Thunder God (Raijin) from the series "Pantheon of the Gandavyuha Sutra (Kegon-fu)"
- Date:
- 1936
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Edition:
- Self-printed
- Source:
- Art Institute of Chicago
Description
"Thunder God (Raijin)" from the 1936 "Pantheon of the Gandavyuha Sutra (Kegon-fu)" series presents the storm deity as one of the cosmic beings populating the Avatamsaka Sutra's infinite universe. Raijin in the Kegon context is not merely the Shinto weather god but one manifestation of the sacred energy that pervades all phenomena — thunder as an expression of the same divine power that flows through the bodhisattvas and the dharma-realms. Munakata's 1936 Raijin predates the more famous 1937 version by a year, representing his first sustained engagement with the thunder deity within a Buddhist cosmological framework.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Thunder God (Raijin) from the series "Pantheon of the Gandavyuha Sutra (Kegon-fu)" was created by Shiko Munakata (棟方志功) in 1936.
Yes — Thunder God (Raijin) from the series "Pantheon of the Gandavyuha Sutra (Kegon-fu)" is part of the Pantheon of the Gandavyuha Sutra (Kegon-fu) series by Shiko Munakata.
Thunder God (Raijin) from the series "Pantheon of the Gandavyuha Sutra (Kegon-fu)" depicts waterfalls and religious.