Kangiten or Kankiten (, "god of bliss"; Sanskrit (IAST): ), also known as Binayaka (æ¯Âé£å¤Â迦; Skt. ), Ganabachi (èªÂé£é¢åºÂ, alternatively Ganahachi or Ganahattei; Skt. ), or more commonly, Shà Âten or Shà Âden (èÂÂ天, lit. "sacred god" or "noble god"), is a deva (ten) venerated mainly in the Shingon and Tendai schools of Japanese Buddhism.
Kangiten (Shà Âten) was at first negatively portrayed as the creator of obstacles and the leader of a class of malignant demons who obstructed Buddhist practice called vinayakas. Later tradition made an attempt to distinguish between the vinayakas and their lord, who became seen as a manifestation of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara (Kannon in Japanese) and/or the buddha Vairochana.
Kangiten enjoys both a positive and negative reception in Japan. On the one hand, he is popularly revered as an extremely efficacious god who grants whatever is asked of him without fail, including impossible wishes. He is also said to watch over those who have a karmic connection with him from the moment of their conception, serving as their invisible companion throughout their lives. On the other hand, he is considered to be still bound by base passions and desires (kleshas) and thus is sometimes also regarded as a rather volatile, demanding god who is quick to punish those who have offended him.
Unlike his Hindu counterpart, whose image is prominently displayed in public, Kangiten is considered too sacred to be seen: images of the deity in temples are kept hidden from view, rituals centered on him are performed by qualified monks out of public sight, and lay devotees are discouraged from venerating iconographic depictions of the god at home.
While he is sometimes depicted as an elephant-headed single male deity like Ganesha, he is more commonly portrayed as a male-female couple (both with elephant heads) standing in an embrace in an iconographic depiction known as the Dual(-bodied) Kangiten (Ã¥ÂÂ身æÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ天, Sà Âshin Kangiten) or the Embracing Kangiten.
Kangiten inherited many names and characteristics from the Buddhist deity, who was generally referred to by the name 'Vinayaka' (). 'Vinayaka' was transcribed into Chinese characters as æ¯Âé£å¤Â迦 (pinyin: PÃÂnàyèjiÃÂ; Japanese (rà Âmaji): Binayaka / Binayakya), é »é£å¤Â迦 (pinyin: PÃÂnnàyèjiÃÂ), and æ¯Âé£æÂÂ迦 (pinyin: PÃÂnàdájiÃÂ), respectively, while 'Ganapati' was transcribed as èªÂé£é¢庠(pinyin: ÃÂnàbà ÂdÃÂ; Japanese: Ganabachi / Ganahachi / Ganahattei) or ä¼½é£é¢庠/ 迦é£é¢庠(JiÃÂnàbà ÂdÃÂ). The term vinayaka was also used to refer to a class of beings to which Vinayaka and/or his cohorts belong.
In Japan, the deity is commonly known as 'Shà Âten' / 'Shà Âden' (èÂÂ天, "sacred / noble god"; Skt. ') or 'Kangiten' (æÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ天, "god of bliss"; Skt. or '). The former epithet indicates his association with good luck and fortune and may be an allusion to the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara (Kannon), who is also known as 'Aryavalokiteshvara' (; Japanese: èÂÂ観é³, Shà Â-Kannon), one of the figures that constitute the dual-bodied (Ã¥ÂÂ身, sà Âshin) Kangiten, while the latter is especially associated with this dual form, who is venerated as a giver of joy and prosperity. Among devotees, he is also sometimes simply referred to by the honorific 'Tenson' (天å°Â, "venerable deity").
In this article, the names 'Vinayaka', 'Ganapati', 'Shà Âten' and 'Kangiten' are used interchangeably for the Buddhist deity, with 'Kangiten' specifically denoting the deity's dual form.
Several theories have been advanced regarding the origins of the Hindu deity Ganesha, who first undisputably appears in the historical record in his classic form around the early 4th to 5th centuries CE. One theory is that Ganesha gradually came to prominence in connection with the Vinayakas, a group of four troublesome demons mentioned in the Manava-Grihyasutra (a text belonging to the Manava school of the Black (Krishna) Yajurveda) and the Mahabharata.
Whereas in Hinduism Ganesha was regarded mainly as a remover of obstacles, Buddhists originally emphasized his destructive side as the creator of obstacles and his function as a demon king. Early instances of the name 'Vinayaka' in Buddhist texts for instance have a negative connotation, denoting a malignant being (or beings) who is both the cause and the symbolic representation of obstacles or impediments. A note in the Mahamayuri Vidyarajni Sutra by the Tang period monk Yijing defines Vinayaka as an "obstructive deity" (éÂÂç¤Âç¥Â, pinyin: zhàng'àishén; Japanese: shà Âgeshin) and notes his widespread worship in the west (i.e. India). The Mahavairochana Tantra (also known as the Vairochanabhisambodhi Sutra) meanwhile speaks of demonic entities such as vinayakas and rakshasas being dispersed through the power of mantra. The monk Yi Xing, in his commentary on this text, describes vinayakas as obstructions produced from a deluded mind (å¾Âå¦Âæ³å¿ÂçÂÂ). In esoteric Buddhist literature, Vinayaka is portrayed as the enemy of the ritual practitioner who is to be either expelled with mantras or soothed with ritual offerings, which are then consumed by the practitioner to increase his strength; once duly propitiated he turns into the practitioner's ally, a protecting deity who removes all impediments. Vinayaka â also known under the name 'Vighnaraja' (), "Lord of Obstacles" â is sometimes also shown being trampled on by wrathful deities like Mahakala or Achala in Tibetan and East Asian Buddhist art.
