The Thirteen Buddhas and Bodhisattvas

I saw this Twitter recently:

大和十三仏めぐり守護屏風の満願記念品がリニューアル✨

6月11日より
十三色の玉があしらわれた十三仏念珠を授与いたします

中将姫さまの剃髪堂にてご祈祷していますhttps://t.co/OYECw97etc

ー 當麻寺 中之坊 pic.twitter.com/e2WnFUVVo9

— 當麻寺 中之坊 (@taima_dera) June 9, 2023

The hanging scroll in the Twitter image shows the so-called Thirteen Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, or jūsan-butsu (十三仏), of Japanese Buddhism. This is a collection of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the Mahayana tradition that often appear in things like funeral ceremonies, esoteric rites, and other things. Each one has an associated mantra (inherited from esoteric-Buddhist traditions, even in non-esoteric sects), and an associated memorial day.

You can find some details here, but I also listed them out in the table below:

Deity	Japanese Name	Memorial Day Since Funeral	Japanese Mantra1	Pronunciation
Achala	Fudō-myō-ō2	7th day after funeral	ノウマク　サンマンダ　バサラダン　センダンマカロシャダ　ソハタヤ ウンタラタ　カンマン	Nōmaku sanmanda bazaradan sendan makaroshada sowataya un tarata kan ma
Shakyamuni Buddha3	Shaka Nyorai	14th day after	ノウマク　サンマンダ　ボダナン　バク	Nōmaku sanmanda bodanan baku
Manjushri Bodhisattva	Monju Bosatsu	21st day after	オン　アラハシャノウ	On arahashanō
Samantabhadra Bodhisattva	Fūgen Bosatsu	28th day after	オン　サンマヤ　サトバン	On sanmaya satoban
Ksitigarbha Bodhsiattva	Jizō Bosatsu	35th day after	オン　カカカビ　サンマエイ　ソワカ	On kakakabi sanmaei sowaka
Maitreya Bodhisattva	Miroku Bosatsu	42nd day after	オン　マイタレイヤ　ソワカ	On maitareiya sowaka
The Medicine Buddha	Yakushi Nyorai	49th day after	オン　コロコロ　センダリ　マトウギ　ソワカ	On korokoro sendari matōgi sowaka
Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva	Kan’non Bosatsu	100th day after	オン　アロリキャ　ソワカ	On arorikya sowaka
Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattav	Seishi Bosatsu	1st year after	オン　サンザンサク　ソワカ	On sanzansaku sowaka
Amitabha Buddha	Amida Nyorai	3rd year after	オン　アミリタ　テイセイ　カラウン	On amirita teisei kara un
Akshobhya Buddha	Ashuku Nyorai	7th year after	オン　アキシュビャ　ウン	On akishubya un
Vairocana Buddha	Dainichi Nyorai	13th year after	オン　アビラウンケン　バザラ　ダトバン	On abiraunken bazara datoban
Akashagarbha Bodhisattva	Kōkūzō Bosatsu	33rd year after	ノウボウ　アキャシャ　キャラバヤ　オン　アリキャ　マリボリ　ソワカ	Nōbō akyasha kyarabaya on arikya maribori sokawa

This is knowledge that most Japanese-Buddhists would not pay attention to, unless they are particular devoted to esoteric practices,⁴ or have some ecclesiastical training. Further depending on which Buddhist sect we’re talking about, you might see them often, or rarely at all. But this list is almost universal in Japanese Buddhism, and it’s fascinating to see it come up now and then, even in social media.

P.S. I’ve spoken about Taima-dera temple (the Twitter feed above) in a previous post. These days, like many old temples in the Nara area, has been folded into the Shingon esoteric sect.

P.P.S. Mantras are usually not meant to be translated. There are English translations, but it kind of defeats the purpose of mantras in the esoteric tradition. The journey is more important.

¹ These are usually written in katakana script since they’re technically foreign-imported words from Sanskrit.

² If you see ō, it means that the word is pronounced like English “oh”, but two-beats long. Japanese distinguishes between “o” (one beat) and “ō” (two beats). Same pronunciation, different length.

³ That is, the historical Buddha and founder of the religion. ‘Nuff said.

⁴ Usually this means devotees of either Shingon or Tendai sects. Also, some of the mantras above are pronounced slightly differently depending on whether it’s the Shingon or Tendai lineage. This is an area I don’t know very well, so if you need further details, please consult other sources.