The emergence of a new religion inevitably entails its conflict with existing traditional beliefs. Regardless of whether this conflict is a consequence of the resistance of an autochthonous religion to a new creed (most often the religion of foreign invaders) or, on the contrary, the result of the widespread introduction of a new religion (usually at the suggestion of the supreme authority), it always has the same result. None of the religious traditions wins over the other, destroying it completely, but perceives its most active and persistent elements and thereby allows it to continue to exist, but in a new form. Buddhism is also no exception in this respect. Although this teaching has been spread mainly through peaceful means, with the help of Buddhist missionary monks, since its inception in India in the seventh century BC, it has inevitably interacted with local beliefs, resulting in conflicts as well.

The history of the formation of the first Buddhist sangha in Japan in the sixth century, in my opinion, can serve as an example of the unique history of interaction between Buddhism and the autochthonous Japanese religion - Shintoism, which differs in a number of specific features compared to the history of the spread of Buddhism in other Eastern countries.

The first Buddhist sangha in Japan consisted of Buddhist nuns and was therefore also the first Female Buddhist community in that country. This fact makes Japan stand out in the history of Buddhism, since in other countries of South and Southeast Asia and the Far East, the bhikshu and bhikshuni sanghas1 arose almost simultaneously, since nuns could only receive initiation from a mentor.

It can be assumed that the choice that fell on women who were called to represent the Dharma in Japan was not accidental and was actually dictated by the initial perception of the image of the Buddha at the time of the penetration of Buddhism in Japan (V-VI centuries).

Many researchers note that the original image of the Buddha could have been perceived by the Japanese at the level of their polytheistic beliefs as a deity endowed with all the abilities of Shinto deities. In the historical chronicle " Nihon seki "("Annals of Japan"), the temple chronicle "Gangoji garan engi narabi-ni ruki shizate" ("Notes on the foundation of the Gangoji Monastery and the treasures belonging to it") and the collection of Buddhist legends and legends "Nihon ryo: iki" ("Records of wondrous miracles of lifetime reward for good and evil deeds that happened in the country of Japan") there are such epithets for the Buddha as "foreign deity", "Chinese god", "god-Buddha", etc. Perhaps for this reason, the original core of the Buddhist sangha was made up of nuns, who were called to perform the functions of servants of the new deity of the Buddha, similar to the duties of Shinto priestesses.

The first Japanese nuns are mentioned in "Nihon seki" and " Gangoji garan engi...". In "Nihon seki" their appearance was due to the zealous desire of the Minister of Soga-no

Bhikkhus, bhikshuni 1 (Skt.) - names for Buddhist monks and nuns.

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Umako profess the cult of the Buddha. The entry, dated 584, reads:: "In the same year, Soga Umako no sukune asked to find two images of the Buddha and sent Shiba Dachito, the village chief of the Saddler Corporation and Hit, atae 2 of Kyobe, to the four corners of the world to search for the 'doer of deeds'."3. It was only in the region of Harima that they found a man who had returned from monasticism to the world. His name is Hyo Pyeong from Goguryeo. "Oomi" 4 then made him a teacher. And he ordered the conversion of Shimame, the daughter of Shiba Datito, to the Buddhist faith. Her name was Nun Zenshin, and she was eleven years old. In addition, "oomi" ordered the conversion of two female students of the Zenshin nun 5. One was Toyome, the daughter of a Han man named Yabo, whose name is a Zendo nun. The other was Ishime, the daughter of Nishikori no Tsuu. Her name was Nun Edzen" [Nihon seki..., 1997, p. 78].

According to this passage, the first nuns came from families of immigrants from China (Shimame and Toyome) and Baekje (Edzen). It is further said that Soga placed the nuns in the temple of Maitreya Buddha (Miroku), which he built at the gate of his house, so that they could perform the Buddhist rites of hoe and imi there. They meant purification by fasting, which arose as a consequence of the commandment that forbade killing living creatures and eating animal meat. Khoe was the name of a meeting of Buddhist monks where sutras were read and interpreted, and dogmatic issues were discussed. Some researchers (Y Aston, A. N. Meshcheryakov) doubt that Japanese nuns had enough knowledge to hold such meetings during the period described, and suggest that the nuns probably performed some other Buddhist rituals.

This hypothesis seems plausible, especially since there is very little information about the first Japanese nuns in the Nihon Seki and, oddly enough, almost nothing is said about their merits in spreading Buddhism in Japan. This is striking, especially when compared with the stories of Tibetan yoginis (Nangsa Obum, Machig Labdron, Yeshe Tsogel) and the lives of Chinese nuns (Bikuni Zhuan) of the fifth and seventh centuries.