The emergence of Esoteric (Tantric) Buddhism and its spread to Nepal, Tibet, and eventually to East Asia saw Vinayaka acquire a more positive role as a subjugator of demons. In Tibet, the deity was worshiped for the removal of obstacles and the granting of wealth and was at times portrayed as a wrathful, multiarmed deity wielding weapons. A Nepalese text provides a list of spells invoking Ganapati to not only bestow wealth but also to cause harm to enemies. Vinayaka is also depicted in a wall painting in Mogao Cave 285 in Dunhuang as a protector of Buddhism with the gods Maheshvara (Shiva) and Skanda.
The two primary mandalas of East Asian esoteric Buddhism (Tangmi) also feature Vinayaka(s). In the Womb Realm (Garbhakoshadhatu) Mandala (based on the Mahavairochana Tantra), Vinayaka is found among the retinue of the directional deity Ishana with the god Mahakala (both of whom are derived from the Hindu Shiva), while the outer sections of the Vajra Realm (Vajradhatu) Mandala (based on the Vajrashekhara Sutra) contains four groups of five deities distributed along the four directions, each group containing one vinayaka â here interpreted as emanations of the buddha Vairochana who expressly adopt the form of vinayakas in order to subjugate the obstacle-causing demons.
Vinayaka's inclusion in these mandalas â brought to Japan by Kà «kai (774âÂÂ835), the founder of Shingon Buddhism â facilitated his introduction to Japan, where he (like most other Hindu deities assimilated in Buddhism) was first considered a minor guardian of the two mandalas. By the Heian period (794âÂÂ1185), Vinayaka emerged as a besson (å¥å°Â, lit. "separate/distinct worthy"), a deity with an individualized cult centered around him. The deity's cult was developed within the Shingon school by the monk Kakuban (1095âÂÂ1143), while in Tendai, it was systematized by Annen (841âÂÂ889?).
The late Heian period saw the rise in popularity of the Dual-bodied Kangiten (SÃ Âshin / SÃ Âjin Kangiten) image, in which Vinayaka (heretofore depicted as a single figure, often with two arms but sometimes also four or six) is shown as an embracing male-female couple.
The origins of this imagery, unique to East Asia, have perplexed scholars for years; there is no concrete evidence about the inception of this form. It has been compared with the sexual yab-yum iconography found in Nepal and Tibet, although it is markedly different from them in that both figures have animal heads (yab-yum representations are restricted to fully humanoid deities; the zoocephalic Vinayaka-Ganapati was thus not portrayed in this form, though erotic depictions of him do exist) and are shown fully clothed. Lode Rosseels suggests that the Dual Vinayaka form may have originated from an iconographic type attested in Xinjiang (Chinese Turkestan) and Dunhuang in the 8th century showing Ganapati with four legs (representing the deity's union with his shakti in a non-sexual fashion), which was "reinterpreted by the Chinese in accordance with popular Taoist ideals ... which probably resulted in the restoration of the four-legged and four-armed form to two almost identical elephant-headed deities in a nonsexual embrace."
The form is first attested in 7thâÂÂ8th century Chinese esoteric Buddhist texts. The Dharani-samuchchaya Sutra (Taishà  Tripitaka 901), translated into Chinese by a monk named Atigupta (or Atikuta) in 653âÂÂ654 CE describes a ritual to worship the Dual Vinayaka, which was replicated by Amoghavajra (705âÂÂ774) in his ritual text Rite of the Dual-bodied Vinayaka, the Great Saintly Deva of Bliss (T. 1266). The text gives instructions for the fashioning of both the dual-bodied and the six-armed single Vinayaka images and specifies the types of offerings one should give to the deity.
Two texts attributed to Bodhiruchi (trad. 672âÂÂ727), the Sutra of the Mantras and Rituals of the Gana (T. 1267), and the Larger Sutra of the Mantras and Rituals of the Gana (T. 1268), contain the same guidelines for rituals and depictions of the Dual-bodied Vinayaka. In the former text, Vinayaka teaches a multitude of deities and demons who have congregated at Mount Kailash a one-syllable mantra, followed by a description of a ritual dedicated to the Dual Vinayaka similar to that found in Amoghavajra's text. Vinayaka's demon followers promise the deity to grant the wishes of whoever repeats the one-syllable mantra. The Larger Gana Sutra meanwhile contains additional rituals to propitiate the Dual Vinayaka as well as the four-armed form of the deity. It also has rituals aimed at attracting love, gaining wisdom, or destroying enemies.
A ritual manual by Shubhakarasimha (637âÂÂ736) titled Ritual of the Mantras and Offerings that Converted the Great Saintly Deva of Bliss King Vinayaka, the Dual-Bodied Maheshvara (T. 1270) mentions new myths regarding the Dual-bodied Vinayaka not found in Indian sources and is the first text that explicitly associates the deity with the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara (Guanyin / Kannon). It also prohibits placing his images in Buddhist altar rooms.
The Sutra of the Divine Incantations of the Eleven-Headed [Avalokiteshvara] (T. 1071), translated by the monk Xuanzang in 656 CE, expounds the rite of bathing an image of Vinayaka with perfumed water.
