page_title: Acala
section_title: Iconography
hierarchical_section_title: Acala / Japan / Iconography
caption_attribution_description: Italiano: Metropolitan Museum
context_page_description: Acala or Achala is a dharmapala, prominent in Vajrayana Buddhism and East Asian Buddhism. He is classed among the Wisdom Kings and is preeminent among the Five Wisdom Kings of the Womb Realm. Accordingly, his figure occupies an important hierarchical position in the Mandala of the Two Realms.
  In China, he is known through esoteric Tangmi traditions as Budong Mingwang. In Japan, he is known as Fudō Myōō, which is the on'yomi reading of his Chinese name. Acala is especially important in Japanese Buddhism, where he is venerated in the Shingon, Tendai, Zen, and Nichiren sects, as well as in Shugendō. He is also highly revered among some Yakuza members, who often draw on his intense facial expression and demeanor.
  In later Tantric scriptures, the epithet Caṇḍaroṣaṇa and Caṇḍamahāroṣaṇa became more common, and he is known as such in countries like Nepal and Tibet.
context_section_description: Buddhist art since the Heian period has depicted Acala as angry-faced, holding a vajra sword and a lariat. In later representations, such as those used by the yamabushi ascetics, he may have one fang pointing up and another pointing down, and a braid on the one side of his head.
  The sword he holds may or may not be flaming and sometimes described only generically as a treasure sword (宝剣, hōken) or as vajra-sword (金剛剣, kongō-ken), which is descriptive of the fact that the pommel of the sword is in the shape of the talon-like vajra (金剛杵, kongō-sho) of one type or another. It may also be referred to as three-pronged vajra sword (三鈷剣, sanko-ken).  However, in some cases, as in the Akafudō painting, the divinity is seen holding the Kurikara-ken (倶利伽羅剣), a sword with the dragon coiled around it which nonetheless also has a vajra-shaped pommel.
  The flaming nimbus or halo behind the statue is known as the "Garuda flame", after the mythical firebreathing bird from Indian mythology.
  The two boy servants who is usually depicted in attendance to Acala are named Kiṃkara (矜羯羅童子, Kongara dōji) and Ceṭaka (吒迦童子, Seitaka dōji), though there are said to be eight such boy servants altogether and as many as forty-eight servants overall.
  His seat, the huge rock base (盤石座, banjakuza), "is considered an appropriate iconographic symbol to demonstrate the steadfastness of" the Fudō.
caption: Wooden sculpture of Acala. Japan, late Heian Period, 12th century
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