In East Asian

Mahayana Buddhism Mahāyāna ( ; , , ; ) is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, texts, philosophies, and practices developed in ancient India ( onwards). It is considered one of the three main existing branches of Buddhism, the others being Thera ...

, the Sangharama are a class of deities who are guardians of

Buddhist temple A Buddhist temple or Buddhist monastery is the place of worship for Buddhism, Buddhists, the followers of Buddhism. They include the structures called vihara, chaitya, stupa, wat, khurul and pagoda in different regions and languages. Temples in B ...

s and monasteries. Equivalent to the

Taoist Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ...

"realm master deity" (境主), the Sangharama are considered the lowest class of

Dharmapala A ''dharmapāla'' is a type of wrathful god in Buddhism. The name means "''dharma'' protector" in Sanskrit, and the ''dharmapālas'' are also known as the Defenders of the Justice (Dharma), or the Guardians of the Law. There are two kinds of ...

. The Sangharama deities are dedicated to protecting the

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

area and all who practice within them.

Sangharama in the time of the Buddha

Sangharama originally referred to the eighteen holy protectors of the Dharma in the Seven Buddhas and Eight Bodhisattvas Great Dharani Mantra Sutra. Later on, the three meritorious ministers of the Jetavana,

Pasenadi Pasenadi or Prasenajit (; ;) was a 6th or 5th century BCE ruler of Kosala, where Shravasti was his capital. He succeeded after . As a king, he was a prominent or lay follower of Gautama Buddha, and built many Buddhist monasteries for the Bu ...

Kosala Kosala, sometimes referred to as Uttara Kosala () was one of the Mahajanapadas of ancient India. It emerged as a small state during the Late Vedic period and became (along with Magadha) one of the earliest states to transition from a lineage ...

(Sanskrit name: Prasenajit, Pali name: Pasenadi), Prince Gita, and

Anathapindika Anathapindika (; ), born Sudatta, was a wealthy merchant, banker, and philanthropist, believed to have been the wealthiest merchant in Savatthi in the time of Gautama Buddha. He is considered to have been the chief male patron of the Buddha. Ana ...

(Anathapindik, also known as Sudatta, meaning "Good Grant") donated a tree to

Gautama Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist lege ...

because of the donation of the

Jetavana Jetavana () was one of the most famous of the Buddhist monasteries or viharas in India (present-day Uttar Pradesh). It was the second vihara donated to Gautama Buddha after the Venuvana in Rajgir. The monastery was given to him by his chi ...

premises. Anathapindik (also known as Sudatta, meaning "good grant") was included in the Gautama Sages because of the donation of "

" to Siddhartha, increasing the number of Gautama Sages to twenty-one.

Chinese Buddhism

In the Tang and

Song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...

dynasties of China, Buddhist Bodhimaṇḍas already had a

custom Custom, customary, or consuetudinary may refer to: Traditions, laws, and religion * Convention (norm), a set of agreed, stipulated or generally accepted rules, norms, standards or criteria, often taking the form of a custom * Mores, what is wid ...

for venerating the Sangharama deity. The temple and monastery is protected by eighteen gods, and those who live in it encourage themselves and not be lazy for fear of incurring present retribution. It is said that all

god In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

s have countless dependents, that is, they are assigned to guard. To this day, monasteries incorporate this praise to the Sangharama deity during the daily evening recitations: "''Lord Sangharama, the temple's mighty spirit, is dedicated to the

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist legends, he was ...

's edict to convey sincerity; to protect the city of the Dharma King, acting as a barricade and sentry, he brings eternal peace to the temple. Homage to the Protector of the Dharma Treasury Bodhisattva Mahasattva.''" In gratitude for the virtue of the Bodhisattva's protection of the Dharma, some publishers of sutras also print the image of either Sangharama or Skanda on the end pages in the hope of receiving the protection of the dharmapala. Most Chinese Buddhist

Bodhimaṇḍa Bodhimaṇḍa (Sanskrit and Pali) or daochang (; J. dōjō; T. byang chub snying po) is a term used in Buddhism meaning the "seat of awakening" or "platform of enlightenment". According to Haribhadra (Buddhist philosopher), Haribhadra, it is " ...

s today portray the Sangharama Bodhisattva in the form of

Guan Yu Guan Yu (; ), courtesy name Yunchang, was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Along with Zhang Fei, he shared a brotherly relationship with Liu Bei and accompanied him on ...

