/jp/ - Otaku Culture

What's the meaning of this?

>>21841045
Part 2
>Kishin and Hell Animals
Another theory postulates that the perpetrator is a kishin/kijin (鬼神) of some sort. That word can either refer to an exceptionally powerful oni or any one of the numerous wrathful/powerful Buddhist deities out there. In Touhou the only kishin we've seen is that of the powerful oni type (Suiki, a kishin who controls water). We could see Suiki's other kishin pals from mythology: Fuuki, Kinki or Kaki/Ongyoki (assuming they also work for the yama like Suiki) as the center figure. Or we could see Otakemaru, an oni so ferocious that he was designated a kishin (also he died so there's the Hell connection). We could even see the Three Great Oni Incarnations (三鬼大権現, Sanki Daigongen), all of which are powerful kishin forms of Buddhist deities. On the flip side, for Buddhist deities that could be the center figure, we could see basically any powerful god (Bonten, Brahma; Taishakuten, Indra/Sakra; Bichuten, Vishnu; Eight Nagaraja; etc) who are all described as kishin. Of interest though are the Medicine Buddha's (Yakushi Nyorai or Bhaishajyaguru Tathagata) 12 Heavenly Generals. The 12 generals are all yasha (yaksha in Sanskrit), which have been described as a type of oni in Japanese lore. These particularly powerful yashas are described as kishin, however. And all 12 of them correlate to one of 12 Zodiac Animals. Kutaka's pose, in fact, mimics the Heavenly Yasha General Mekila, who corresponds to the rooster zodiac animal. So the middle figure could basically be any of them. And about the two silhouettes on the right? Some speculate that they're animals from various hells. The bird on the left could be an enba (閻婆), a gigantic bird that tortures and impales people in Hell. The dragon on the left could be any number of dragons from the 16 Small Hells or 8 Great Hells, like the poison and fire breathing dragons of Avici (阿鼻地獄 Abi Jigoku), the thousand-headed dragons of the forest hell, Hikukusho (悲苦吼処) or the toxic spinning dragons of the hell of Ryusenjo (龍旋処). The problem with this theory is is that, again, would ZUN do Buddhism again directly after HSiFS?
>Buddhist Figure + Garuda and Naga
This poses that the bird-like figure on the left is a garuda, known in Japanese Buddhism as karura (迦楼羅) while the dragon-like figure on the right is a naga, known simply as ryu (龍, dragon) in Japanese Buddhism. The garuda race and naga race are mortal enemies but they're also protectors of Buddhism and they're sometimes associated with Hell. The figure in the middle could be Bichuten (Vishnu), who owns a garuda and a naga in Hinduism. Vishnu, aside from Bichuten (毘紐天), also has a form called Hayagriva. Hayagriva is a horse-headed avatar of Vishnu that inspired Bato Kannon (馬頭観音), the Horse-Headed Avalokiteshvara. Bato Kannon is, notably, the form of Kannon that saves and protects those in the Animal Realm (畜生道). Other names of Vishnu in Japanese Buddhism are Mishichiju (微瑟紐), Naraenten (那羅延天), Narashinha (納拉辛哈) and Basouten (婆藪天). Another possibility is Bhaishajyaguru (Yakushi), the Medicine Buddha, who is surrounded by 12 Heavenly Generals (who are kishin yasha) and one of whose poses was referenced by Kutaka. It could also be Sendan Kendatsuba (栴檀乾闥婆) a ghandarva (animal musician) king who is also associated with the animal zodiac and who is famously portrayed killing evil animal spirits from Hell. Yet again the problem with this is the same as the previous two (repetition of Buddhism).
>Momotaro's Animals (and an oni?)
Some Futaba anons think the three silhouettes are Momotaro's three animal buddies that he took with him to Onigashima, the island of oni. In this take the left sillhouette is the pheasant and the right sillhouette is either his monkey or dog wearing a samurai helmet. The middle is again either his monkey or dog. It's also theorized that the 鬼 kanji in the logo of the game (which has horns and one eye) is referencing 温羅 (Onra or Ura), an oni shot in the eye by the legendary Kibitsuhiko, who could transform into multiple animals. Kibitsuhiko and Onra's legend is said to have been the basis for Momotaro and his battle with the oni at Onigashima. Could Onra/Ura be the extra boss? But then why would Momotaro's animals be in Hell and how do the other animal spirits fit into this? This theory is promising but there remains unanswered questions.