Biographies of Tibetan yoginis are distinguished by the following features::

1. They are all rebirths of the Dokin 6(siddhis), i.e., the ability to instantly comprehend the most complex doctrines and arts, to leave the imprints of their hands and feet in stone, to rise into the air, to move quickly over long distances, to go for long periods without food and water, to feed on the substances of minerals and plants, etc. Dakinis and bodhisattvas repeatedly appear to them in the course of their Dharma training and meditation, not only as evidence of the attainment of higher wisdom, but also as guides and helpers in the realization of the Dharma. The supernatural nature of yoginis is also evident in their appearance. It is known that Machig Labdron was born with three eyes, one of which was located in the middle of the forehead, and Yeshe Tsogel, through meditation practice, could control the "five elements" 7 of her body and therefore was not subject to aging and disease. The most characteristic feature that manifests itself in the appearance of all Tibetan yoginis without exception and distinguishes them from ordinary people is the manifestation on their bodies of the sacred letters of the Sanskrit alphabet "A", "Om", "Hum", which are one of the signs of Dakinis.

Atae - 2 head of a corporation consisting of immigrants from the continent.

3 Refers to shugyojia - an adept of the Buddhist faith who fulfills all the necessary prescriptions (faith in dogmas, observance of the commandments, following a certain way of life, etc.).

4 Refers to Soga no Umako. Oomi is a clan chief in ancient Japan.

5 Given Zenshin's young age and the fact that her profound knowledge of Buddhism is not mentioned anywhere, it is unlikely that Zendo and Ezen could have been her students. Most likely, there was a mistake in the text, and the name Zenshin meant either the aforementioned Hyo Phyeon or the nun Homei, who is mentioned in Gangoji Garan engi...

Dakini 6 (tib. Khadro, doel, "floating in the sky") In Buddhism, the Vajrayana is a manifestation of energy in a feminine form. Dakinis are divided into those who possess wisdom (skt. Jnana), i.e. bodhisattvas, and those who prefer action (skt. Karma) as the powerful forces of samsara.

7 "Five elements" refers to the Tibetan medical concept of the five elements that make up the human body, water, fire, wood, metal, and air, respectively. The physical and mental health of a person depends on the ratio of these elements in the body.

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2. They are actively involved in the spread of Buddhism both in Tibet and abroad. Thus, Yeshe Tsogel, Padmasambhava's tantric consort, 8 was directly involved in disputes between Buddhist monks and Bon9 at the court of the Tibetan Emperor Trisong Detsen and, along with Padmasambhava, sought recognition of Buddhism as the official religion of Tibet. She spread tantra in Tibet and Nepal, and the number of her followers, according to her official biography, numbered more than a thousand [Famous Yoginis, 1996]. Machig Labdron (1055-1145), considered a rebirth of Yeshe Tsogel 10, was the founder of the new yogic practice of Chod, which is the "cutting off" of attachments by forgetting fear. This method was aimed at cutting off all ties with the forms of samsara and included visiting cemeteries or places considered impure, offering one's body to cemetery spirits and demons, etc.D. In the process of spreading the Dharma, yoginis also subdue local deities and spirits, transforming them with their magical power into bodhisattvas guarding sacred sites. For example, Yeshe Tsogel, during her meditation in the Nehring Senge Dzong cave, used her samadhi to subdue the demons and fearsome deities of Tibet-Dorje Lekpa, Rahul - and others - and convinced them to take the vows of the guardians of the Buddha's Teachings [ibid., p. 198].

3. All the most significant events in the life of yoginis (taking Buddhist initiation, preaching the Dharma, participating in disputes, meeting with the lama, etc.) are accompanied by supernatural signs that have a favorable meaning: the appearance of rainbow lights, heavenly music, flower rain, etc. [ibid., p. 114]11. The same phenomena, including the appearance of dakinis, deities, and the sound of mantras, accompany the birth of yoginis and their passing away. Thus, the moment of Yeshe Tsogel's death was preceded by the appearance of an innumerable number of Dakinis in various guises, demons, local deities who converted Tsogel to Buddhism, and Four Heavenly Kings 12 who came to accompany her to the land of the Dakinis. When Yeshe Tsogel delivered her parting words to her students, she disappeared in the rainbow light [ibid., pp. 230-235].

