
and itis plausiblethathe tookpreexisting
ruler,
purification at Kataoka,in
noMoriya vfll.
of
his
defeated
like
Mononobe
order
toplacatethevengeful
enemies,
spirits
undertaken
Kataokawas a sitewhereritualsofspiritquellingwereregularly
bytheYamato
court.Thesepurification
rites,centering
upon thefiregod (a reddeity),weredesignedto
knownas Ne no kuni
purifytheland bysendingevil spiritsto thenetherworld
substitute
bodiesthatweredressedin
involved
the
use
of
ritual
dolls
A)>
They
{hitogata
as bearersofcollective
defilement.
theruler'sclothesbeforebeingsentoff,likescapegoats,
In thiscontext,
hisrobeto thebeggaron theroadsideis no longera
ShotokuTaishioffering
to theNew
itis a riteofpurification
and ofworldrenewal,
connected
sublimeactofcharity,
as a victimofuntimely
Year.If Bodhidharma
was perceived
death,a potentially
dangerous
he cameto be
drifts,
that,aftervarioussymbolic
spiritorgod,itis notsurprising
"foreign"
whohadto be propitiated.19
a threatening
identified
withtheKataokabeggar,
figure
connectsthemto those
at a crossroad
ThefactthattheKataokaritualswereperformed
ofthecrossroad
deities(<dosojin
). As we haveseen,thesegods,also calledsae no kami18#
such
werebelievedto protect
deities"),
villagesand townsagainstcalamities
("road-blocking
a
man
a
Oftenrepresented
and woman,engagedin
as epidemics,
insects,and drought.
by
in womenand sexual
theyservedto ensurefecundity
implicitor explicitsexualbehavior,
sometimes
as
in
men.
We
recall
that
were
they
"personalized" Ame no Uzumeno
potency
no Mikoto
Mikoto
and Sarutahiko
Uzumeis famousforthelascivious
had
in frontof theheavenly
cavewherethesun goddessAmaterasu
dancesheperformed
whichled to herulteriortransformation
Anotherfamousepisode,however,
withdrawn.
withSarutahiko.
WhenAmaterasu
decidedto send
intoa crossroad
deity,is herencounter
hergrandsonNinigino Mikotodownto theearthto ruleJapan,sheheardthata strange
crossroad
and potentially
deitywas standingat theeightfold
threatening,
simian-looking
betweenheavenand earth.Uzumewas sentto checkouthisintention,
and thetwoeventuIn Japanesefolklore,
Sarutahikois usuallydescribedas a
allybecamehusbandand wife.20
nose.21
kindoftengu
red
, witha long,eminently
phallic
instrips
ofcloth
tothedeity
consisted
17 Rotermund
1998,pp.19-20.Theoffering
(nusa
), hence
usually
inthelegend
ofone'srobe
it.Thisistheorigin
oftheideathat
the
theideaexpressed
tocuta part
tooffer
who
thesleeves"
sama
towhich
such
were
made
was"onewhostrips
(sodemogi
deity
away
offerings
ofhisrobe
be
from
thetraveler
a part
ofhisrobe,
lestthetraveler
bethrown
toearth
andthesleeves
required
torn
alsocallstomind
the"oldhagwhosnatched
ibid.,
Datsueba,
(SeeRotermund,
away.
p.39.)Thisdeity
ofthe
theclothes"
oftherecently
dead.Inonesource
atleast,
these
clothes
aredescribed
asthecounterpart
inthewomb,
that
Datsueba
tothecategory
ofdeities
andshetherefore
placenta
gavetothefetus
belongs
I describe
that
below
as"placenta
deities."
18 Onthis
seeComo2008,pp.107-108.
question,
19 SeeComo2008.
20 Aston
1972,
pp.77-79.
21 InEdoslang,
thepenis
wasindeed
calledTengu
nose{tengu
nohana
Wealsofind
a tengu
who
falls
down
andrises
upagain
{okiagari
tengu
53
Faure
Bernard
We findUzumeagainin theEdo period,underthenameofOkame,in theroleof"Mrs.

onceidentified
withtheKataokabeggar
Daruma."Thus,onecan thinkofBodhidharma,
a crossroad
Sarutahiko
, and in somecontexts
deity becomingin turna dosojin
displacing
ofsexuality
andfeas partner
ofUzume.It is nowonderthatDarumadollsbecamesymbols
in
of
of
the
or
and
childbirth.
The
tumbler
Daruma, okiagari
cundity,
particular easy
figure
Daruma,also has a clearsexualmeaning:thatwhichfallsand soonrisesagainis thepenis.
Thesexualsymbolism
is quiteobviousin thephalloidformofsomeDarumadolls.Withthe
in
of
(a phallic-shaped
deitypopularin brothels),
prohibition Meiji KonseiMyojin
all kindsof symbolicsubstitutes
werefound,includingmushrooms
and okiagaridaruma.
Small papiermachephalloisold at templefestivals
werereplaced,aftertheprohibition,
of Ebisu M and Daikoku
Some representations
of
bypapiermacherepresentations
Darumaarestrongly
reminiscent
oftheso-calledyinyangstones,symbolizing
themaleand
femalesexualorgans.The imageof a dragoncoilingaroundDaruma {tatsumaki
Daruma
calls
to
mind
the
Tantric
kundalini
the
female
as
,
fl^iSHf)
energyrepresented a snake
(Thisis a symbolalso represented
bythedragon
risingandcoilingaroundthecentralartery.
Kurikara
coiledaroundFudo'ssword).Whiletheaboveinterpretation
mayseem
farfetched,
a representation
ofthistatsumaki
in a chapelsaid to
Darumamotifpreserved
be thatofthe"Darumaofeasychildbirth"
(in thevillageofSonodain Hirazawa,present
is strongly
ofthegod Ugajin
reminiscent
oftherepresentations
dayMiyagiprefecture)
withthedragon-goddess
Benzaiten#^*5^.22Behindthatchapel
#, a snakedeityassociated
is a stele,at thebackofwhichareengraved
thesesuggestive
words:"Daruma!Daruma!Ah,
Daruma!Ah,Daruma,Daruma!"23
Daruma as PlacentaDeity
Thefecundity
ofDarumain embryonic
leadsus to considerthefigure
symbolism
gestation.In theZen school,thefamousmythical
of
nineyears
Bodhidharma
episode
spending
in "wallcontemplation"
in a caveon Mt. Songis interpreted
as an embryological
immersed
in KitsusanMincho'sportrait
of
This embryological
aspectis alreadysuggested
allegory.
in esoteric
Bodhidharma
documents
(seeabove,Figure2), butitappearsexplicitly
(kirigami
J&S)likethefollowing:
- [Question:]"WhataboutBodhidharma's
nineyearsfacingthewall?"
- [Answer:]
"Theyare,in fact,theninemonthsspentin thewomb."
- [Question:]"TellmeaboutBodhidharma
withthecaul,aboutBodhidharma
nineyearsfacingthewall."24
to
all
about
Bodhidharmas's
distinctions,
prior
- [Answer:]
in
the
nine
months
womb,thecaulis
spent themothers
"During
Bodhidharma
puton a skin
puton. Duringhisnineyearsin seatedmeditation,
therootsoflife."25
cap- towardoffthethreepoisons,to strengthen
22 Kido1932,
p.573.