A short text attributed to Amoghavajra titled Tantra on the Practice of the Secret Ritual of the Dual-bodied Bodhisattva Great Saintly Deva of Bliss, the Samaya-Body Copenetrated by Meditation and Wisdom of the Tathagata Mahavairochana (T. 1271) describes the Dual Vinayaka ritual as a procedure to gain four kinds of benefits or siddhis (protection, gain, love and subjugation) which come in three grades: the highest grade confers kingship; the second grade provides wealth; the third grade provides sufficient food and clothing. In parallel to the material results, the tantra classifies ritual practitioners into three categories: the highest class of adept are allowed to learn the rite's inner secrets, the middle are permitted to read the text, while the lowest may not conduct the ritual on their own but should let a more developed practitioner do it for them. The text notably prescribes alcoholic beverages (considered taboo in exoteric Buddhism), dubbed the "water of bliss" (æ¡åÂÂæ°´, pinyin: huÃÂnxÃÂshuÃÂ, Japanese: kangisui), as an offering to the deity, which is then consumed as a medicine to remove evil.
Amoghavajra's disciple Hanguang (å«å Â) composed a text in 747 called Secret Essence of the Yoga-siddhi of the Vinayaka Ganapati (T.1273) in which he continued his master's work. He writes that every ritual should be preceded by an invocation to Vinayaka-Ganapati, the god of beginnings. This text identifies both Vinayaka and Avalokiteshvara as manifestations of the all-pervading body of the buddha Vairochana, with the pair being taken to symbolize both Vairochana's material and spiritual aspects.
A ritual manual attributed to Bodhiruci with the title The Rite of the Nine-Eyed Deva, the Provisional Manifestation of the Golden Ganapati describes a wrathful manifestation of Vinayaka with four arms and three heads (each with three eyes) apparently based on Tibetan forms of the deity. The manual gives instructions for the fashioning of the image, which should then be kept hidden from view at all times and offered radishes, cakes, sweets, and honey. A sutra translated by Vajrabodhi known as The Dharani Sutra of the Golden Ganapati (T. 1269) gives instructions on how to depict a six-armed Ganapati, which should also be concealed and offered sweets such as (æ¡åÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ, pinyin: huÃÂnxÃÂtuán; Japanese: kangidan, lit. "bliss buns"), honey, and fruits.
An apocryphal sutra dating from the early 11th century, The Attainment Rites of Vinayaka taught by Vajrasattva (T. 1272), contains black magic spells invoking vinayakas aimed at the destruction of one's enemies. This text was deemed so gruesome that Emperor Zhenzong (reigned 997âÂÂ1022) banned its circulation in China in 1017.
A minor astrological or divinatory text apocryphally attributed to Prajnachakra, another disciple of Amoghavajra who became the master of the Tendai monk Enchin (814âÂÂ891), known as The Rules for the Diviner's Board of the Great Saintly Bliss Deva (T. 1275) describes the outline of an esoteric divination board (å¼Âç¤, Ch. shìpán; Jp. shikiban), which consisted of two parts linked by an axis: the cylindrical or conical upper part called the "heavenly board" (天ç¤, Ch. tiÃÂnpán; Jp. tenban), was cylindrical or conical, and the square lower part called the "earthly board" (å°ç¤, Ch. dìpán; Jp. chiban). The practitioner is to visualize four vinayakas (all manifestations of Vinayaka-Ganapati) at each of the cardinal directions on the tenban, while the guardian deities of the eight directions (dikpala) and the Twenty-Eight Mansions of Chinese astronomy are to be visualized on the chiban. The text then lists a number of possible combinations obtained by rotating the tenban over the chiban (linking any one of the four "heavenly" vinayakas with one of the eight "earthly" directional devas), each of which produced different material benefits such as obtaining a high position, attaining marital union, making a person fall ill, or returning a curse to its sender.
Kà «kai, who brought Shubhakarasimha's, Vajrabodhi's, and Amoghavajra's ritual manuals with him to Japan, is also said to have himself authored a text on Vinayaka titled the Shà Âten Procedural (èÂÂ天次第, Shà Âten shidai). The Tendai monk Ennin, too, lists the Rite of the Dual-bodied Vinayaka, the Great Saintly Deva of Bliss among the texts he obtained in China.
Since the Heian period, Vinayaka (Shà Âten / Kangiten) featured in state-sponsored official rites. These ceremonies were originally a prerogative of the imperial court: an edict dating from 785 prohibited the private performance of rites focused on a number of deities, Shà Âten being one of them. However, he was at times also invoked against the imperial house: in The Tale of Hà Âgen, the nobleman Fujiwara no Yorinaga (1120âÂÂ1156) requests the performance of rituals centered on Shà Âten, Uchchhushma (Ususama Myà Âà Â) and Vajrakumara (éÂÂÃ¥ÂÂç«¥åÂÂ, Kongà  Dà Âji) against Emperor Go-Shirakawa.
Shà Âten was commonly invoked in rites of subjugation. Legend relates that the Tendai monk Son'i (, 866âÂÂ940) invoked Shà Âten to pacify the vengeful spirit of statesman Sugawara no Michizane (later deified as Tenjin, the kami of learning), who was himself claimed to be a devotee of the god. Another story claims that when Son'i was performing a rite centered on the deity Achala (Fudà  Myà Âà Â) for the end of the rebellion of Taira no Masakado in 940, a statue of Kangiten on a side altar flew eastward with the sound of a flying arrow, followed by an apparition of Masakado's head falling on the main altar, signifying his defeat.