Biographies of Chinese Buddhist nuns "Bikuni Zhuan", compiled by Monk Baochan at the beginning of the Tang era (VII-X centuries), no less colorfully paint their images. When comparing "Bikuni Zhuan" with the biographies of Tibetan yoginis, one can note their certain similarity. So, many future nuns, as well as yoginis, from childhood were distinguished by their desire to study the Dharma and stood out among their peers for their extraordinary abilities. A remarkable story is that of the nun sisters Fayuan (424-426) and Fachai (479^82), who at a young age were miraculously transported to the Pure Land of Buddha Amida 13 and received initiation from a certain nun there. After

8 Padmasambhava was an Indian Vajrayana yogi of the 8th-9th centuries, one of the founders of Buddhism in Tibet, and the founder of the Nyingma and Dzogchei schools dedicated to a special direction - Annutara yoga-tantra, which taught the possibility of achieving enlightenment in one lifetime.

Bon people are representatives of the Bon religion, which had the characteristics of a shamanic cult and existed in Tibet before the advent of Buddhism. The Bon people actively opposed the spread of Buddhism in Tibet at an early stage of its development.

10 Machig Labdron is also described in her biography as a rebirth of the Indian yogi Monlam Drub, who, according to other sources, is the true founder of the practice of Chod.

11 While Machig Labdron was making offerings to Lama Sonam, the temple was filled with a rainbow glow, music was heard from the sky, flowers rained down, and many other auspicious signs were given.

12 The Four Heavenly Kings (Skt. catvaro maharajh ) are Buddhist deities who protect the country from evil forces. According to Buddhist cosmology, they reside in the Sky of the Four Kings, the lowest of the four heavens - the " desire world." According to the Golden Light Sutra, the Heavenly King Dhratarashtra guards the eastern side, the Heavenly King Virupaksha guards the western side, the Heavenly King Vaisravana guards the northern side, and the Heavenly King Virudhaka guards the southern side.

13 The" pure land " (Sukhavati) is first mentioned in the Sukhavativyukha Sutra, dating from the second century A.D. Sukhavati is a spiritual realm created by the Buddha, which is conducive to the development of the spirit. The blissful (sukha) Pure Land is the opposite of the kingdom of samsara, where all living entities reside. Sacred books depict the Pure Land as "a world where there is no physical or mental pain for living beings. The sources of happiness are infinite in number." In the fifth and sixth centuries AD in China, the Sukhavativyukha Sutras

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After returning to the human world, they gained the ability to read and interpret Sanskrit sutras, memorize the contents of the sutras once, etc. 14 [Georgieva, 2000, p. 111].

Many biographies of nuns from the Bikuni Zhuan mention their profound wisdom, eloquence, and ability to interpret various points of the Buddha's Teaching, which contributed to the further spread of Buddhism in China and attracted many followers to them. The nun An Linypou (335-349) became famous as a famous Dharma teacher who had more than 200 followers. She also founded five monasteries and enjoyed the respect of Emperor Shi Hu (333-349) [Georgieva, 2000, p. 189]. The nun Daoqing (376-438), famous for her eloquence, was invited to the palace during the reign of Emperor Xiao Wu (376-397) to read sutras specifically for the emperor's wives and concubines [ibid., p. 113]. Zhijiang (300-349) was so revered by the Fujian Emperor (357-385) for her wisdom and virtue that he ordered a brocade robe made especially for her [ibid., p. 189]. Another nun, Miaoyin, who was also the abbess of a convent in the capital, was very influential in the court of Emperor Xiao Wu and participated in philosophical debates and literary contests [ibid.].

Like the Tibetan yogis, many Chinese Buddhist nuns develop supernatural powers through meditation and strict asceticism. In many cases, this manifests itself as the ability of nuns to contemplate the Pure Land of Amida Buddha 15, see various Buddhas and bodhisattvas, speak other languages, read and interpret sutras, etc. In some cases, it is through the demonstration of supernatural abilities that nuns receive recognition at the highest level. So, the Daolun nun had the ability to neutralize evil spells and omens. She performed an exorcism ritual in the palace of the Jiangwen Emperor (371-372) and thereby contributed to his conversion to Buddhism [Georgieva, 2000, p. 168]. The nun Jinqian healed the Crown Prince and thereafter became deeply revered by Emperor Wen (reigned 424-453) of the Song Dynasty [idid., p. 169].

It should be noted that asceticism and aversion to the flesh among Chinese nuns have acquired more rigid forms. The Bikuni Zhuan also mentions the self-immolation of some nuns as the highest form of offering to the Three Treasures.