(sometimes adding

Guan Ping Guan Ping () (died January or February 220) was a military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Life Guan Ping was the eldest son of Guan Yu. Little about him is documented in historical recor ...

and

Zhou Cang Zhou Cang is a fictional character in the 14th-century Chinese historical novel ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms''. Story A strong warrior with a dark face and a wiry beard, Zhou Cang gets caught up in the Yellow Turban Rebellion towards the end ...

), rather than the original twenty-one Sangharama beings.

Guan Yu as Sangharama

The

Buddhist scriptures Buddhist texts are religious texts that belong to, or are associated with, Buddhism and its traditions. There is no single textual collection for all of Buddhism. Instead, there are three main Buddhist Canons: the Pāli Canon of the Therav ...

do not record

as a Sangharama deity, and there was no such

before the

Sui dynasty The Sui dynasty ( ) was a short-lived Dynasties of China, Chinese imperial dynasty that ruled from 581 to 618. The re-unification of China proper under the Sui brought the Northern and Southern dynasties era to a close, ending a prolonged peri ...

. The origin of this is said to be related to the Tiantai Sect founder

Zhiyi Zhiyi (; 538–597 CE) also called Dashi Tiantai (天台大師) and Zhizhe (智者, "Wise One"), was a Chinese Bhikkhu, Buddhist monk, Buddhist philosophy, philosopher, meditation teacher, and Exegesis, exegete. He is considered to be the foun ...

. Legend has it that

was searching for a site to build a temple on

Jade Spring Hill Jade Spring Hill () is located to the west of the Summer Palace in Beijing, China. It was also formerly known as Jingming Palace (景明宫, "Jǐngmíng gōng"). It contains an imperial garden, the Jingming Garden and is named after the Jade Spri ...

Jingzhou Jingzhou ( zh, s=, c=荆州, t=, p=Jīngzhōu) is a prefecture-level city in southern Hubei province, China, located on the banks of the Yangtze River. Its total residential population was 5,231,180 based on the Seventh National Population Censu ...

when

appeared while he was meditating in the mountain at night and offered to help him build the temple. After the temple was completed, Guan Yu became a disciple of the Buddha by taking refuge and vowed to be a protector of

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

. From then on, temples began to worship Guan Yu as their protector. However, replacing the original twenty-one bodhisattvas with Guan Yu alone does not seem to be the original intention of Zhiyi. The fourth volume of the "Biography of the Wise Master" records this matter: "On the evening when the clouds opened up and the moon was clear, I saw two men, with all the ministers, as majestic as kings, the elder one with beautiful

beard A beard is the hair that grows on the jaw, chin, upper lip, lower lip, cheeks, and neck of humans and some non-human animals. In humans, beards are most commonly seen on pubescent or adult males, though women have been observed with beards ...

and rich, the younger one with crowned hat and beautiful hair, coming forward to pay homage! The teacher asked where he came from? He said he was Guan Yu, the former general of Shu, and pointed to the young man and said: My son

also. The

Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...

at the end of the chaos,

Nine Provinces The term Nine Provinces or Nine Regions (), is used in ancient Chinese histories to refer to territorial divisions or islands during the Xia dynasty, Xia and Shang dynasty, Shang dynasties and has now come to symbolically represent China. "Pro ...

split,

Cao Cao Cao Cao (; ; ; 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde, was a Chinese statesman, warlord, and poet who rose to power during the end of the Han dynasty (), ultimately taking effective control of the Han central government. He laid the foundation f ...

unkind,

Sun Quan Sun Quan (; 182 – 21 May 252), courtesy name Zhongmou (), posthumous name, posthumously known as Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of Eastern Wu, one of the Three Kingdoms of China. He inherited control of the warlord regime established by hi ...

self-preservation, I righteous subject

Shu Han Han (; 221–263), known in historiography as Shu Han ( ) or Ji Han ( "Junior Han"), or often shortened to Shu ( zh, t=蜀, p=Shǔ; Sichuanese Pinyin: ''Su'' < Middle Chinese: *''źjowk'' < Eastern Han Chinese: *''dźok''), was a Dynasties in ...