23 Ibid.
asI will
a lucky
star.
24 InFrench,
"tobeborn
with
a caul"(etre
necoiffe)
means
tobeborn
under
However,
Bodhidharma
wasnotborn
lucky.
shortly,
particularly
argue
25 Suzuki
1968,
p.293.
54
FromBodhidharma
A variantreadsas follows:
faced
"Question:Whatabout'FornineyearsBodhidharma
Answer:Bodhidharma's
nineyearsfacingthewall arethenine
thewalland said nothing'?
in thewomb.Thisis thedonningofthecaul.TheredhoodthatBodhidharma
wears
months
withinthewombhassomething
to teach
as he sitsbefore
thewallis thatcaul.Bodhidharma
missancho
a secretinterus.'"Theabovetextis foundat theendofan embryological
to Zen koans.26Itssourceis a Rinzaicommenviewnotebook
readymadeanswers
providing
Man
a
on Wumen
case."Themonk
based
entitled
Tree,"
tary
guans
"Xiangyan's up
a
tree.
onto
a
tree
branchwithhis
there
were
a
man
He
holds
said:
up
Suppose
Xiangyan
teeth.His handsgraspno branchandhisfeetdo notreachthetrunkofthetree.Beneaththe
treeis someonewhoaskshim:Whatis themeaningofBodhidharma
comingfromtheWest?
he
Ifthemandoesnotrespond
at all,hewillfailthequestioner's
need.Butifhe doesanswer,
howshouldonerespond?"27
Thetextglossesall thecore
willfallto hisdeath.In thissituation
terms:thetreebecomesthemother's
wordsin theabovedialoguein embryological
body,the
branch
with
his
teeth"
is to
in
within
the
womb.
To
"hold
onto
the
man thetreetheembryo
suckat "therootofmilk"whilestillin thewomb,andso forth.
In one ofhisessayson Zen, SuzukiDaisetsuquotesthisdialogue,and givesa seriesof
from"oraltraditions"
ofesoteric
traditional
inspired
glosses,amongwhichseveralareclearly
- and clearly
notto his taste.One ofthem,in a textdatedfromtheseventeenth
Buddhism
KohanShushin
andgivesanother
is attributed
to theZen master
example
century,
ofembryological
symbolism:
thecommunity,
said: "How
Main case: The Chan masterXiangyan...,addressing
aboutthemanup a tree?"
Xuetoureplied:"Up thetree,easyto say;belowthetree,hardto say."
The masterasked:"The tree,whatis it?"Explanation:"The treeis themother's
"Arootless
treeon a rock."
body."Commentary:
"Whatdoes 'up a tree'mean?"Explanation:
"Itis theplacewherethechilddwellsin
themother's
womb."
"What abouttheabove passage?"Explanation: He hangsto thebranchwithhis
' meansthathe suckstherootsofmilkin thewomb.'His handscannot
teeth
graspthe
'His
' meansthathishandsare
the
his
chest.
cannot
touch
branch
placedagainst
feet
' meansthathis
are
when
he
faces
his
mother."
trunk
folded
legs
Commentary:
"Duringnineyearsfacingthewall,his mouthis likethatofa dumb
person.Duringthesenineyearsfacingthewall,nota breathofwindhas passed,yet
thefivepetalshaveopened,flowershavescattered,
and outsidespringhas come."
"The
nine
the
wall
are
theninemonthswithinthe
yearsspentfacing
Explanation:
The
fact
that
while
with
the
womb,
Bodhidharma,
placenta.
facingthewall,wears
hisredrobeoverhisheadsymbolizes
theplacenta."28
in theSongshancaveto
Severalkirigami
ofSotoZen connectBodhidharma's
reclusion
themythofthesolargoddessAmaterasu
into
the
cavewhenshefelt
heavenly
withdrawing
26 Theterm
I am
missanchd
isanabbreviation
for
shitchu
himitsu
sanzen
sanzen
within
thechamber").
("secret
toJames
for
metothis
material.
indebted
Sanford
introducing
inSuzuki
27 SeeWumenguan
13.Quoted
1968,
pp.293-94.
28 Suzuki
1968,
p.293.
55
Faure
Bernard
Zen textoftheEdo period,theSangai

Susano'o.As a syncretistic
threatened
byherbrother
isshinki
bytheZen monkDairyu^cfl putsit:
cavecan be comparedto thedwelling
intotheheavenly
Amaterasu's
withdrawal
to theGreatShrine[of
wombcorresponds
ofthechildin thewomb.The maternal
in it,andthemother's
vulvato thetorii
Ise],thechildto thekamithatis enshrined
thatmarksthesacredlimit.29
As notedearlier,themedievalembryological
theoryof thefivestagesof gestation,
the
with
beliefs
concerning placenta,gavebirthto thecultoftheplacenta
together specific
A Soto kirigami
Ehatsuketsumyaku
entitled
denjusaho
deity{enakojiri).
oftheRobe,Bowl,andLineageChart),declaresforinstance:
(RiteofTransmission
body,one spends
Donningthe Robe: Havingspentninetydaysin the father's
anotherninetydaysin themother's
body.The sequenceof practiceduringthat
themonastic
periodis called"RiteofReceptionoftheRobe."In thelastanalysis,
the
theplacenta;one also callsitenakdjin
robesymbolizes
, a namethatdesignates
is
a
kami
It
It
is
also
"clan
of
called
deity"(ujigamift#).
vitality.
spirit corporeal
thatconstantly
humanlife.30
protects
thefetus,theplacentawasoftencomparedto
and nourishing
As an envelopprotecting
also to thecocoonofthesilkSk. ka aya), and sometimes
robe(Jp.Kesa
themonastic
itsprotector,
worm.Thenotionthatthisplacentais thetwinofthefetus,and consequently
taken
to
is foundin manytraditional
and it explainstheprecautions
cultures,
disposeofit
Theburialoftheplacentawas inJapantheobjectofa simplified
afterthechild'sdelivery.31
Even
after
theplacenta's
rite.
, orenakojiri)remained
however,
that,
funerary
spirit(enagami
in circumstances
came
to
be
is
that
Daruma
linkedto thechild.32
perceived,
Myhypothesis
- a god whichwas oftendescribedas "the
thatremainobscure,as sucha placentadeity
warpandwoofofheavenandearth."33
Gods ofDestiny
and Ugajin.Juzenjiwas until
Two otherexamplesof suchdeitiesareJuzenji
oneofthegodsoftheHie shrine(knowntodayas HiyoshiTaisha)in
theMeijiRestoration
as a youngchild(chigo
) ora
Sakamoto,at thefootofMt. Hiei.Juzenjiis usuallyrepresented
"He is thegod [who
to theSannohiydki
Buddhistnovice(Figure9). According
pL]3iilWE,
oftheplacentaofall beings.Fromtheoutset,sincethe
thelongevity
andhappiness
protects]
at theend
in
the
maternal
fiverevolutions
womb,and tillthequietudeofthelastthought
natureofJuzenjiappearsin
The demiurgic
oflife,all beingsareprotected
bythisgod."34
29
30
31
32
33
34
ca.1644)inWashio
itchi
sho- If-*ifc-ir,
isshinki
Sanken
1930,
jr.#
(variant:
p.530.