A distinctive feature of the "Biography of Nuns" is the distinct influence of Confucian and Taoist traditions, which can be traced in the description of the appearance of nuns and their way of life. Thus, many nuns (Fashen, Zhishen, Linyyou) are described as modest, respectful and chaste creatures, which corresponds to the Confucian idea of the ideal woman as modest and virtuous, respectful to her parents and elders. Taoist influence is also evident in the descriptions of some nuns ' desire for seclusion, their hermit lifestyle in remote mountains and forests (nuns Linzong, Jingxiu), asceticism (eating only pine needles and cones, wearing hemp clothing), and their miraculous disappearance at the end of life (Nun Huixiao). All this is reminiscent of the prescriptions of Taoist practice for achieving immortality, as well as legends about Taoist ascetics and saints.

Many researchers note the role that Chinese Buddhist nuns played in old China. Thus, V. N. Usov in his book" Wives and Concubines of the Celestial Empire " writes about the significant role that Buddhism played in everyday life of Chinese people.

("Panoramas of the Pure Land") marked the beginning of a kind of cult Buddhism. The basis for it was the "idea of a Pure Land" - Amitabha (Amida-in Japanese), or the Buddha of infinite light and compassion. According to the Sutras, one can only get to the Pure Land through continuous meditation practice or repeated prayers to Buddha Amidah.

14 It should be noted that the story of the sisters ' journey to the land of Amida Buddha has connotations with Taoist legends about traveling to the "abode of the immortals".

15 V. Georgieva believes that references to visions of Western Paradise in the lives of nuns reflect one of the postulates of early Chinese Buddhism, according to which a woman can achieve Buddhahood only after being reborn in the Pure Land of Buddha Amida.

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women: "Speaking of the young woman's philosophical and religious worldview, it should be noted that while men were equally interested in Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism, Chinese women tended to lean towards Buddhism in most cases. The words about universal love, compassion, and equality of all living beings were more in line with the spiritual needs of women. And the pomp of religious ceremonies added variety to their monotonous life in the back chambers... Married ladies usually resorted to the advice of Buddhist nuns, who were allowed to enter the secluded women's quarters without hindrance. Nuns gave Chinese women advice on everyday issues and acted as doctors and healers who cured women's and children's diseases. Finally, they were asked to teach young girls reading, writing, and women's crafts" (Usov, 2006, p. 52).

However, many researchers believe that Chinese sources describing the significance of Buddhist nuns in medieval Chinese society actually imply a small stratum of educated nuns, whose activities occurred at a certain historical period. Thus, V. Georgieva, studying "Bikuni Zhuan", calculated that the greatest number of references to the imperial patronage of nuns falls mainly at the end of the Liang Dynasty (VI century) [Georgieva, 2000, p. 112].

The question of the role of the female Buddhist sangha in the history of the spread of Buddhism in Southeast Asia and the Far East still causes lively discussions among Buddhologists and orientalists. The history of the emergence of the female and at the same time the first Buddhist sangha in Japan at first glance looks like the chronicler's desire to emphasize the merits of Minister Soga no Umako, presenting Buddhist nuns as obedient performers of his will. A closer examination of Nihon Seki and Gangoji Garan Engi... reveals that the history of Buddhist nuns in Japan has a number of similarities with the lives of yogis and Chinese Buddhist nuns, but at the same time has its own unique subtext.

The Nihon Seki and Gangoji Garan Engi..., as well as Tibetan and Chinese sources, mention the persecution of Buddhism by Shinto adherents. The following year, an epidemic broke out in the country and, taking advantage of this, the ministers of Mononobe and Nakatomi announced that the new deity worshipped by Soga no Umako was to blame. Mononobe, at the behest of the emperor, ordered to burn the temple of the Buddha and his statue, and throw the relics into the Naniwa Canal. He also executed nuns and ordered them to take away their vestments [Nihon seki..., 1997, p. 78]. Obviously, this act was intended to deprive the nuns of their sacred status and restore them to the position they occupied in the world. This is indirectly confirmed by the fact that after Minister Soga managed to persuade the emperor to allow him to "worship the Buddha" again, he was allowed to return the nuns to his home: "And the three nuns returned to Umako no sukune. Umako no sukune accepted them and rejoiced. He admired the fact that he had an unremarkable face, and bowed his head. Again he built a clean dwelling, met the nuns, introduced them to a clean dwelling and provided them with maintenance" [ibid., p. 79].