In 1329, Emperor Go-Daigo performed a subjugation ritual invoking the god against the Kamakura shogunate; after the shogunate's regent (shikken) Hà Âjà  Takatoki committed suicide during the Siege of Kamakura in 1333, the emperor ordered Ashikaga Takauji to establish a memorial sanctuary in Hà Âkai-ji, a temple in Kamakura notable for being a cultic center of Kangiten, to placate Takatoki's spirit. After the Kenmu Restoration (1333âÂÂ1336), this particular Kangiten became an object of worship of the Ashikaga shogunate and the remnants of the Hà Âjà  clan. In 1433, the monks of Mount Hiei conducted a Shà Âten rite against the sixth Ashikaga shà Âgun Yoshinori.
Historical figures known to have been devoted to Shà Âten (and whose successes were sometimes credited to him) include the famous warlords Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu, the Edo period merchants Kinokuniya Bunzaemon and Takadaya Kahei, the daimyà  and political reformer Matsudaira Sadanobu, and wealthy business families such as the Mitsui, the , and the . The 15th century Noh playwright Konparu Zenchiku was also devoted to the god since his youth; during a twenty-one day retreat at Fushimi Inari Shrine with his wife (a daughter of his master Zeami) in 1467, the 63-year old Zenchiku consumed a talisman of the deity while praying for the "harmonious union of yin and yang, husband and wife." Upon being told by a priest that his prayer was not answered because he had no karmic connection with Shà Âten, Zenchiku repented of his negligence and renewed his vow, eventually receiving a dream that deepened his faith.
Little is known regarding premodern devotion to Shà Âten outside of the ruling classes other than that it spread during the Edo period, all the while still remaining relatively arcane. A certain legend claims that Ieyasu attempted to stake a claim on the deity by promoting rumors of Shà Âten being a fearsome god whose efficacy is counterbalanced by his fickleness and quick temper, thus keeping the cult's growth among the general populace in check. This, the story claims, is the reason why he is not as popular in the Kantà  region (the Tokugawa seat of power) as he is in western Japan, where he is widely worshiped even today.
Perhaps in reaction against the deity's reputation among the public as one who grants any and all material desires, various sources emphasize the ineffectiveness and even danger of performing rituals on one's own, without the aid of a qualified priest. The Tendai monk Kà Âkei (977âÂÂ1049) warned that while the benefits brought by the god are very real, he is swift to curse negligent practitioners; it is thus better for people in this Final Age not to worship him. The 18th-century tradesman and kokugaku scholar writes the following regarding Kangiten:
A notable modern-day Shà Âten devotee is the entrepreneur and Buddhist scholar Hayashiya Tomojirà  (æÂÂå±ÂÃ¥ÂÂ次éÂÂ, 1886âÂÂ1953), who authored A Guide to Shà Âten Devotion (èÂÂ天信仰ã®æÂÂå¼ÂãÂÂ, Shà Âten shinkà  no tebiki), a manual instructing lay worshipers (specifically new devotees) the proper manner of worshiping the deity.
A number of texts relate different stories regarding the origin and meaning of the Dual Vinayaka image.
According to the story found in Shubhakarasimha's ritual manual, Maheshvara's wife Uma (Parvati) gave birth to three thousand children: from her left side was born 1,500 evil deities headed by King Vinayaka (æ¯Âé£å¤Â迦çÂÂ), while from her right side came 1,500 benevolent deities led by King Senayaka (æÂÂé£å¤Â迦çÂÂ; Pali: ; Sanskrit: , "commander" or "lord of the army"), who was actually the incarnation of Avalokiteshvara. In order to subdue Vinayaka's evil deeds, Senayaka "took simultaneous birth with Vinayaka so that they would be younger and elder brother, husband and wife." Reborn as his wife, Senayaka embraced Vinayaka, thereby calming his rage and turning him into a force for good.
In another legend recorded in a medieval Japanese iconographic compendium known as the Kakuzenshà  (è¦Â禠éÂÂ), Vinayaka was originally the king of a country called Marakeira, who only ate beef and radishes. When these became rare, he started feasting on human corpses; when these too became scarce, he began to eat living people. His subjects eventually revolted and were about to kill the king when he transformed himself into "the great demon king Vinayaka." The kingdom was then struck by an epidemic (implied to have been caused by the demon), at which the people prayed to the Eleven-Headed (Ekadashamukha) Avalokiteshvara, who took the form of a female vinayaka and seduced the demon king, filling him with joy (æÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ, kangi) and pacifying him. Thus, he, in union with her, became the Dual Kangiten.
A third tale somewhat similar to the above found in another Japanese text portrays Vinayaka (Kangi) as the head of a vast army of vinayaka demons who lived in a mountain called Mount Vinayaka, also known as "Elephant-headed Mountain" (象é Âå±±, Zà Âzu-sen) or "Mountain of Obstacles" (éÂÂç¤Âå±±, Shà Âge-san), who received a command from Maheshvara (who at the time had not yet converted to Buddhism) to cause trouble to humans and steal their vital essence. To tame him, Avalokiteshvara manifested himself as a female vinayaka and came before the demon king. Upon seeing the demoness, Kangi immediately fell in love with her, but she agreed to become his consort only if he abandoned his evil ways and embraced Buddhism. After Kangi assented, the demoness took him in her arms, leading the king to achieve great bliss (kangi). A variant of this story portrays Shà Âten (here identified as female) as a daughter of Maheshvara who was exiled to Mount Vinayaka because of her ugliness and her violent nature. In the mountain, she meets a god who courts her. She replies that she is already wed to another deity named Gundari (Amritakundalin) but agrees to marry him if he reforms himself. (Still other versions in which Vinayaka is male portray Gundari as a goddess.)