Sangai
seeFaure
SeeIshikawa
1995.
details,
1985,
p.109.Formore
casedescribed
theJavanese
instance,
1938).
See,for
byC. G Seligman
(Seligman
seeNakamura
Onthis
1999.
point,
SeeSanno
lllEEi&ifgfi,
p.539.
hiydki
Ibid.
56
FromBodhidharma
varioustextsthatstatethathe is thegodofthe"warpand
woofofheavenandearth."
A similarexpression
is usedin thecase ofUgajin,a
often
as
a
snakewiththeheadofan
coiled
represented
god
old man.35Bothprotecthumanlifefromthemomentof
itsconception
to themoment
ofdeath.As such,theyare
identified
withtheastraldeityof"Fundamental
Destiny"
thatis,withthegodofthePoleStar.Suchis
(honmyd
alsothecasewithMatarajin
which,as SuzukiMasatakahas
shown,was a typical"godofdestiny"
), an astral
(.shukujin
and embryological
deitythatgovernedlifeon boththe
macrocosmic
andmicrocosmic,
astralanduterine
planes.36
The prevalence
ofZen orthodoxy
probably
explains
conwhywe do notpossesssimilarly
explicitdocuments
We haveto seekelsewhere,
in less
cerningBodhidharma.
controlledsourceslike populariconography
or legend.
Forinstance,
a representation
at theDarumajirepresenting him at the centerof the twelveanimalsor spatiotemporal
signsoftheChinesecycle(Rat,Ox, Tiger,etc.)
seemsto suggest
hewasalso
that,likeUgajinandJuzenji,
seenbysomeas a rulerof"fundamental
Indeed,
destiny."
in anotherof his main cultic centers,the Shorinzan Figure
zd.Muromachi
9.Juzenji
period,
color
15th
scroll,
century.
Hanging
he
is
withChintakuReifujin
Darumaji,
openlyassociated
onsilk.57.2x25.3cm.Collection
of
inotherwords,
MyokenBosatsu L#S,the Hieizan
with
Enryakuji.
(Reproduced
From
Saicho
to
Asterism
{hokushin permission)
catalog
godofthePoleStaroroftheNorthern
Tendai
nokokuho
ill.
w.
180.Kyoto
National
2005.
Museum,
The perceptionof Daruma as shukujinis suggestedby othersources,like the Meishukushu
Thisworkconfers
on thefigureof theold man,Okina
byKonparuZenchiku
of a primordial
and
claims
that
themainJapanesegodsand BudH, thecharacter
deity,
dhistpatriarchs
areso manymanifestations
of Okina. One of thesepatriarchs
is precisely
whoserelationships
withShotokuTaishi are dulyreportedbyZenchiku.
Bodhidharma,
The latteralso tellsthestrangetradition
of
accordingto which,duringa ritualrecitation
theShomankyd
hanada-sutra
lost
the
SHitlS (Sk. Srimaladevisi
:),one of thepriests,
having
was threatening
theorderoftheceremony,
whena frogin thepondin front
ofthe
rhythm,
on
a
and
to
thefrogwas able to imposethe
rock,
templeleapt
began croakrhythmically:
abouttheincident,
ShotokuTaishiallegedly
declaredthat
rightcadenceagain.Interrogated
thisfrogwas a manifestation
of Bodhidharma,
who had cometo his rescue.Despitethe
natureofthatremark,
it suggests
a conception
of Bodhidharma
apocryphal
quitedifferent
fromthatoftheZen patriarch.
YetZenchikuwas veryawareof theZen tradition,
and at
one pointhe describesOkina in termsborrowedfromit. Not onlywas Bodhidharmaa
manifestation
ofthebodhisattva
Avalokites'vara
has it;
(Kannon),as theChinesetradition
35 SeeYamamoto
1998,
pp.348-55.
2001.
36 Suzuki
37 SeePinnington
1998,
pp.492-518.
57
Faure
Bernard
in thepersonof
he is also said to havebeenreincarnated
accordingto Japanesetradition,
monkslikeGyoki
eminent
andEisait^.38
betweenBodhidharmaand Okina as primordial
However,therelations
deityin his
- so
as wellas ofstations
roleofshukujin
and limits
, thatis,astraldeityand god ofdestiny
than
the
term
shuku
are
still
more
associations
by
complex
many
suggested
suggested
and
of theshukujinwereHata no Kawakatsu
byZenchiku.Two manifestations
alliesof ShotokuTaishiin his
Nichira0 (Kr. Ilia), twomendescribedas supernatural
However,like
by Mononobeno Moriya.39
fightagainstthe powersof evil represented
His
tells
that
this
has
a
demonic
Kawakatsu
man,whohad
distinctly
aspect. legend
Moriya,
in
went
back
to
sea
at theend of
as a child a boatstrandedon thebank,
beendiscovered
found
landedin Shakushibayin Harima,andwhenfishermen
hislife.His boateventually
he beganto
it,Kawakatsuno longerlookedlikea humanbeing.Becauseofthecalamities
as a god calledTaiko (var.Osake) Daimyojin
cause,he was finally
worshiped
in
laterat Koryuji
"GreatWild BrightDeity."The samegod cameto be worshiped
foundedforKawakatsuand his clan,the
Uzumasa
(Kyoto),a monastery
originally
and a manifestation
anotherforeign
Hata. The cultofMatarajin,
deitylinkedto epidemics
in particular
in thismonastery,
of theshukujin
, is stillperformed
duringthefamous"Ox
Festival"{ushimatsuri4^S) ofthetenthmonth.
of ShotokuTaishiand helpinghimto defeatMoriya,
Afterbecomingthepreceptor
wherehe becamedeified
to Mt. Atago
theKoreangeneralNichira(Ilia),withdrew
of ShogunJizo
as a manifestation
(GeneralJizo),theleaderof thatmountain's
astral
to theambulatory
As YanagidaKuniohasshown,theterm"shogun"also refers
tengu.
that
were
said
to
and
to
the
tumuli"
(shogunzuka
deityDaishogun
"Shogun
In other
thecapitalfromdemonicattacksand epidemics.40
likeMountAtagoitself,
protect,
words,thedeifiedformofNichiraseemsto sharewiththatofKawakatsuand withthesae
ofgodsofthelimits.
nokami(ordosojin)thecharacteristics
as proon twoaccounts,
We justsawhimintervene
Thesameis trueofBodhidharma.
as
the
and
tectorofa strategic
deity,
officiating
point(Kataoka)undertheformofcrossroad
to a
ofthestateundertheformofa batrachian.