The event described is also notable for the fact that after it, the nuns for the first time show personal initiative. In 588, according to the Nihon Seki, a Zenshin nun and four other novices were sent by Soga no Umako, along with an embassy in Baekje, to teach the Buddhist canon. The nuns ' initiative is covered in more detail in "Gangoji garan engi...". There, they wish to go to Baekje to find a mentor and take full initiation. However, the embassy from Baekje, as indicated in both sources, rejects this request, explaining that in the absence of Buddhist monks in Japan, nuns still cannot be considered full representatives of the sangha: "The nuns told Umako:" They say that monks must be ordained. But we don't have a mentor. Therefore, we wish to go

16 Japanese mikayu, skt. ashkarya-adbhuta. It has the meaning "miraculous, favorable case", "exceptional luck", "fate".

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go to Baekje and get initiated there." Before much time had passed, a visitor arrived from Baekje in 586. Umako asked him, " The nuns want to go to Baekje and get ordained. Is this possible?" The foreign guest replied: "In order for nuns to be ordained, there must be ten nuns in a convent. Then the initiation can be carried out. And there should be ten monks in a monastery for men. These twenty monks and nuns are to be initiated. But in your country there is only a convent, and there is no monastery for men or monks. In order for nuns to receive ordination in accordance with the regulations, a monastery for men should be built and monks and nuns from Baekje should be invited." 1993, p. 419].

Eventually, the nuns manage to get permission from Umako to travel to Baekje, where they take full monastic ordination.

When studying the chronicles of the Gangoji Temple, it becomes noticeable that in the events that accompanied the adoption of Buddhism in Japan, nuns play a more active role than that assigned to them in the Nihon Seki. Thus, Shimame, Toyome, and Ishim voluntarily become novices of the Homei nun, learn the Dharma from her, and themselves express a desire to become nuns: "At that time, in the land of Harima, there lived an elderly bhikshu from the Goguryeo country who had left the monastery, as well as an elderly bhikshuni named Homei. Three girls-a seventeen-year-old daughter of Kuratsukuri no obito Tatto named Shimame, a daughter of Ayabito no hoshi named Toyome, and a daughter of Nishikibito Tsubuyoshi named Ishime-attached themselves to Homei and learned the Buddha's law from her. They said, " We wish to become a monk and study the Law of the Buddha." Umako rejoiced and allowed them to become monks... Umako, Suiko, and the heir to the throne Ikenobe joyfully invited the nuns to live in the Sakurai oratory "[Gangoji garan engi..., 1993, p. 418].

It is noteworthy that here Soga no Umako is shown not as a powerful patron of nuns, but rather as a lay householder who financially helps the sangha. In the text of the monument, he is often referred to as" Umako", as a simple official. This can be explained, firstly, by the Buddhist subtext of " Gangoji garan engi...", which highlights the merits of the Buddha's servants, and, secondly, by the desire of the chroniclers to emphasize the role of Empress Suiko and Prince Shotoku, the official founders of the Gangoji Temple, in the spread of Buddhism in Japan.

After their return from Baekje, the nuns initiate the further construction of Buddhist temples in Japan: "In 590, the nuns returned from Baekje. They said to Umako, " In 588, we went and received the full initiation of the six vows, and in the third moon, 589, we received the full initiation. We returned in the current year, 590."17. The nuns settled down, as before, in the Sakurai temple. Then the nuns said, " Quickly build a hall to worship the Buddha. Also, build a monastery for men soon, so that they can hold ceremonies there." Then they presented a plan to build a hall to worship the Buddha on the land of the Sakurai Temple."

This is followed by the story of how Empress Suiko, having listened to the nuns ' suggestions, ordered to rebuild her own Toyura palace into a convent and also gave it land, fields, ponds, peasant yards and slaves [Gangoji garan engi..., 1993, p.420].

The story of the journey of Japanese nuns to Baekje evokes analogies with the stories of the first Chinese nuns from "Bikuni Zhuan", who went by sea to India

17 In the same year, a new embassy arrived from Baekje, along with six monks who presented the Buddha's relics, as well as Buddhist temple builders and artists. By that time, the Nakatomi clan, which was hostile to Buddhism, had been defeated by Soga no Umako's troops, and from now on nothing prevented the spread of Buddhism in Japan. In the area of Asuka no Makami no Para, the construction of the first state Buddhist temple of Hokoji, also known as Asuka-dera, began. For its construction, a new state duty was introduced throughout the country - logging. As Matsunaga notes, this temple later became a stronghold of the Soga house.

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for receiving full initiation [Georgieva, 2000, p. 50-56]. The Nihon Seki says that in the same year that the nuns returned from Baekje, 11 more people were ordained. These were two wives and a daughter of the grandee Otomo Sadehiko, while the other eight were natives of China (Nihon seki..., 1997, p. 89). Although the text does not directly relate this event to the return of the nuns from Baekje, however, the Gangoji garan engi... states that Empress Suiko secretly took tonsure under the name of a Zen novice [Gangoji garan engi..., 1993, p.420].

