Buddhist Sacred Art Navigator — World Regions + Deity Atlas + Object Glossary | Japonista Archive
BUDDHIST STATUES & SACRED ART · MASTER NAVIGATOR
Start here: Expand the tree to locate a figure, class, symbol, or object type. Then enter the correct regional hub. Identity is stable; style is regional.
Japan pillar: Buddhist Statues & Sacred Art (Japan)
Regional hubs: Gandhara · Tibet / Himalayan · China · Japan
Curator’s Note: This master navigator is the Archive’s spine. Use the collapsible map to move from class → identity → object culture. Each region hub expands the same root taxonomy with local emphasis.
World Regions Map
- Gandhara (Origins Corridor): Regional Hub · Collection
- Tibet / Himalayan (Vajrayana Ritual Technology): Regional Hub · Collection
- China (Dynastic + Cave-Temple Programs): Regional Hub · Collection
- Japan (Primary Focus): Pillar
Root Deity Family Tree (Universal) — Leaf Level
Open the branches below. Every leaf links to a gateway page (present or pre-assigned for future build). Regional hubs will mirror this tree and add corridor-specific context.
I. Buddhas (Nyorai) — Fully Enlightened Beings
Calm grammar. Often seated in meditation or teaching. Regional corridors change style, not identity.
A) Core Buddhas (High-frequency across regions)
B) Five Directional Buddhas (Gochi Nyorai) — Mandala Core
Central to esoteric mapping and many ritual iconographies.
C) Past and Primordial Frames
D) Buddha Iconography Tools
II. Bodhisattvas (Bosatsu) — Enlightenment-in-Action Beings
Compassion and wisdom archetypes. Often crowned, jeweled, and accompanied by attendants.
A) Great Bodhisattvas (Japan/China/Tibet cross-corridor)
B) Kannon Family (Japan emphasis; cross-region mappings)
Use this branch to avoid confusion between form-variants. Each variant becomes its own Deity Master later.
C) Tibet Corridor Bodhisattvas (practice emphasis)
D) Bodhisattva Iconography Tools
III. Wisdom Kings (Myoo) — Wrathful Protectors of Dharma
Wrath is disciplined compassion. Strongest standardization in Japan; different framing in Tibet; minimal in Gandhara.
A) Godai Myoo (Five Wisdom Kings) — Japan System Core
B) Other Myoo (High-frequency)
C) Myoo Iconography Tools
IV. Ten & Guardians — Protective Devas and Gate Beings
Architectural protection logic: gate → hall → altar. Often martial stance, armor, and directional attributes.
A) Shitenno (Four Heavenly Kings) — Directional Guardians
B) Nio (Kongo Rikishi) — Gate Threshold Pair
C) Devas (Ten) — Adopted Celestial Protectors
D) Retinues and Specialized Guardian Sets
V. Celestial & Ritual Beings — Retinues, Dancers, Musicians, Mandala Attendants
Heavenly presence encoded as movement, music, and offering. Common in murals, paradise scenes, and mandala environments.
A) Tenbu (Heavenly Beings) — Hub
B) Apsaras / Hiten (Flying Celestials) — Forms
C) Musical Celestials (Gakuten / Bugakuten) — Instrument Families
D) Karyobinga (Celestial Musicians) — Paradise Bird-Musicians
E) Mandala Retinues (Attendant Ecology)
VI. Specialized / Syncretic Forms — Hybrid Systems and Localized Guardians
Use with contextual precision. Strongest development in Japan; cross-region counterparts exist but differ in meaning and placement.
A) Kami–Buddha Syncretism (Japan)
B) Shugendo and Mountain Practice Figures (Japan emphasis)
C) Folk Guardians and Roadside Protection
Regional Overlay Matrix (Expand)
Open each region to see what is emphasized, what is rare, and which object types dominate that corridor. Then travel down to its hub and collection funnel.
Japan (Primary Focus)
- Temple-architectural logic (gate → guardians → main hall) is unusually explicit. Enter: Japan pillar.
- Myoo systems are standardized and mandala-based. See: Godai Myoo.
- Syncretic ecology (kami–Buddha fusion, mountain practice) is structurally important, not incidental.
Gandhara (Origins Corridor)
- Early anthropomorphic Buddha imagery; classical drapery grammar; fragment literacy. Enter: Gandhara hub.
- Myoo are absent (pre-esoteric). Focus is Buddha + attendants and relief programs.
- Down funnel: Gandhara collection.
Tibet / Himalayan (Vajrayana Ritual Technology)
- Art as practice tool: yidam, dharmapala, mandala logic, lineage specificity. Enter: Tibet hub.
- Wrathful protectors dominate many contexts; peaceful vs wrathful is a functional distinction.
- Down funnel: Tibet collection.
China (Dynastic + Cave-Temple Programs)
- Dynastic style filters and cave-temple programs structure visual culture. Enter: China hub.
- Devotional schools shape popularity (Pure Land, Chan) and site programs (grottoes).
- Down funnel: China collection.