According
priestofa ritefortheprotection
form
ofa
the
under
to
have
blinded
he
is
also
said
Chikamatsu
Moriya,
joruriplayby
Nichira
seem
Kawakatsu
and
Hata
no
malevolent
Thus
Bodhidharma,
functionally
spirit.41
of ShotokuTaishi,and it is temptingto follow
and/orpreceptors
relatedas protectors
Zenchikuwhenhe considersthemas threeaspectsof thesameprimordial
deity:Okina
underhisformas shukujin
, an ambivalent
worshiped
amongotherthingsas
god ofdestiny,
is sometimes
written
a pestilence
(palace-protecting
sukujin
god.The termshukujin
oftheimperialpalace.
as protector
that
this
was
indeed
it
seems
and
worshiped
deity),
god
themother's
thattheterm"palace"llfalso designates
Whenoneconsiders,
womb,
however,
fora placentadeity.
seemsalsoappropriate
theappellation
sukujin(shukujin)
Eisai
's
after
inpassing
thisbiographical
detail
notes
how,
38 TheKeiran
during
reporting
shuydshu
Eisaireveals
island.
fora while
hisboatwasfollowed
from
return
Afterwards,
China,
bya floating
trip
ofthesubmarine
asoneofthedragons
reincarnated
ofHosshobo,
a priest
that
itwasactually
bythename
asan
Benzaiten
tothegoddess
here
andassimilated
(T.76,p.627b).OnGyoki
implicitly
dragon-palace
seeKido1932.
avatar
ofBodhidharma,
andKato1974,
Meishuku
shu
39 SeeZenchiku,
,inOmote
p.407.
vol.15,pp.23,76.
40 Yanagida
1990,
inKido1932,
Taishi
eden
41 SeeShotoku
pp.389-99.
quoted
58
FromBodhidharma
A Demon Come fromAfar

Like the KoreangeneralIlia, Bodhidharma
is a foreigner.
He mayalso be relatedto another
thetutelary
Korean,ShinraMyojin
deity
of Miidera
(Onjoji
(Figure10). In
documentsof theMiidera,thismysterious
god is
back
to
the
of
traced
mountaingod Song shan j
|1|, who dwelt(like Bodhidharma)in a cave of
thatmountain,
and who becamean epidemicgod.
the
Chan
tradition
has notrecorded
this,
Although
Bodhidharma
couldwellhavebeenidentified
with
thismountain
god.42
ShinraMyojincame to Japanat the timeof
Enchin's
(ca. 814-891) returnfromChina,
andhe established
himself
as a protector
ofMiidera.
While his namerefers
to the Koreankingdomof
meansthatthisgodwasperceived
Silla,itessentially
as an "alien"god. As it turnsout, it seemsto be
a god ofmixedorigins,
originally
partChineseand
In
Korean.
some
he
is givenother
versions,
part
one
of
which
is
of
Mt.
names,
King
Song(Songshan
and he is said to have manifested
wang) SS|JL|3i,
himself
a numberoftimesin China to expelpestilencedemons.43
Thus, thisgod is noneotherthan
a mountaingod, thetutelary
deityof Mt. Songa godwho,in theChan tradition,
is saidto received
10.Shinra
zo.KamaKura
Figure
period,
Myojin
theChanprecepts
Mind 13th
Color
onsilk.86.7x39.4cm.
(alsocalled"Bodhidharma's
Century.
ofOnjoji(Miidera).
(Reproduced
fromChan mastersof the Collection
Precepts"
with
permission)
so-calledNorthern
School(Ch. Beizong^th). His
maintemplewas a caveon Mt. Song,perhapsthe
samecavewhereBodhidharma
is saidto havesatin meditation
fornineyears.It seemsthus
thefigure
ofthefierce
Indianasceticeventually
quitepossiblethat,in popularimagination,
withthatofthemountaingod. Indeed,themountaingod can driveoffpestilence
merged
becausehewashimself
as a pestilence
initially
perceived
god- atleastuntilhewasconverted
In anycase,thisseemsto providethemissing
to Buddhism.
linkbetweentheearlylegendof
on Mt.Songandhislaterredefinition
Bodhidharma
as smallpox
deity.44
linkconnects
Another
ShinraMyojinwiththe"raging
god,"Susano'onoMikotoSfISBlHik
oneofthenamesofthatgodisreadinJapanese
Susan-o(KingofMt.Song),a name
Interestingly,
42 Therelation
between
intheidentification
andShinra
isimplicit
between
themalevolent
goryo
Myojin
spirit
ofthepriest
ofRaigoissaidtohavekilled
theemperor
Go
Raigoandthegod.Theposthumous
anger
thereaction
ofHieizan
hadrefused
toletRaigo
build
anordination
at
monks,
Sanjowho,
fearing
platform
Miidera.
SeeYamamoto
1998,
p.53.
43 Yamamoto
1998,
pp.86-98.
44 Notealsothat,
intheSotoZentradition,
is usually
inthemainHallas a
Bodhidharma
represented
ofDaigen
another
Chinese
mountain
OnDaigen
shuri,
shuri,
counterpart
god(likethegodofMt.Song).
seeDurt1983.
59
Faure
Bernard
In somesources,
thelatter,
after
reminiscent
ofthekamiSusano'o.45
beingexiledfrom
strongly
to Korea.Susano'o
hissister
is saidto haveemigrated
Amatarasu,
Japanforhavingthreatened
was also assimilated
to Gozu Tenno
themostpowerful
epidemicgod ofmedieval
LikeShinra
Susano'oisa fundamentally
ambivalent
whocouldprotect
from
deity,
Japan.
Myojin,
when
but
could
as
well
the
unbelievers
the
same
destroy
properly,
epidemics worshipped
through
overtheheads
ofMiideraorofGionshrine
heldthisveiledthreat
Thus,thepriests
epidemics.
himself
theangerof
oftherulerandhispeople.Thusdidtheemperor
on
dieforhaving
brought
whoseresentful
toShinraMyojin.
(onryo
) wasrelated
priest
spirit
Raigo,a Miidera
in Chinaas thegodofMt. Song.46
He first
himself
Susano'ois saidto havemanifested
Enchin
monk
who
and
introduced
to
the
founded
Miidera
(the
appeared
Japanesepriest
ShinraMyojin)as a theriomorphic
figure,witha man'shead and a snake'sbody.As
of
such,he callsto mindthesnakegod Ugajin.We recallthatat leastone representation
fromthecoilsofa snake,
theso-calledRyumaki
Darumawhoseheademerges
Bodhidharma,
therearesomeothersymbolic
seemedlinkedto thatof Ugajin.But,as mentioned
earlier,
ofJuzenji.
associations
betweenBodhidharma
andUgajin- oneofthembeingthefigure
Let us mentiona Darumadollwitha beardand longeyebrows
theChinese
forming
character
andtherefore
called"Hachiojino Daruma"(the"Character
EightDaruma").
"eight,"
evokesthe"EightPrinces"(hachiojiA-f), childrenor
The term"hachioji"immediately
above.AnotherformofDaruma,
emissaries
ofthepestilence
god Gozu Tenno,mentioned
in sericultural
wherethecultofthe
called"TamaDaruma"^0, waswidespread
regions
on a reedboat
flourished.
the
of
Gozu
Tenno
Incidentally, representation
Hachioji
standing
theYangzi
mayshedsomelighton thestrange
episodeofBodhidharma
crossing
legendary
wererelated
towater,
andoftencamefromtheWest,crossing
river.
deities
Epidemic
largebodiesofwater.
were
also
on
reed
boats.