Although there are a number of similar features (persecution by opponents of Buddhism, the desire to get more detailed and in-depth knowledge of the Dharma), information about the first Japanese nuns still differs significantly from the biographies of yoginis and Chinese Buddhist nuns. Even in the Buddhist chronicle "Gangoji garan engi..." there are no characteristic descriptions of the appearances of Buddhas and bodhisattvas, designed to demonstrate their worldly impermanence, there is also no mention of the extraordinary abilities of Buddhist nuns, manifested as a result of continuous meditation practice and reading sutras, about their dissemination of the Buddha's Teachings, etc. The absence of these descriptions can be explained by the fact that since Buddhism in Japan was inextricably linked to the state system from the moment of its formation, the main goal of the chroniclers was to exalt the rulers (Empress Suiko and Prince Shotoku) and officials (Soga no Umako), whose foresight regarding the adoption of Buddhism contributed to the prosperity of the country and won them love subjects. Accordingly, in this context, the role of the first Japanese nuns, no matter how sincere their intentions were dictated by their desire to practice Buddhism, inevitably faded into the background. However, if you think about how the image of the Buddha could actually be perceived in the early stages of the spread of Buddhism in Japan, then the activities of the nuns can be covered in a different context.

Both chronicles say that the main occupation of the first Japanese nuns was to make offerings and prayers in front of the stone statue of Maitreya Buddha (Miroku), brought in 584 from Baekje and presented by Emperor Soga no Umako in the Sakurai Temple. Even after their return from Baekje, they are not engaged in spreading the Dharma in Japan, as one might expect, but continue to live in the Sakurai Temple. Their further role is still limited to conducting ritual Buddhist ceremonies, for which there was a special hall in the Sakurai temple.

All this does not agree with the biographies of the Tibetan and Chinese female servants of the Buddha, whose desire to give salvation to all living beings is, according to the authors of their biographies, the main sign of their true bodhisattva nature. The activities of the first Japanese nuns, which consisted in worshipping the Buddha statue, rather resemble the duties of Shinto priestesses, whose role as intermediaries between people and the gods included conducting ritual ceremonies designed to appease the gods and promote the prosperity of the country.

This assumption seems plausible, given the fact that at the early stage of the spread of Buddhism in Japan, Buddhas and bodhisattvas were worshipped on a par with the autochthonous Japanese deities (Komi). In the annals, Buddhist deities were called "foreign gods" (adashikuni no Komi) and, according to Mark Teeuwen, initially in the minds of the Japanese, they did not differ in any way from the Shinto Komi [Teeuwen and Rambelli, 2003, p. 7].

In the official version of the appearance of Buddhism in Japan, presented in the Nihon Seki, the opposition of the ministers of Mononobe and Nakatomi to Buddhism is explained precisely by the fact that they perceived the Buddha as a foreign god: "The Sovereign asked each of the dignitaries:" The appearance of the Buddha presented to us by a neighboring country in the west is dazzling. We haven't had anything like this before. Should I read it or not?" Soga no Opoomi Iname no Sukune said: "All the neighboring countries in the West revere him. And how can only one country - the country of the Yamato Harvest Autumn - reject it?". Mononobe no Opomurazi Wokoshi and Nakatomi no Murazi Kamako jointly addressed the Sovereign:

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"The rulers residing in the Celestial Empire of our country at all times - in spring, summer, autumn and winter - worshipped 180 gods in the sanctuaries of Heaven and Earth. If we start honoring the god of neighboring countries again, the gods of our country may be angry." The sovereign said: "Let [the statue] be given to the one who wants it - Iname no sukune - and let him try to honor it." Opoomi fell to his knees and accepted the statue with joy. He placed her in his home in Oparida. Diligently performed the rites of departure from the world. He performed a purification rite in his house in Mukupara and turned it into a temple" [Nihon seki..., 1997, p. 53].

