File:Japan, Heian Period - Five-pronged Vajra Pestle (Gokosho) - 1954.785 - Cleveland Museum of Art.tif
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Summary[edit]
Five-pronged Vajra Pestle (Gokosho)
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| Title |
Five-pronged Vajra Pestle (Gokosho) |
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| Object type | Metalwork | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Description |
Resembling weapons wielded by deities described in the Vedas, ancient Indian religious scriptures, the vajra pestle (kongōsho) has long been used in Esoteric Buddhist rituals. The word vajra means diamond and thunderbolt in Sanskrit. Vajras are thus indestructible and powerful tools of Buddhism. The number of prongs has significance, with single-, three-, and five-pronged vajras being used for different purposes. The stylized thunderbolt known as a vajra also connotes the speed of lightning and the indestructible qualities of diamond to best describe the attributes of Tantra. Vajras are ubiquitous in tantric art and ritual practices. This example from the Heian period (784-1185) reveals the early spread of Tantra from India across China and Southeast Asia to enter Japan where it is known as Shingon. A Japanese monk named Kūkai founded the Shingon sect of Esoteric Buddhism after he received the texts and teachings from a Chinese tantric master. When he returned to Japan in 806, he founded the influential Shingon sect. |
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| Date | 900s | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Medium | Bronze | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Dimensions | Overall: 15 cm (5 7/8 in.) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Collection |
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| Current location |
Japanese Art |
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| Accession number |
1954.785 |
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| Place of creation | Japan, Heian Period (794-1185) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Credit line | Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Sherman E. Lee | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Source/Photographer | https://clevelandart.org/art/1954.785 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Licensing[edit]
 
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This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. |
| The person who associated a work with this deed has dedicated the work to the public domain by waiving all of their rights to the work worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law. You can copy, modify, distribute and perform the work, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission.
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This file was donated to Wikimedia Commons as part of a project with the Cleveland Museum of Art. See the Open Access at the Cleveland Museum of Art.
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| Date/Time | Thumbnail | Dimensions | User | Comment | |
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| current | 21:20, 26 March 2019 |  | 4,886 × 7,285 (101.86 MB) | Madreiling (talk | contribs) | pattypan 18.02 |
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