They
expulsed
The Red Threat
oneoftheelements
withhisnatureas shukujin
Theredrobeis obviously
,
that,together
contributed
to the metamorphosis
of Daruma intoa deityof epidemics.In particular,
of theokiagari
theprevalence
ofsmallpoxin earlymodernJapanexplainsthepopularity
to it
Darumadoll.As thediseasebecameendemic,peoplewereresignedto succumbing
oncein theirlife,and onlyprayedthatitwouldbe light."Treatment
bythered"(benirydhd
wasfoundin Europeas well.Thegodofsmallpoxis saidto liketheredcolor,so one
triesto pleasehimin thehopeofbeingcuredquickly.It is difficult
to saywhether
Daruma
was connected
to smallpoxdeitiesbecausehe is red- or theotherwayaround.At anyrate,
theredcolorofDaruma'srobeis highlysignificant.47
The symbolism
of Darumahas recently
beenstudiedbyYoshinoHirokoin herbook
Darumano minzokugaku.A%
Yoshinotendsto reduceall mythological
eleUnfortunately,
mentstocomplicated
on
the
of
the
five
and
symbolism yinyang
speculations
phases(wuxing
has themeritofdrawingour
If,in Daruma'scase,hertheory
H^ff)ofChinesecosmology.
ofthe"redman,"shegoestoo farwhenshereduces
attention
to thesymbolic
importance
45
46
47
48
inDaiNihon
denki
SeeOnjdji
zensho
bukkyo
p.59.
Yamamoto
1998,
pp.96-97.
inKorean
while
Bodhidharma
isoften
henever
wears
a redrobe.
Indeed,
represented
paintings,
SeeYoshino
1995.
60
FromBodhidharma
himto a meresymbolof thefireelement.She evenomitsto mentionthatDarumawas a

and shefocuseson theNew YearFestival,
duringwhichDarumadollswere
smallpoxdeity,
itas a firefestival.
sold,interpreting
between
One shouldalso mentionin thisepidemiccontexttherelation(oraffinities)
Darumaand a figurecalled"orangoutan"{shojo).In Chineseand Japaneseimagination,
whowas veryfondofwine(hencehis
withhumanfeatures,
theorangoutanwas a monkey
to designatea drunkard,
and the"orang
crimsonface).Hie termshdjdis used figuratively
Thisanimalwas also famousfor
scarletfever.49
outanfever"{shokonetsu^^1^) designates
aroundthe
to Kida Sadakichi,theimageof theshdjdtransformed
itsstupidity.
According
fromthatofdull,anthropoid
Muromachi
ape intothatofa god
period,forobscurereasons,
in thenagapalace),and whichcouldgive
offortune
livingin thesea (and moreprecisely
intothegroupof the"SevenGods
for
a
while
included
to
men.50
It
was
even
immortality
In
the
noh
of Fortune"(shichifukujin
, a shojoappearsundertheform
-fcfeW).
playShdjd
of a childto an inn-keeper
to buysomewine,whileanothergetstrappedin thenetof a
whomhewilllaterrewardforhavingreleasedhim.Theshojowasalso believedto
fisherman,
- a signthathewasa godofwealthand immortality.
a
wine
flaskthatneveremptied
possess
who had
6), thatof individuals
as a malevolent
He was also,however,
spirit(gory
perceived
of
as a god of epidemics,
and in particular
died in exile.Finally,he cameto be perceived
is
sometimes
associated
becauseofhis redcolor.His image
smallpox hereagain,probably
andan
a wine-lover
theyouthful
demonofOeyama
to thatofShutenDoji
in
matsuri
.52
was
called
festival
that
took
the
1836
Thus,
place
shojo
deity.51
epidemic
hosogami
in
was
houses
struck
A shojodoll,sometimes
the
Daruma
doll,
by
worshiped
resembling
oftheObakuMIS sectofZen,
Thecultoftheshojois saidtogo backtothefounder
smallpox.
theChinesepriest
YinyuanLongqi
(Jp.IngenRyuki,1592-1673),whoestablished
to this
a ritecentered
on thisfigurein orderto alleviatea smallpoxepidemic.53
According
thesameIngenservedas modelforthedollsofthe"littlemonkwhobouncesback"
tradition,
theshojo
Thatis, in orderto thankIngenforplacating
koboshi
(okiagari
thatofthe
an imageofhimresembling
theepidemics,
hisfollowers
fabricated
and alleviated
and thetwoimages(ofthe
Chinese"oldmanwhoneverfalls"(ibudaowen
, J.futoo
ofthe
somerepresentations
came
to
be
side
side.
One
finds
and
the
worshiped by
priest)
shojo
aca
little
a
of
like
Daruma
under
the
form
two
ladle,
dolls,
taller),
(only
holding
shojo
looking
is
not
of
both
It
therefore
koboshi
dolls
two
(Daruma
sexes).
by
companied
okigari
a merecoincidence
thattheDarumadollcanbe foundneartheshojoon thedomestic
through
altartothesmallpox
deities.
To these"epidemic"affinitiessuggestedby the rednessof the complexionor of
like theelusiverelationsof Daruma with
therobe,one could add othersless epidermal,
in
with
the
simian
and
also
Sarutahiko.For somewhatobscure
monkeys general, perhaps
manwith
similar
aswell
alsodesignates
"anomask,
theghost
ofa young
49 Theterm
colors,
shdjd
representing
- onecovered
- ina magico-therapeutic
asa redscarf
with
theheadofthesickindividual."
which
gesture
SeeRotermund
1991,
p.274.
thatthefigure
oftheshdjd
50 SeeKida1976;seealsoCasal1956,pp.48-49.Casalthinks
mayhavebeen
influenced
oftheGreek
another
drinker.
bythat
satyr,
great
51 Takahashi
1992,
pp.102-104.
inNihon
shomin
seikatsu
shusei
vol.2, s.v.1836/12/2;
52 See"Fudemakase,"
shiryo
inRotermund
1991,
quoted
p.274.
komoku
inRotermund
honzo
keimo
53 SeeJushu
jSfi:
1991,
(1844),
quoted
pp.96-97.
61
Faure
Bernard
A ratherunusualmotif
of horsesand monkeys.
reasons,Darumais said to be a protector
thatis,
is thatofhis relation
withthe"Princeof thestable"(umayadono dji
ShotokuTaishi,whoselegendhas himbornin a stable.On thatoccasion,Bodhidharma,
at
His presence
whohad beenreincarnated
as a horse,is saidto haveneighedthreetimes.54
as
have
to
with
the
notion
of
Daruma
thesideofthenewborn
do
deity."
babymay
"placenta
and appearshimselfin the Satsuma
Daruma was also thepatronof horseveterinaries,
Thefunction
ofprotector
ofhorsesalsocallsto mindBuddhistdeities
regionas a veterinary.
suchas thebodhisattvas
Kokuzoj363?jG,
MemyoB!|,and Bato KannonSSHHIb1,and
the
of
silkworms
about
and
sericulture.55
legends
origins
used in someritesagainstsmallpox.Theywereperceived
Monkeyswereapparently
ofthegod Shozenshin,
a deityofIndianoriginwhoseritewas allegedly
as themessengers
It is worthnotingthatthenameofthatgod recalls
transmitted
toJapanbyBodhidharma.
thatofJuzenji,
theHieizandeitywhoserolewe havediscussed,
andwhoalso had monkeys
In ritesagainstsmallpox,one madea monkeydance (sarumawashi
as emissaries.
to theSaru mawashino
to determine
whether
theillnesswouldbe lightor not.According
is thefirst
ki, "Themaindeity{honzon
ofthesarumawashi
(Bodhidharma),
patriarch
is
The
of
this
rite
underscored
itsprotecting
is
Sarutahiko."56
function
by
deity
apotropaic
a legendaccordingto whichSarutahiko
mademonkeys
theSaruyadenki
, whichmentions
dancein orderto routthedemons'army.57
one of the"fashionable
Darumawas therefore
gods,"whichhavebeen describedas
A classiccaseofhayarigami
oftheEdo period.58
is thenamazutl, a catfish-like
characteristic
which
one
to
for
and
tried
held
placatebya cult.Cornelius
deity
responsible earthquakes,
theresurgence
ofthenamazucultafterthegreatEdo earthquake
Ouwehandhas described
in 1855.59The affinity
thisdeityshareswithDarumaas "godofcalamities"
/5#)
(yakujin
is suggested
Darumaas namazu.It is a kindofvisualgame,in
byan ukiyo-erepresenting
a breachin a
whichthemonster's
mouthbecomestheheadofDaruma,as he looksthrough
at
the
was
still
wall.60
to
W.
