Presentation: Jizo-Bosatsu
- A Japanese Buddhist “saint” between art, cult and commercialization
- Thursday, May 29, 6:30 p.m. Mousonturm Studio 3
- A multimedia presentation (in GERMAN) by Clemens Schlüter
Jizo, the little bald wandering monk with his rattling staff, has always been considered to help and console believers, and in contemporary Japanese achieving society he still serves as a projection figure for charity and a feeling of security. Whether as a temple statue at the side of the road or in the form of a savings box, whether as a plush figure, in commercial cartoons or even as a phallic symbol - over the course of centuries, Jizo has become the quintessential popular deity, embodying both a male principle and a baby schema. More than any of the Christian saints prayed to for intercession, Jizo unites the hopes and wishes of children and adults alike. He appears in fairytales and in traditional as well as modern works of art, often accompanied by a bizarre kind of commercialization.
A boddhisattva (bosatsu in Japanese) like Jizo is a figure of salvation, “whose essence is enlightenment”, with only one step to becoming a true Buddha within the religious hierarchy of beings. Out of compassion for all suffering creatures, Boddhisattvas renounce to this last step in their personal development in order to help people in various situations of need.
Clemens Schlüter, expert in Japanese studies and owner of a Jizo collection comprising more than 1,700 objects, will offer a multi-faceted presentation on the presence of Jizo in contemporary Japan.
See as well: HOW JIZO GOT HIS RED BIB - WORKSHOP FOR KIDS
Kontakt
JIZO-WORLD, Gutenbergstraße 31, 59368 Werne