Akashagarbha Buddhist protection reliquary in solid 925 silver 18k gold plated turquoise

Buddhist protection reliquary bodhisattva Akashagarbha in solid 925 silver plated with 18k turquoise gold. Arizona Turquoise wheel of life

Wheel of life on the back, spinning on the back

Dimensions: 56/43/7 mm Weight approximately 58 grams.

In terms of symbols, the Buddha, seated under the bodhi tree, saw two
things. First, he saw a Ferris wheel. This wheel embraces the whole of
conditioned existence, it is of the same extent as the cosmos, it contains
all living beings. It spins non-stop: it spins day and night,
it turns life after life, it turns era after era.

We can't see when it started spinning, and we can't for
the moment to see when it will stop turning: only a Buddha sees that.

AKASHAGARBHA

Akashagarbha is the protector of people born under the sign of the Ox and the Tiger.

He is one of the Eight Great Bodhisattvas of Vajrayana. and one of thirteen
Buddhas of the Japanese Shingon tantric school. His name is formed from ākāśa, "
unlimited space”, and from garbha, “matrix”. invoked to develop the
wisdom. His cult has been maintained mainly in Japan.

Ākāśagarbha represents the essence of ether and belongs on the mandalas to the
ratna (jewel) family. According to the Akashagarbha Sutra, it is prayed towards the east
while waiting for the dawn (aruņa) which is its manifestation. It is also said that the moon,
the sun and the stars are its manifestations.

Given that part of his name may have the meaning of "sky", some
proposed to see a celestial or stellar deity at the origin of the
bodhisattva. This bodhisattva is associated with a memory enhancement ritual
described in the Bodhisattva Ākāśagarbha Sutra which was introduced in Japan
during the Nara period (645-794). Even today, many people
recite his mantra in the hope of revitalizing a failing memory.

On the island of Honshu, children used to pay homage to Kokuzo
on their thirteenth birthday to seek the improvement of their abilities
intellectual. Ākāśagarbha is also prayed for manual skill; he
is considered the patron saint of craftsmen.

Apart from its utilitarian aspects, Kokûzô's mantra also has an effect
witty. It is recited to develop wisdom. Kukai, founder of
Shingon Buddhism, made several times his particular asceticism, "Goumanji"
100 day ritual of repeating the mantra a million times in
isolation.

At the end of the 10th, it is said that the star of dawn, symbolized by the
bodhisattva, descended to merge with him, bringing him enlightenment. Last
on the list of Thirteen Buddhas of the True Word stream, Ākāśagarbha also closes the
cycle of funeral rituals by presiding over the last commemorative ceremony 32
years after death. Ākāśagarbha also has some importance in the
Nichiren Buddhism.

The Seicho-ji (Kiyosumi-dera), temple where the founder of the current studied, was
built around a statue of this bodhisattva. According to the Gosho, a collection of his
writings, Nichiren saw one day Kokuzo appear in front of him then change into a
old monk who gave him a pearl of wisdom.