L.
Daruma
indeed
worshiped
beginning
According
Hildburgh,
as a protector
Buthe also had threatening
ofthiscentury
aspects,as
againstearthquakes.61
himas a monster
withlongteeth(kikaino
one couldexpect.Anotherdrawingrepresents
likethe
andconsequently,
He wasforinstance
thepatronofbeggars
Daruma
The "red"
theestablished
order.63
ofthechaosthatconstantly
threatened
namazu, a figure
withthemotifofthe"bloodyDaruma"(chi
aspectofDarumatakesa darkerconnotation
54 Kido1932,
p.526.
inShotoku
thecontemporary
ofBodhidharma
here
that
HatanoKawakatsu,
beworth
55 Itmay
mentioning
wasa
cultwhose
intheNihon
shoki
asputting
anendtoa millenarian
Taishi's
isrecorded
deity
legend,
Seealso
andAston
seeNihon
"worm."
Onthecultofthat
shoki,
1972,
NKBT,
pp.188-89.
deity,
strange
fief
oftheHata,notfarfrom
IntheUzumasa
ofthecapital,
theancient
district
Como2009,pp.142-45.
to
there
isa shrine
dedicated
festival
orOxfestival
still
takes
theMatarajin
(where
place),
every
year
Koryuji
ofsilkworms,
theKogai
thedeity
Jinja
56 Kido1932,
p.527.
57 Ibid.,
p.528.
remains
work
onthis
1993.
58 Thebest
Miyata
question
1964.
59 SeeOuwehand
60 Kido1932,
p.510.
Daruma
andthenamazu,
between
omits
therelationship
61 SeeHildburgh
1918,
p.57.Hildburgh
mentioning
ofthe"unmovable"
Daruma.
andemphasizes
rather
theimage
62 Kido1932,
pp.511,523.
63 Ibid.,
p.523.
62
FromBodhidharma
toDaruma:Hie HiddenLifeofa ZenPatriarch
in
DarumaifllS0), foundin variousmelodramatic
repertory,
playsof theEdo theatrical
showsthat
withblood.64
Thiskindofassociation
whichtheimageofDarumais maculated
theinnocent
hewas notalways,noreverywhere,
companionofchildren's
play,butoftenthe
scenes.
witness
ofdarker
BodhidharmaagainsttheStream
Afterexamining
themany-stranded
natureofthepopularDaruma,letus seehowour
of
wellknownto historians
mayshedretrospective
interpretation
lighton a representation
theYangzion a reed-leaf."
art,thatof"Bodhidharma
Sino-Japanese
crossing
ofthethirteenth
ofthethemedatesfromthebeginning
The oldesttreatment
century,
the
masterof thefounderof
and it containsan inscription
(1163-1228),
by Rujing
in the
the Soto schoolof Zen, Dogen iStE (1200-1253). A secondpainting,preserved
WuzhunShifan
ArtMuseum,showsan inscription
bytheChan master,
Tokugawa
from
on stonedatedto themideleventh
Thereis also an inscription
(1177-1249).65
century,
Li
the
theme.
focuses
on
madea first
of
theShaolinmonastery
^#^f.66 Li Chu-tsing
study
in
in
A.
a paintingbyDing Yunpeng,
the
Charles
Drenowatz
Collection
Zurich,
preserved
"an
on thesametheme.He seesin it merely
and findsit to be atypicalof Chan paintings
in thedevelopment
ofChanpainting."
His interpretation
is thatofChan
interlude
interesting
thatofclassicalarthistory.67
andhismethodology
orthodoxy,
A morerecentand interesting
is thatofCharlesLachman.Lachmannotesthat
attempt
of
to
mention
thestrange
thefirst
Bodhidharma
datesfrom1108,and
"biography"
crossing
beforethethirteenth
thatthethemedoesnotbecomewidespread
why
century.68
Wondering
he
thisepisode,represented
on stoneand in painting,was omittedfromwritten
records,
remarks:
ofBodhidharma
on a reedhad at thetimea
"Unless,ofcourse,therepresentation
fromtheoneitwasto acquirelater."He seemsto be ontosomething
here,
meaningdifferent
evenifin theendhe is unableto freehimself
fromtheinterpretive
constraints
oftraditional
Chan. Thus,whileclaimingrightly
thatthemotifof therushleafhas beenon thewhole
both
art
historians
Lachmanhimself
and
eludestheproblem
ignoredby
Buddhologists,
notwithoutnoticingthat,to crossa riveras largeas theYangzi,"therushleafwouldnot
appearto be theobvioussolution."69
to Lachman,who takesup a suggestion
fromHelmutBrinker,
thisimage
According
combines(orresonates
thoseof"Sakyamuni
with)variousthemesand sources,in particular
fromtheMountain"(Ch. chushanShijia;Jp.shussenShaka fi[llf?M)and of
emerging
with
a WillowBranch"(Ch. YangliuGuanyin;Jp.YoryuKannon
The
"Guanyin
Rushleafmotif,
"is notin essencea biographical
as heretofore
however,
narrative,
believed,"
Lachmantellsus,
64
65
66
67
68
69
Seefor
instance
Asakusa
inKido1932,
quoted
reigenki,
pp.403-411.
beeLachman
1993,
p.253.
Ibid.,
p.258.
SeeLi1971.
Lachman
1993,
p.257.
thetitle
ofhisessay
hasbecome
didthePatriarch
CrosstheRiver?"
Ibid.,p.258.Significantly,
"Why
Thereed/rush
inthesubtitle,
toqualify
theIndian
("TheRushleafBodhidharma
appears
only
patriarch
Reconsidered").
63
Faure
Bernard
"butrather
a layeredand polysemous
iconoftheparadigmatic
an
patriarch,
that
and
makes
reference
simultaneous
to
structurally
thematically
image
boththeBuddhaandhismomentous
fromthemountains;
decisionto emerge
to theattainment
of nirvaa by "crossing
to theothershore";to thearhats
whodiligently
to fordthestream;and to thepoeticvoice(fromthe
struggle
ClassicofPoetry)
thatwillnotbe keptfromitsdesiredgoalbymerely
physical
obstacles.In someway,eachofthesestrandsinscribes
theself-salvific
efforts
in generaland invested
and determination
thattheChan schoolchampioned
in Bodhidharma
in particular."70
It is possiblethatthesereferences
playeda rolein thecontextsof Chan or literati
But
from
an
allusion
to thepassageoftheShijing
("Who
painting. obviously,
apart
the
river
is
wide?/On
a
can
crossit!"71),
nonementions
themotifthey
reed
says
you
single
aresupposedto explain,thatis,thereed.Thisis theproblem
whenonelimitsinterpretation
of
to theChan context
ofpatriarchal
transmission
orto theartistic
sincethefigure
context,
hasclearly
in
Bodhidharma
these
contexts
to
diffuse
itself
culture
and
popular
gonebeyond
motifs.72
Thissecondlevelof interpretation
tendsto appearratherin
mergewithfolkloric
minorforms(ukiyo-e,
netsuke
is lesscontrolled
thanin theor, e-hon
), wherethenarrative
thodoxtextualtradition.