Yet another story relates that Vinayaka was originally a courtier in an Indian kingdom nicknamed the "Long-Nosed Minister" (é¼»é·大è£, Bichà  Daijin) who had an intimate liaison with the queen. After discovering their affair, the king poisons Bichà  Daijin by making him eat elephant meat. The queen tells her lover to run away to Mount Keira (Mount Kailash) and cure himself by bathing in oil and eating radishes. After recovering, Bichà  Daijin swore vengeance against the king and transformed into a fearsome elephant-headed "great god of obstacles" (大éÂÂç¤Âç¥Â, dai-shà Âgeshin) named Vinayaka. Storming into the palace with his army of demons, Vinayaka confessed to the queen his lust for her. In reply, the queen bade him repent of his evil ways and embraced him, "her body [becoming] as his in form." Thus Vinayaka was freed from his base desires and attained great bliss.
Kangiten is commonly identified as an "assimilation / emanation body" (çÂÂæµÂ身, tà Ârujin; Sanskrit: niá¹£yanda-kÃÂya) of Vairochana, with the female half of the embracing pair being also identified as a manifestation of the Eleven-Headed Avalokiteshvara. In addition to these two, he was also connected or identified with other deities such as Maheshvara-Daijizaiten, the wrathful hearth god Sanbà  Kà Âjin, the snake god Ugajin, Enma (Yama), Benzaiten (Sarasvati), the fox goddess Dakiniten, and the wisdom king Aizen Myà Âà  (Ragaraja).
Whereas some sources identify Shà Âten as Maheshvara's son â which reflects Shiva's and Ganesha's relationship in Hindu mythology â others also identify him as Maheshvara's incarnation. The Shingon monk Kakuban for instance wrote:
In another text, 'Daijizaiten' is one of the various names for the deity:
This identification of Shà Âten with Daijizaiten was however criticized in the hagiography of Shingon Ritsu monk (1629âÂÂ1721), the founder of Hà Âzan-ji (Ikoma Shà Âten), which relates that Tankai, after having doubts about Shà Âten's true nature, had a dream in which the god explained that he is neither Daijizaiten nor a mere vinayaka demon but an avatar of Vairochana; although he is called 'Vinayaka' because the vinayakas are members of his retinue, he, unlike them, is not a malignant demon of obstacles. Tankai's doubts were eventually resolved after finding a copy of the Kakuzenshà Â, which claimed that identifying Shà Âten with Maheshvara-Daijizaiten is "a great error" and that "this divinity's special characteristic is that of lord of siddhis, thus he is called 'Jizaiten'. He ought not to be confused with any other jizaiten."
A tradition of the Jimon Tendai temple of Mii-dera meanwhile associates Shà Âten with the demon king Mara, also known as Takejizaiten (ä»ÂÃ¥ÂÂèªå¨天; Skt. Paranirmitavaà Âavartin), the lord of the sixth and highest heaven in the world of desire who once tried to hinder Gautama Buddha's quest for enlightenment (though he is also said to have eventually converted to Buddhism). Indeed, the Mii-dera tradition employs Takejizaiten's mantra in Shà Âten rituals rather than Daijizaiten's.
Shà Âten was also equated with Sanbà  Kà Âjin, in that the latter was also considered to be a violent deity (kà Âjin) of obstacles. According to a work attributed to the Tendai monk Annen called the Ritual of Vinayaka in Four Sections (Shibu Binayaka-hà Â, Ã¥ÂÂé¨æ¯Âé£å¤Â迦æ³Â), when the construction of Jetavana Monastery suffered a series of delays due to obstructive evil spirits, their leader, a fierce-looking eight-headed deity, appeared before the Buddha's disciple Shariputra, calling himself Nagyà Âtosajin (é£è¡Âé½ä½Âç¥Â), the "Raging King of the Three Jewels" (ä¸Âå®ÂèÂÂçÂÂ, Sanbà  Kà Âà Â). He then demanded that Shariputra create an image of him and make offerings to it, warning that all kinds of calamities will befall those who do not pay him homage. A gloss in the text explains: "It is Kà Âjin, or Vinayaka." The story is repeated in the Sannà  Shinto text Shintà  Zatsuzatsushà « (ç¥ÂéÂÂéÂÂã éÂÂ): here, the god identifies himself explicitly as 'Sanbà  Kà Âjin Binayaka' (ä¸Âå®ÂèÂÂç¥Âæ¯Âé£å¤Â迦). Like Kangiten, Kà Âjin (Nagyà Âtosajin) was interpreted as being either a single deity or a pair of deities named respectively Nagyà  (é£è¡Â) and Tosa (é½ä½Â). (In a similar vein, some representations of Kangiten split the god's name into two, naming the male half of the pair as 'Bina' and his female consort as 'Yaka'.) In addition, Kà Âjin was also sometimes identified with Maheshvara-Daijizaiten and was associated with one of Vinayaka's symbols (ä¸Âæ§è¶形, sa(n)maya-gyà Â; Skt. samaya), the parasol (Ã¥ÂÂèÂÂ, sangai).