The opposition of the Mononobe and Nakatomi to Buddhism becomes more clear when one considers exactly which clans they belonged to. At that time, all the aristocratic clans in Yamato were divided into three categories: shimbetsu, kobetsu, and bambetsu. The Shimbetsu traced their lineage back to the Shinto gods of the Great Sky Plain. Kobetsu were the descendants of the emperors who ruled after the legendary Emperor Jimmu. Finally, the bambetsu included clans of immigrants from Korea and China. The Mononobe belonged to the Shimbetsu, the most influential branch of the aristocracy, and were devoted to the Shinto tradition. In comparison, the Soga clan, which was considered kobetsu, could not boast of its ancient origin from the native Japanese gods and therefore stood somewhat lower in social terms. For this reason, the Soga made every effort to strengthen their influence at court. Through the system of marriages that marked the beginning of the Sekken regency, they became related to the imperial family, but the representatives of this clan understood that the full realization of their ambitions was impossible under the current system of government of the ancestral aristocracy. They longed for a system of government that was adopted on the mainland, in China and Korea, a system that would transform Yamato from a barbaric country into an equal state. Therefore, the Soga patronized immigrants and showed interest in news from the continent. Given all this, it is not surprising that it was Soga no Iname who spoke out for the adoption of Buddhism, which he saw as a new religion that opened up limitless opportunities for people regardless of their origin.

Further in the text of the story, the Buddha manifests himself not as the embodiment of the essence of his teaching, showing believers his true appearance (which is typical of Buddhist literature), but as a deity who has the functions of lords of the natural elements, similar to the Shinto gods-Komi. So, the persecution of Buddhism leads to the fact that in clear weather, wind and rain suddenly begin, a fire breaks out in the imperial palace, and epidemics of plague and smallpox break out in the country.

Like the Shinto deities, the Buddha described in Nihon Seki is able to cast curses on those who are not zealous enough to worship him. When Soga no Uma-ko fell ill in 585, he turned to the fortune-teller urabe, who identified the cause of his illness as a curse from the new deity-Buddha, whose cult was adopted by his father-Soga no Iname: "On the day of the younger brother of metal and pig, Soga 'oomi' fell ill. He turned to the fortune-teller. The diviner said to him,"They brought curses from the heart of the Buddha-deity when they made offerings in the time of the fathers." "Oomi" immediately sent his younger brother to report to the emperor about the diviner's answer. The imperial decree read: "According to the diviner's words, make offerings and worship the father's deity." "Oomi", having received an imperial decree, worshipped the stone image and asked for an extension of life" [Nihon seki..., 1997, p. 54].

The phrase "curse from the heart of the deity-kami" is typical of Shinto sources. Thus, the collection of ancient Japanese legends and myths about the deeds of the gods and the first Japanese emperors "Kojiki" reports about Prince Pomuchiwake-no-miko, the son of Emperor Sujin, who was mute from birth. The cause of his illness, as the emperor found out through divination, was "in the heart of the great deity Idumo (Izumo)." As the god Susanoo-no-mikoto told the emperor, he specifically cast a spell on the prince so that a temple would be built in his honor [Kojiki, vol. 1, 1994, p. 64].

For the oratory built by Soga for the stone statue of Maitreya Buddha, the Nihon seki uses the epithet" pure dwelling", which carries a Shinto meaning.

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context, since the kami gods ' place of abode implied the absence of any impurity.

One of the main duties of Shinto priestesses was to mediate between the gods and humans, to whom they communicated the divine will. They usually came into contact with the gods by playing musical instruments, since it was believed that music and singing belonged to the other world. Although the Nihon Seki and Gangoji Garan Engi ... do not explicitly mention such functions of Buddhist nuns, the fact that Soga no Umako and Empress Suiko unconditionally complied with the nuns 'demands to send them to Baekje and build full-fledged monasteries for women and men in the country suggests that the nuns' wish may have been fulfilled. interpreted as the will of the deity Buddha expressed through their mouths.

The Nihon Seki contains an interesting passage dating back to 606, related to the installation of a statue of the Buddha in the Gangoji Temple. According to the recording, the Buddha statue was taller than the temple doors and could not be carried inside. It was only thanks to the skill of Kuratukuri no Tori that the statue was brought into the temple without damaging the door [Nihon seki..., 1997, p. 91].

For this, he received praise from the empress, who noted the connection between the art of Kuratukuri and the history of his family, descended from the notorious Shiba Datito. "When they decided to build a temple and started looking for the relics of the Buddha, your grandfather Shiba Datito immediately presented them. At that time, there were no monks and nuns in the country. Your father, Tasuna, for the sake of the welfare of the Lord Tachibana no Toyopi, became a monk and revered the Law of the Buddha. In addition, your aunt Shimame was the first to become a monk, ahead of other nuns, and professed the teachings of the Buddha. This time We wanted to make a statue of the Buddha with a height of 1 ju and 6 shaku and began to look for a good image of the Buddha. You made such a statue that met my aspirations" [Nihon seki..., 1997, p. 101].