Whatappearsto be a dubious,aberrant
and therefore
syncretism,
reveals
the
at
work.
of
unworthy study,
perhaps deeperlogic
A clue is unwittingly
theexistenceof a
providedbyLi Chi-tsingwhenhe mentions
of
at
of
the
the
fourteenth
(currentlyJodoji^zh^F, in
century
Japanese
painting
beginning
whichcontainsan inscription
fromtheChineseZen masmoderndayShizuokaPrefecture),
workdepictsBodhidharma
Issan
This
terYishanYining- |_U
Ichinei,
1244-1317).
(Jp.
. . holdinga trident,
with
a
head
with
"as a massive,
features,.
brawny
impressive
huge
figure,
rather
calls
to mindTantric
halo
his
The
motif
of
the
trident
around
head."73
[witha]
ofthe
one knowsforinstanceseveralrepresentations
deities:in theSino-Japanese
context,
diseasesand
a frightening
whotamesthedemonscausinginfantile
figure
Gandharva-King,
ofdemonicorigin.74
whilebeinghimself
visibly
impalestheirheadson histrident,
We findin somedocuThe motifof thereedleafpointstowardthesamedirection.
a
Gifuprefecture),
modern
mentsof theGozu Tennoshrinein Tsushima
(Owari,
on the
oftheJapanese
creation
version
standing
mythin whichthesungoddessAmaterasu,
with
the
with
the
of
her
stirs
the
ocean
below
of
Heaven,
tip
spear,
creating
FloatingBridge
an old manappears,standing
foamthusproducedtheislandofTsushima.At thatmoment,
himself
as thetutelary
on a reedleaf.He introduces
god ofthatland,and declaresthathe
theold manis clearly
In
a
of
other
willlateron become god epidemics.
variants,
designated
as Gozu Tenno,and thereedleafbecomesa one-pronged
vajra,a Tantricritualinstrument,
We recallthat,duringtheritualof
whichin turngivesbirthto theJapanese
archipelago.75
70 Lachman
1993,
p.266.
71 Watson
1984,
p.25.
ofitsmythological
treatment
Zenpaintings,
andOuwehand's
motif
ofsome
72 Thecaseofthenamazu
,a favorite
Zeninterpretations.
sectarian
togobeyond
oftheneed
constitutes
a paradigmatic
example
background,
andHickman
73 SeeFontein
1970,
pp.53-56.
instance
Kakuzensho inT.Zuzo4,pp.366-375.
74 Seefor
seealso
ofa one-pronged
asa "divine
land"intheshape
75 SeeYamamoto
1998,
vajra,
pp.586-88.OnJapan
Keiran
,T.76,p.626.
shuyoshu
64
FromBodhidharma
ofepidemics,
as itis stillperformed
at Tsushima,Gozu Tenno,havingbeenduly
expulsion
in hisshrine,
is sentoffad patreson a reedboat.Themotifofthereedleafseems
worshiped
therefore
to connectGozu Tennoand Bodhidharma,
as epidemicdeities.
We can nowunderstand
thatDaruma'swrathful
faceis a clueto his demonicnature.
Likethefamousdemon-queller
ShokittM (Ch. Zhongkui),he was initially
a malevolent
became
a
once
in
exorcisms.
The
factthat
invoked
dulypropitiated,
spiritwho,
protector
he becamean objectof derisionshouldnotbe misinterpreted.
To be sure,his caricature
an anticlerical
ofdissolute
also represent
monks;buthumorand laughter
represents
critique
an attempt
to assuagethefearthathe inspired.
His function
as pestilence
god is onlyone
the
most
visible
of
his
demonic
nature.
aspect
Evenin theZen school,anotherconception,
morecomplex,ofthepatriarch
Bodhidharmaseemsto haveemerged.
oftheSotoZen masterDogen,we
Thus,in a latebiography
learnthatthelatter,
bythe
havingfallenill duringhistripto China,was savedin extremis
him
of
Inari
who
a
that
In the
and
all
cures
diseases."76
god
gave
pill
"dispelspoisons
earlierversions,
itwas theChinesedeityDaigenshuri
a mountaingod,
however,
of themonastery
whereDogen had stayed,who came to therescue.77
And in a
protector
latervariant,
itis thedaughter
ofthenagaking(whoin theLotussutragivesto theBuddha
thewish-fulfilling
fromthewaterto givetheremedyto
jewel).She is depicted,emerging
themonksof Dogen'sescort,whilea giganticDarumaemergesfroma valleybehindthe
hills.78
We recallthat,in theChineselegend,Bodhidharma
had beenpoisoned,which,in
him
makes
a
of
Indeed,it is onlyaftertwounsucmythological
specialist poisons.79
logic,
in whichthepoisondid notseemto affect
cessfulattempts
himthat,havingtransmitted
histeaching
to hisdiscipleHuikefit"I, he knowingly
tookthepoisonand decidedto leave
thisworld.The functionof Rectorof destinieswhich,as we haveseen,was perhapsan
in Tendaiand
important
aspectofthecultofDaruma,also evokesthesetexts,widespread
from
on
the
of
so-called
"Method
Bodhidharma
to
know
thetime
Daoism,
inspired
largely
ofone'sdeath."We mayalso notethatDarumaand Daigenshuriareworshiped
as a pair,at
thebackofthemainaltaroftheDharmaHall in Sotomonasteries.80
Thiscultcallsto mind
thatofthe"backdoor"(ushirodo
dedicatedto thegod
tfkP)ofJapaneseBuddhisttemples,
similar
and
with
a
or
an
dubious
ambivalent
nature.81
The
deities,
Matarajin
protectors
past
of
Daruma
is
on
located
the
left
north
shuri
on
the
(the
west),Daigen
usually
image
right(on
thenortheast)- twodirections
associated
withthe"Demongate"{kimon
jftf3^).
Daruma as God ofFortune
We can at longlastreturn
to ourinitialquestion:
Whydid Darumabecomeso popular
in theEdo period?It is theresultofa complexevolution,
himfroma
whichmetamorphosed
"malevolent
to a crossroad
theimageofDarumaseemsto bifurcate
spirit"
deity.Thereafter,
Kenzeiki
zue
76 SeeTeiho
(1802).
77 SeeDurt1983,
pp.607-608.
nokuni
kaisanki
78 SeeEchizen
1$M[II
(1689),
Eiheiji
Tokyo
Shiryo
Daigaku
Hensanjo^M^C^
I amindebted
toDuncan
Williams
for
this
reference.
that
wasperceived
asa kindof"fetal"
79 Noteinthisrespect
caused
See
smallpox
bythemother.
poisoning
Furth
1999,
pp.172-182.