In an apocryphal sutra titled Dharani Sutra of the Buddha's Teaching for the Greatest Protection of the Country by Ugaya's Sudden Attainment Wish-Fulfilling Jewel, Ugajin (who is closely associated with Benzaiten) is said to manifest himself as the deities Dakiniten, Daishà Âten (Vinayaka), and Aizen Myà Âà Â. Another text identifies Vinayaka with the goddess of Itsukushima Shrine, who was also identified with Benzaiten.
During the medieval period, Benzaiten, Dakiniten, and Shà Âten were also combined into a single figure which served as the main focus of an esoteric imperial accession rite in which the three deities were worshiped as one known as the Joint Ritual of the Three Devas (ä¸Â天åÂÂè¡Âæ³Â, santen gogyà Âhà Â). The union of these three divinities was associated with a series of triads such as the three jewels (Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha), the three poisons (greed, ignorance, and hatred), the three mysteries (body, speech, and mind), and the three shrines that comprise Fushimi Inari Shrine (due to her association with foxes, Dakiniten was identified with the native god Inari). Portrayals of the three devas as a single figure, which became popular during the Nanboku-chà  and Muromachi periods and were still being produced as late as the Edo period, depict the composite deity as a three-headed figure riding a fox. The middle head is usually that of Dakiniten, though some show Shà Âten as occupying the central position.
Shà Âten was also identified with various Japanese gods such as Susanoo, Amaterasu, Sarutahiko and his wife Ame-no-Uzume (an identification which may have partly stemmed from Sarutahiko's long nose calling to mind Shà Âten's elephant trunk), or the crossroad deities known as Dà Âsojin (which are sometimes represented as a human couple).Apart from Avalokiteshvara, various wrathful deities such as Jinja Daishà  (, lit. "General Deep Sands"; a fierce avatar of Vaishravana), Uchchhushma (Ususama), Achala (Fudà Â), or Amritakundalin (Gundari Myà Âà Â) are also believed to subjugate Vinayaka (when interpreted as the cause of obstacles) and his vinayaka underlings and keep them under control. Indeed, Amritakundalin is said to be particularly effective against the vinayakas; their leader Shà Âten himself is also said to belong to his retinue.
Medieval Japanese thought classified Buddhist devas and native kami into two types: gonsha (権è ) or gonrui (権é¡Â), deities who are "provisional" manifestations (gongen) of enlightened buddhas and bodhisattvas, and jissha (å®Âè ) or jitsurui (å®Âé¡Â), "real" or "material" lesser divinities who have the same passions and desires as humans do. In this latter category are also included deified lower entities such as animal spirits or spirits of the dead. Jitsurui deities, due to their nature, are approached with caution, with some sources even recommending that they are best avoided.
Esoteric texts distinguish three kinds of Kangiten rituals, each of which classified Vinayaka and his consort differently:
These distinctions merely reflect the perspective of the practitioner; the image used in these rituals does not change.
Shà Âten (Kangiten) is mainly depicted either alone or, more commonly, embracing his consort. When shown by himself, he is represented with either two, four, six, eight or even twelve arms, holding various attributes such as a vajra, an axe, a noose, a club, a trident, a wheel, a broken tusk or a radish (which may have itself developed from the tusk attribute). He notably does not have the Hindu Ganesha's characteristic huge belly nor the latter's animal mount (vÃÂhana), the mouse. Some depictions portray him with one tusk similar to Ganesha, although others show both his tusks intact.
Among the various representations of the deity, the single-bodied Shà Âten image is considered the most difficult and even dangerous to own and maintain due to the god's wild nature; an image of the Eleven-Headed Avalokiteshvara (Jà «ichimen Kannon) is thus also installed in temples that enshrine the single-bodied Shà Âten in the belief that this pacifies the deity. Images of this type are employed in an esoteric rite known as the Kangiten Water Ritual (æ°´æÂÂÃ¥ÂÂ天ä¾Â, Sui Kangiten-ku), in which water that had been used to bathe the statue of Avalokiteshvara is poured over the image, which is then taken by ritual practitioners and devotees for their use. Bathing in this consecrated water is believed to cleanse impurities and remove all impediments.
The Dual-bodied Kangiten image usually features both the male and female figures with elephant heads, though a few examples show the female figure as boar-headed. The genders of the pair are not explicit but hinted in the iconography. The female is often shown wearing a crown and resting her feet over that of the male, who rests his head on her shoulder. Some variants may show the male and female gazing at each other, looking over each other's shoulders, wearing a single shared garment, or standing side by side. A few images of the deity classified as gonjitsu depictions may depict the female alone stepping on the male's foot (symbolizing the jitsurui deity Vinayaka being subjugated by Avalokiteshvara's provisional incarnation), while kugon depictions â where both the male and female are interpreted as incarnations of bodhisattvas â may show both the two figures stepping on the other's foot. This symbolizes the unity and non-duality of contrasting genders and opposites.
Although Amoghavajra's Rite of the Dual-bodied Vinayaka recommends that Vinayaka's image be made of pewter, brass, or wood and be about five or seven sun (approximately 17âÂÂ20 centimeters) high, most sculptures of Kangiten venerated in Japanese temples are much smaller, measuring around one to two sun (3âÂÂ6 centimeters) on average. Because they are periodically ritually bathed in oil, many are made of metals such as gold, silver, bronze, or iron; wooden images (æ¨天, mokuten) are comparatively rare.
