Rare hanging scroll of blue deity to be displayed

The Yomiuri Shim bun KYOTO--A hanging scroll depicting a guardian deity that is rarely shown to the public will be exhibited in autumn at Shoren-in temple in Higashiyama Ward, Kyoto. The scroll dating from the mid-Heian period (794-1192) has been preserved as a hidden treasure at the monzeki temple of the Tendai Sect, which has close ties to the Imperial family. The 2-meter by 1.5-meter scroll features a fierce seated cetaka (a guardian deity) painted in bluish black against a backdrop of flame.

The Blue Cetaka painting at the temple is known as one of the nation's three major cetaka paintings and has been designated a national treasure. The Blue Cetaka is believed to have the power to burn away people's worries. The hanging scroll has been shown to the public only on three occasions, including an exhibition of paintings from the Heian period in 1986 in Nara. But the upcoming exhibition will be the first time the temple has shown the scroll in its precincts since it was founded in the late Heian period.

A replica of the scroll is usually shown to the public at the temple. The temple decided to show the scroll to the public because the Blue Cetaka might point people in the right direction amid deteriorating economic conditions. During the special public display of the deity from Sept. 18 to Dec. 20, the temple will hold a ritual to burn small pieces of wood inscribed with wishes to help them come true. The temple will also organize a workshop on sutra transcription and illuminate its precincts at night.