It seems to me that here the Empress wanted to emphasize the continuity of service to the Buddha in the Kuratukuri no Tori family, which in her eyes was a clan of Buddhist priests like hereditary Shinto priests. The fact that Kuratukuri was Shimame's nephew is further evidence in favor of this interpretation, since Shinto miko priestesses usually passed on the rights to inherit their duties to the children of their siblings.18
The attitude towards the Buddhist nun as a cult servant of the deity-Buddha continues to occur later, in the Nara era.

Nihon ryo: Iki, a collection of Buddhist legends and traditions compiled at the turn of the eighth and ninth centuries by the Buddhist monk Kyokai of Yakushiji Temple, tells the story of a Buddhist nun from Kawachi Province who led the local community. For a local temple, she painted an image of the Buddha, which was worshipped by both monks and lay people. One day the nun was away on business, and at that time the image was stolen. When she and the other nuns went to Naniwa to perform the animal release ceremony, they saw a merchant's basket hanging from a tree, from which the voices of living creatures could be heard. The nuns wanted to buy them back from the owner and when they opened the basket, they found the Buddha image stolen from them, which they were immensely happy about [Nihon ryo: iki..., 1995, p. 72].

The semantics of this tradition are similar to " Nihon seki "and" Gangoji garan engi..."through the image of a Buddhist nun-guardian of the image of the Buddha. In Nihon ryo: iki, the nun who created the image of the Buddha is both a worshipper and a guardian of the Buddha. The text says that after the loss of the image, the nun "continued to instruct the flock", i.e., continued to remain in the temple, despite the fact that in the eyes of the community she was deprived of her main function - the priestess of the Buddha. It goes on to say that as soon as the image of the Buddha is miraculously returned to the nuns, they will begin to see the Buddha again.-

18 This passage can be compared to the episode in Kojiki, when Prince Yamato Takeru receives a sword from his aunt, priestess Ise, before a military campaign.

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it is forbidden to hold memorial services in the church. Thus, the narrator (Kyo:kai) makes it clear that the return of the image of the Buddha to its former place once again gave the nuns the right to conduct religious rites [Nihon ryo:iki..., 1995, p.72].

The stories about the first Japanese Buddhist nuns in Nihon Seki, Gangoji Garan engi... and Nihon ryo: iki can be considered one of the proofs of early Shinto-Buddhist syncretism, which began with the first steps of the spread of Buddhism in Japan. If at an early stage the Buddha was perceived as a Chinese, foreign version of the Kami god, then in the process of integrating Buddhism and Shintoism, Japanese autochthonous Komi deities were transformed into deities who protected the Buddhist Dharma. According to the study of early Shinto and Buddhist folklore (Kojiki, Nihon ryo:iki), the Buddha's teaching about compassion for all living beings was associated with Shinto ideas about the sacred meaning of nature and life in general. This was reflected first of all in the early Japanese depiction of Buddhist monks and nuns not only as people who voluntarily renounced the world for the sake of self-improvement, but also as servants and guardians of the sacred image of the Buddha, which gives them the status of priests endowed with special magical abilities. This can be confirmed by the description of the first Japanese Buddhist nuns, who act as guardians of the first image of the Buddha in Japan, and not as propagators of his Teachings, which follows from a comparison with Tibetan and Chinese sources.

Looking at these descriptions, we can conclude that the early Buddhist Sangha in Japan also assumed the priestly functions of intermediaries between nature and people. And this for a long time determined the attitude of the state and society in Japan towards Buddhist priests as possessors of supernatural power, manifested through strict observance of Buddhist vows (abstinence, chastity, etc.), worship of the main Buddhist shrines (the Three Treasures) and study of the Buddhist canon.

list of literature

Gangoji garan engi narabi-ni ruki shizate (Records of the foundation of the Gangoji Monastery and the treasures belonging to it) / / Buddhism in Japan, Moscow, 1993.
Famous yoginis / / Women in Buddhism, Moscow, 1996.
Kojiki, vol. 1, St. Petersburg, 1994.

Nihon ryo:iki. Japanese legends of miracles. St. Petersburg: Hyperion Publ., 1995.

Nihon seki. Annals of Japan, St. Petersburg: Hyperion, 1997.
Usov V. N. Wives and concubines of the Middle Kingdom, Moscow, 2006.
Georgieva V. Buddhist Nuns in China: from Six Dynasties to Tang. Leiden, 2000.

Teeuwen M, Rambelli F. Buddhas and Kami in Japan (Honji Suijaku as a Combinatory Paradigm). London: Rutledge Curson, 2003.

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