also: せいめんこんごう
Shōmen Kongō; Blue-Faced Vajra
A blue-skinned Buddhist deity with multiple arms, originally from esoteric Buddhism and later incorporated into folk kōshin-machi beliefs. Often depicted with two, four, or six arms, and associated with causing illness.
Shōmen Kongō is sometimes enshrined as the principal image of the kōshin-machi vigil.
この掛け軸には、三面六臂の青面金剛が描かれている。
This hanging scroll depicts a three-faced, six-armed Shōmen Kongō.
A folk practice in which people stay awake all night to avoid the three worms leaving the body; Shōmen Kongō is often the central deity venerated during this vigil.
Vajra, a ritual weapon and symbol of indestructibility in Buddhism; Shōmen Kongō is a specific manifestation of this concept.
Standard kanji form; the reading しょうめんこんごう is the most common.
Alternate reading; less common than しょうめんこんごう.
The name combines 青面 (blue face) and 金剛 (vajra/indestructible). The deity originated in esoteric Buddhist texts and was later adopted into Japanese folk religion.