The twenty deities depicted in the outer sections of the Diamond Realm mandala include Vinayaka (shown holding a radish and a modak), a boar-headed deity known as Vajramukha (éÂÂÃ¥ÂÂé¢天, Kongà Âmenten; sometimes identified with either the goddess Chamunda â depicted in Buddhist art with a boar's head â or Vinayaka's consort), and four vinayakas distributed along the four directions:
A mandala centered on Kangiten shows the dual-bodied form of the deity at the center of a four-petaled lotus arm-in-arm as if dancing, surrounded by the four directional vinayakas and the guardian devas of the eight directions. Two six-armed vinayakas are sometimes also depicted at the mandala's bottom part.
A depiction commonly found in hanging scrolls and talismans (ofuda) known as Kangi Dà Âji (æÂÂÃ¥ÂÂç«¥åÂÂ) shows Shà Âten as a sitting human youth (ç«¥åÂÂ, dà Âji) with one or two elephant heads on his headgear. He has four (or rarely eight) arms holding an axe or a halberd, a jeweled staff, a modak, and a radish. This image was popularized by the 17th century Shingon monk Ikà « (以空, 1637âÂÂ1719), who is said to have seen Shà Âten in this manner after praying that the god show himself in a form that can be displayed in public (unlike his elephant-headed forms).
The bëja or seed syllable used to represent Shà Âten is Japanese pronunciation: gyaku), It is usually written double (symbolizing his dual form.
The mantra considered to be the standard in Japanese Buddhism, identified in Amoghavajra's Rite of the Dual-bodied Vinayaka as Vinayaka's "heart mantra" (å¿Âåª), is as follows:
The mantra is traditionally interpreted as Vinayaka's seed syllable flanked by those of Avalokiteshvara ( and Amritakundalin ( the two figures who subjugated him.
Shà Âten is ritually worshiped via a number of rites:
The Oil Bath Ritual (æµ´æ²¹ä¾Â, Yokuyu-ku) involves placing a statue of Kangiten on a brass basin and pouring (abhisheka) consecrated warm oil on it using a ladle 108 times, a process that is repeated for seven days. Perfumed pure sesame oil is commonly used for the rite, though tradition claims that it originally employed ghee mixed with honey (èÂÂèÂÂæ²¹, somitsu-yu). It is considered the most sacred and potent of the deity's rituals but also the most arcane: it is restricted to monks who have received proper initiation into the rite (performance by unqualified individuals is strictly forbidden) and is conducted outside of the public gaze.
The ritual is symbolically interpreted as representing Vinayaka's conversion and initiation (abhisheka) into the Buddhist path, during which the former demon king's evil nature and mental defilements (kleshas) are washed away, thereby revealing his true nature as a manifestation of Vairochana Buddha. Likewise, it is believed to purify the practitioner and devotees as well.
The Flower-Water Ritual (è¯水ä¾Â, Kesui-ku) involves offering water scented with flowers, incense, and/or shikimi (Illicium anisatum) leaves to Buddhist divinities in lieu of food and drink. The practice is thought to have derived from the precept that forbade those who have taken monastic vows (which includes the Buddhist devas) from eating anything after noon.
In practice, however, the Kesui-ku performed in many Shà Âten temples denotes a ceremony mostly similar in structure to the Oil Bath rite but without the bathing of the deity's image in oil. In this case, Shà Âten is offered not just flowers and water, but also other types of foodstuffs.
In some temples, rituals such as the Daihannya Tendoku (大菥転èªÂ), in which a group of monks symbolically 'read' the 600-fascicle Mahaprajnaparamita Sutra (大菥çµÂ, Daihannya-kyà Â) by flipping through (転èªÂ, tendoku, lit. "rolling reading") copies of portions of the text, and Hyakumi Kuyà  (ç¾å³ä¾Âé¤Â, lit. "Offering of One Hundred Foods"), in which an extravagant amount of fruits, vegetables, and other delicacies are offered to Shà Âten, are performed upon request as thanksgiving for prayers answered.
Like his Hindu counterpart Ganesha, Shà Âten is held to be partial to sweets. Common offerings to Shà Âten include rice wine (sake), radishes (daikon), and sweets filled with red bean paste (anko) such as kangidan (æÂÂÃ¥ÂÂå£, "bliss buns"), a deep-fried confection stuffed with spiced anko based on the Indian modak, Ganesha's favorite food. Conversely, offering him sour citrus fruits, pears, mushrooms, lotus root (renkon), and dishes which go against the Buddhist vegetarian diet (i.e. those containing meat, fish, or pungent vegetables such as garlic or scallions) is considered taboo.
Daikon radishes are interpreted as representing the three poisons (specifically dvesha or hatred); offering the vegetable to the deity is thus held to be a meritorious purificatory act. At the same time, because radishes are also popularly believed to aid digestion, they also symbolize Shà Âten's action of removing the three poisons.
Shà Âten is popularly regarded as a powerful, efficacious deity who readily grants whatever is asked of him, including impossible or even immoral wishes. He is sometimes called "Vairochana's final expedient incarnation" (大æÂ¥å¦ÂæÂ¥æÂÂå¾Âã®æ¹便身, Dainichi Nyorai saigo no hà Âbenshin) because he is believed to be the last resort of those who have no other recourse. At the same time, his reputation has sometimes also caused him to be characterized negatively as highly demanding and temperamental, requiring constant attention from his devotees and harassing or punishing those who have either become lax in their devotion or quit worshiping him altogether.