, hope to restore the emperor's family, the time is contrary, have the will to fail, die with residual martyrdom. "The teacher then held the furnace and gave the five precepts." In these accounts, there is no mention that the Master of the Wise Men wanted to replace the original twenty-one holy saints with Guan Yu alone. However, after the precedent of worshipping Guan Yu was set by the Tiantai Buddhist monasteries, all the monasteries followed suit, and gradually Guan Yu became the two major

Dharmapalas A ''dharmapāla'' is a type of wrathful god in Buddhism. The name means "''dharma'' protector" in Sanskrit, and the ''dharmapālas'' are also known as the Defenders of the Justice (Dharma), or the Guardians of the Law. There are two kinds of ...

in Chinese Buddhist monasteries, along with

Weituo Skanda (), also known as Weituo () and Idaten (Japanese: 韋駄天), is a Mahayana bodhisattva regarded as a devoted guardian of Buddhist monasteries who protects the teachings of Buddhism. He is also sometimes called in the Chinese tradition " ...

. In temples where Buddhism and Taoism are fused and where there is a Three Jewels Hall or a Guanyin-dian, it is common to have the statues of

and Guan Yu standing left and right in front of the hall. Later on, Guan Yu's festival day - the 13th of May or the 24th of June on the

Chinese calendar The traditional Chinese calendar, dating back to the Han dynasty, is a lunisolar calendar that blends solar, lunar, and other cycles for social and agricultural purposes. While modern China primarily uses the Gregorian calendar for officia ...

- is regarded as the feast day for Sangharama Bodhisattva. Some

s also hold special Buddhist services to commemorate this occasion. Unlike other religions that worship Guan Yu, the statue of Guan Yu is always depicted in a standing position (or in a seated position if worshiped in a separate temple), and sometimes is depicted with a simple sword rather than his familiar Guandao halberd.

Other Sangharama deities

The use of Guan Yu as a deity in Chinese Buddhist temples is a phenomenon of Buddhist fusion with Chinese culture, with Han deities guarding Buddhist temples, showing the transfer of folk culture to Buddhism, or Buddhism's desire to attract (or draw in) folk beliefs. Buddhist temples also have other gods: * Daigen Shuri Bosatsu (大権修利菩薩): According to legend, he is the seventh son of

Ashoka Ashoka, also known as Asoka or Aśoka ( ; , ; – 232 BCE), and popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was List of Mauryan emperors, Emperor of Magadha from until #Death, his death in 232 BCE, and the third ruler from the Mauryan dynast ...

., He was once escorted to China by

Śarīra Śarīra is a generic term referring to Buddhist relics, although in common usage it usually refers to pearl or crystal-like bead-shaped objects that are found among the cremated ashes of Buddhist spiritual masters. Relics of the Buddha afte ...

and was later revered as a Bodhisattva. This deity is worshipped in the

Sōtō Sōtō Zen or is the largest of the three traditional sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (the others being Rinzai school, Rinzai and Ōbaku). It is the Japanese line of the Chinese Caodong school, Cáodòng school, which was founded during the ...

monasteries as a Sangharama deity. * The king of the Kama-vipassana family is also known as Kapila. He is the guardian deity of Karan, so he is called the King of Karan. He is one of the four night gods who protects the east, and is also known as the Yellow Shirt God. The god of wealth and fortune, if you pray for good fortune, you will be able to fulfill your wishes. * The name of the god is Zhang Bo, and the word Bo Qi. * Dong Yue Da Di * Ping Shui Da Wang: The Great

Yu the Great Yu the Great or Yu the Engineer was a legendary king in ancient China who was credited with "the first successful state efforts at flood control", his establishment of the Xia dynasty, which inaugurated Dynasties in Chinese history, dynastic ru ...

. * Hwagwang Daedei: The god of Hwagwang Daedei is worshiped at the

Puji Temple Puji Temple () is a Buddhist temple located on the island of Putuoshan in Zhoushan, Zhejiang, China. History Five dynasties In 916, in the 2nd year of Zhenming period (915–921) of the Later Liang dynasty (907–923), when Japan ...

Mount Putuo Mount Putuo (, from Sanskrit: " Mount Potalaka") is an island in Putuo District, Zhoushan, Zhejiang, China. It is a renowned site in Chinese Buddhism and is the bodhimaṇḍa of the bodhisattva Guanyin. Mount Putuo is one of the four sa ...

and at the Huangbaku sect's Daifuji Temple in Kyoto,

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. * The God of Five Blessings: The God of Five Blessings is worshipped at Tantou Town in Changle City, for example.

External links

伽藍聖眾之由來及其訛傳

References