80 Durt1983,
p.608.
81 SeeSuzuki
2001,
pp.197-337.
65
Faure
Bernard
intoa god of the placentaand a rulerof

humandestinies,and an epidemicdeity
thatleadsto
and- througha propitiation
a finalinversionof signs- into a god of
to this
fortune.
Manyfactorscontributed
If
I
here
on
have
insisted
metamorphosis.
thesymbolic
it is clearthatnot
dimension,
has happenedat thatlevel,and
everything
have
thatsociological
and economicfactors
The development,
from
also playeda role.82
theendoftheMuromachi
of
periodonward,
agglomerations
largeurbanand commercial
likeSakai,Osaka,and Edo, and ofcenters
ofproducts
ofproduction
anddissemination
to
the
new
urban
must
culture,
responding
be
taken
into
account.
It
is
at
this
obviously
At Figure
timethat"Darumamarkets"
appear.83
11.Daruma
andomikuji.
(Darumadera),
Horinji
B.Faure)
thesametime,theprogressive
(Photo:
disappearance Kyoto.
of social groupslike theshdmonji
oftheNewYear,hadplayedan important
who,in theirdoor-to-door
calling{kadozuke
ofrituals
centered
on certain
and
rolein thedevelopment
andthepreservation
godsoffortune,
at thesametimesloweddowntheir"popularization,"
mayhavebeeninstrumental.
According
to KomatsuKazuhiko,thesedeities,fromthemomenttheywereno longerassociatedto
low-caste
or hinin#A), losttheirauraofstrangeness
andwere
specialized,
groups{shdmonji
thecasewithDaruma,givenhislinkagetobeggars.
folklorized.84
Suchwasperhaps
is alsoclearly
related
to thevogueofthetumbler
dollsas goodluck
Darumaspopularity
thefirsttumbler
dollswerenotDarumadolls,but
charms{engimono)
(Figure11).Actually,
likethatof
koboshi
another
calledokiagari
(thelittlemonkwhobouncesback).Theterm,
figure
in
another
the
of
Edo.85
This
"little
monk"
"kid,"
Daruma,cametodesignate
(or
prostitutes slang
in
he
had
a
Chinese
of
koboshi
toward
the
Muromachi
but
), appeared Japanonly
period,
meaning
whichseemstohavebeenpopularsincetheTang.TheChinesedollwascalledbudpredecessor,
As notedearlier,
thenotionofokiagari
"theoldmanwhonever
,
falls").
(Jp.futoo,
aoweng
backon ones feet,"
evokeda rapidcure,andin thiscasethehopeofa lightsmallpox.
"bouncing
intoa hosogami.
Thissymbolism
Indeed,it
mayhavepavedthewayto Darumastransformation
inJapan
withsmallpox
isonlywhenthesetumbler
dolls{okiagari
Daruma)cametobe associated
in
China.86
more
than
had
ever
been
thattheybecametruly
they
popular,
82
83
84
85
86
Belleville
2000.
Seeonthis
point,
inMinegishi
Thecommercial
ofDaruma
isdescribed
2002andMcFarland
1987.
aspect
Komatsu
1998,
pp.138-140.
Kido1932,
p.568.
seeKido1932,pp.574-75;onKorean
On Chinese
seeibid.,pp.577-78.The
tumblers,
tumblers,
inthecountryside
Eastern
andNorthern
oftheokiagari
Daruma
(andmore
Japan)
development
particularly
anobject
of
waspermitted
that
ofsilkworm
TheDaruma
dollbecame
byanother
development,
breeding.
with
silkworms
sericulture.
Theembryological
associates
Daruma
that,
) for
symbolism
goodluck(engimono
alsopoint
thepractice
ofmushi
okuri.
silkworms
arebeneficial,
toward
Daruma)
they
may
{mayu
Although
become
themselves.
dieinlarge
andmight
numbers,
goryo
66
FromBodhidharma
Farfrombeingtheparadigmatic
ofZen individualism,
oneof
Darumais merely
figure
themostvisibleelements
due to hisrobe'scolor)ofa complex,
(doubtless
submerged
largely
networkor rhizome,made of symbols,individuals,institutions,
practices,objects,and
thedotted
tuttiquanti. The linksthattheaboveanalysistriedto disengage,
or sometimes
to
be
linesit merelysuggested,
are notall verifiable,
and somemayturnout
unreal.My
claimis thatthis,however,
theheuristic
valueof themethod.I havebeen
does notaffect
to explainthesuddenemergence
of theDarumacultaftertheend of themedieval
trying
I
To
that
to
remove
Daruma
fromhishabitualcontext(thatoftheZen
had
effect,
period.
him
in
another
context
and folklore).
and
tradition) place
(thatofpopularreligion
Through
thattransfer,
theobjectas well as themethodof studyhavebeen radicallytransformed.
whichis
a capacityof transformation
As a result,thesymbolhas founda new freedom,
of
his legs,
thatof all populargods,and whichtheZen tradition,
Daruma
bydepriving
Thissymbol,whichhad longincubatedwithintheZen schooland on its
had amputated.
seemsto
fashion.The trigger
mechanism
suddenly
spreadin rapidand irresistible
margins,
- socio-economic,
iconohavebeentheconvergence
ofvariousfactors
epidemiological,
others.
It
be
vain
to
to
technical
would
(the
doll),
attempt catch
tumbling
among
graphical,
in
in
which
this
surfaced
textual
or
of
the
rare
occasions
sources,
symbol
iconographic
sight
fora godofsmallpox)an
becauseitsspreadin people'smindsseemsto follow(appropriately
textual
itis ourheuristic
modelthatmayhelpus understand
model.Rather,
epidemiological
- justlikeOuwehand'sstudyof thenamazuloreprovidesa better
or iconographic
sources
to catcha namazu
to understand
thefamousZen paintingofthemonktrying
background
Zen interpretation.87
witha gourdthananyorthodox
of a
however.He is indeedrepresentative
Daruma'scase is byno meansexceptional,
buddhasnorkami,and havefallenlargely
wholecategory
of hybridgodsthatare neither
the
of
a
traditional
cracks
scholarshipthatis too oftenobsessedwithtextual
through
divine
and withclear-cut
a
for
and
with
search
sources,
developments,
origins genealogical
for
instance
Ouwehand's
There
are
studyof
exceptions,
magisterial
personalities.
significant
contextitsdue,
thenamazu.Likewise,myanalysisof Daruma,whilegivingthehistorical
influence
can
the
subterranean
or structural
showsthatonlya "systemic"
explain
approach
centuries
laterwithin
ornotionsand theirresurgence
orlongpercolation
ofcertainsymbols
whenencountering
thatcometo a suddenefflorescence
newsymbolicformations
proper
socio-historical
conditions.
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International Research Centre for Japanese Studies, National Institute for the Humanities

From Bodhidharma to Daruma: The Hidden Life of a Zen Patriarch

Japan Review 23 (2011): 45-71

Let us leap tencenturies

We findUzumeagainin theEdo period,underthenameofOkame,in theroleof"Mrs.

Zen textoftheEdo period,theSangai

A Demon Come fromAfar

himto a meresymbolof thefireelement.She evenomitsto mentionthatDarumawas a

intoa god of the placentaand a rulerof

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