An oft-repeated urban legend claims that worshiping Shà Âten is a double-edged sword as it uses up seven generations' worth of good karma at once; in other words, it confers immediate gratification to the worshiper but also eventually brings about their downfall. However, in his A Guide to Shà Âten Devotion, Hayashiya Tomojirà  criticized this as a "baseless, superstitious legend" that should be ignored.
In the past, Shà Âten's cult was widespread among gamblers, actors, geisha, and people in the pleasure quarters. During the Edo period, he was also widely venerated by merchants, especially vegetable-oil sellers. Even today, he is mainly worshiped for success in love, relationships, and business. Devotion to Shà Âten is particularly prevalent in the Kansai area (especially in Osaka), where it rivals that of the god Ebisu (another deity worshiped for commercial success) in popularity.
Perhaps to curb abuses and superstitious ideas that could stem from the popular image of Shà Âten as a god who grants each and every wish, various authors such as Hayashiya have stressed the importance of deepening one's devotion beyond simply asking for worldly benefits. Tendai monk for instance writes that the god's true gift to his worshipers is non-attachment (naiá¹£kramya; åºé¢, shutsuri) to material desires and that faith in Shà Âten (or any other Buddhist deity) should awaken in the devotee a desire to learn and follow Buddhist teachings.
Shà Âten is also considered to abhor impurity (kegare). For instance, ritually impure persons (e.g. those who had recently come in contact with death or menstruating women) are discouraged from visiting him in temples for a set period of time. (Similar taboos exist in Shinto, which also lays great emphasis on purity, but is otherwise rare in Japanese Buddhism, which was closely associated with death and the afterlife due to its having a near-monopoly on funerary practices.) Temples dedicated to Shà Âten also do not have a cemetery (a common fixture in many Japanese temples) within their precincts, nor do monks who perform Shà Âten rites conduct funerals. Temples also forbid devotees from placing ofuda of the deity in 'unclean' rooms (e.g. bedrooms or kitchens) or in altars (butsudan) where deceased family members are venerated.
A notable characteristic of Shà Âten is the air of secrecy surrounding him. Unlike Ganesha, whose image is prominently worshiped in many temples and homes, most images of Shà Âten are kept hidden inside miniature shrines (å¨åÂÂ, zushi) and are never shown to the public, only being taken out during the performance of rites (which are themselves conducted in private) such as the Oil Bath Ritual. A notable exception to the rule is the honzon of (Menuma Shà Âden-zan) in Kumagaya, Saitama Prefecture, which is intermittently put on public display (御éÂÂ帳, go-kaichà Â) since the Edo period. As they require a high level of maintenance, modern-day lay devotees are discouraged from owning or venerating idols of Shà Âten in their homes; instead, they are advised to venerate him via consecrated paper or wooden ofuda distributed by temples. Such ofuda are usually aniconic, bearing no visual representation of the god (who may be simply represented by his seed syllable), though a few examples contain a depiction of the youthful Kangi Dà Âji or of Kangiten as an anthropomorphic male-female couple.
Popular belief holds that encountering Shà Âten (i.e. learning about him or getting an opportunity to venerate him) is only possible if one has a karmic connection (ç¸Â, en / enishi) with him, which itself is considered to be a precious and rare blessing. This sentiment is expressed in a liturgical text penned by the monk Kakuban, which states:
Shà Âten is also described in medieval texts as a "placenta god" (èÂÂè¡£ç¥Â, enagami or èÂÂè¡£èÂÂç¥Â, ena kà Âjin), a deity who guards individuals since the moment of their conception (just as the placenta covers and protects the fetus) and subsequently follows them throughout their life "like a shadow."
Some people as part of their devotion may observe vows (é¡ÂæÂÂãÂÂ, gankake; cf. the Hindu vrata), in which they would promise to carry out certain pious acts in return for specific favors, or abstain from alcohol, tobacco, or certain types of food. From an orthodox perspective, however, any promises made to Shà Âten cannot be revoked; such devotional practices are thus not to be performed casually, with some authorities even recommending to avoid them altogether lest one risk committing a grave offense against the god. A set of guidelines for devotees published by Honryà «-in (also known as Matsuchiyama Shà Âden, a sub-temple of Sensà Â-ji in Asakusa, Tokyo dedicated to Kangiten) for instance advises the reader that "[since] abstinence (æÂÂã¡ç©, tachimono) requires a strong resolve, it is better not to practice it."
Opinions differ regarding the place of abstinence in Shà Âten worship. On the one hand, Hayashiya claimed that "although Shà Âten does not necessarily reject one's wishes if one does not practice abstinence, it is true that they are granted faster if one does." Haneda, on the other hand, criticized it as well as the taking of extreme vows (especially when made with materialistic goals in mind) as harmful practices that only attract vinayaka demons (in effect making them a kind of Faustian bargain), asserting that they do not represent authentic devotion to Shà Âten.
Shà Âten is worshiped in many Shingon and Tendai Buddhist temples throughout Japan. The following are two of the most important places of worship dedicated to the deity in Japan, traditionally reckoned as the "Three Greatest Shà Âten [Temples]" (æÂ¥æ¬ä¸Â大èÂÂ天, Nihon Sandai Shà Âten):
Other notable temples to Shà Âten include: