著者

蓑輪 顕量

出版者

パーリ学仏教文化学会

雑誌

パーリ学仏教文化学 (ISSN:09148604)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.26, pp.169-191, 2012

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Not only Buddhist deities but also indigenous Korean deities have been worshiped at Buddhist temples in Korea. The indigenous deities include mountain deities (山神), solitary saints (獨聖) and the Big Dipper (七星神). They have been worshipped since the early period of Korean history when Buddhism was introduced. Among these deities, mountain deities in particular had a significant impact on Buddhism in Korea. They probably began to be worshiped in Buddhist temples during the Baekje (百濟) era. Another important characteristic of Korean Buddhism is its adoption of the assembly of deities called shenzhong (Jp. sinshu神衆), who are said to have derived from the Huayuan jing (華嚴經). In the 20^<th> century, Buddhist monks claimed that in order to purify Buddhist faith, Buddhist and indigenous deities should be separated. However, despite their claim, ordinary people still remain syncretic in their faith, which makes it difficult to separate the two.