Cosmos in Cosmoses

Already Nara is in the middle of deep autumn. Everyday, the air is getting transparent and crispy more and more. I am enjoying the most comfortable time of the year!

I visited Hannya-ji Temple (般若寺) in Nara.　This temple is well-known as Cosmos Temple. The history of the temple is said to date back to the 7th century.

 The main hall of the temple looks as if it were floating 

amid 150,000 cosmos flowers of 35 species.

Cosmoses are flowers native to Mexico. Around the end of the 18th century, the seeds of the flowers were first brought to Antonio Jose Cavanilles, the chief of Royal Botanical Garden in Madrid , Spain from Mexico. He named these flowers "Cosmos bipinnatus"

The word origin of "cosmos" comes from Greek word "Kosmos" which means order, harmony and the universe.  Maybe, people have seen the harmonious and well-ordered beauty in the flowers also.  Cosmetic or Cosmopolitan are derived from "cosmos".

For me cosmoses are difficult flowers to take photos.

Often they are very photogenic, but suddenly they turn photo-shy.

Among lovely flowers, the stone statues of Buddhist deities appear and greet us here and there.

How peaceful their archaic smiles are! Maybe they are whispering us
about the Buddhist cosmos in the middle of the  waves of cosmoses. 

Hannya (般若) means the wisdom of Buddha to see the truth.  The name of Hannya-ji Temple means this.

Interesting enough, Hannya has another meaning. It is said in Japan if a woman is so jealous, she transforms to a  female demon with two horns,  which is also called Hannya(般若).  This is a  mask of the female demon tormented by jealousy. The mask is used in Noh plays. As this type of masks were made by Priest Hannya first, so that they have been called Hannya.

My related blog
Most Beautiful Jealousy

Heart Sutra

Zizo Bodhisattva, a guardian deity of people especially children, wears a red bib where Heart Sutra (Hannya Sin Gyo, 般若心経） is written.  Heart Sutra, composing of  276 Chinese characters, is one of the shortest sutras. But it shows the essence of Buddha's teachings. Listening to Buddhist priests  chanting this sutra is soothing and brings me the peaceful state of mind.

 The thirteen-storied stone pagoda in early sunset.

大空の　青きとばりに　寄りそひて

人を思へる　こすもすの花

与謝野晶子

Snuggling up to the blue shroud of the wide sky

Longing for someone

Cosmos flowerers

By Akiko Yosano (1878 - 1942)

She is one of the greatest poets. Her poems are characterized by a fiery passion and love. Surprisingly enough, she changed so neat and clean flowers into so passionate ones!

a dragonfly and cosmoses

参考）　季節の花事典、　麓　次郎　著、（株）八坂書房　発行所

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