HInDu DeITIes aRe founD In Japan
Most people are not aware that a score of Hindu deities are actively worshipped in the land of the rising sun, Japan. There are hundreds of shrines to Goddess Saraswati alone. There are innumerable representations of Lakshmi, Indra, Brahma, Ganesha, Garuda and other deities. Deities whom we have practically forgotten in India, such as Vayu and Varuna, are still worshiped in Japan.You can see the Indian deities in Japan at an amazing photo exhibition which was opened at the Rashtrapati Bhawan on Saturday evening by General (Retired) V.K. Singh, Minister of State for External Affairs. Titled “Hindu Deities Worshipped in Japan”, the exhibition has been organised jointly by the Rashtrapati Bhawan and the Japan Foundation. A film on the same subject was also shown. It won seven awards at international film festival awards in 2016. The Japanese version of the film had been shown by the Indian embassy in Tokyo before PM Modi’s visit to Japan in November last year. Among many dignitaries present were Colombia’s ambassador, Monica Lanzetta, and Costa Rica’s envoy, Mariela Cruz. At the time of going to the press, we were told that President Pranab Mukherjee was expected to visit the exhibition. The 82-photograph exhibition will remain open for public till 8 July (Monday closed), 10 am to 4 pm.We are pleased to feature once again Benoy K. Behl (60), the photographer who “discovered” these Hindu deities in Japan. In this column last Sunday (25 June), we talked about this filmmaker, art-historian and photographer as the “yoga ambassador” who went to South America to shoot for his mega documentary. “I found that Japan has preserved ancient Indian traditions, even when they may have changed in India. In Japan, Saraswati is depicted and venerated not only with the veena, but also remembered for her association with water. One may recall that Saraswati is originally the personification of the river by that name. Therefore, she is also worshiped in pools of water in Japan,” Behl told The Sunday Guardian. Behl was delighted to find continuance of the tradition of homa ( havan) in some of the most important Japanese Buddhist sects, who call it goma. According to Behl, many words in the Japanese language are from Sanskrit. Sanskrit was also the basis for the formation of the Japanese alphabet “Kana”. In the supermarkets, a major brand of milk products is called “Sujata”.The company personnel are taught the story of Sujata who gave sweet rice milk to the Buddha, with which he broke his period of austerity, before he gained Enlightenment.The exhibition was possible with the support of a Japan Foundation Fellowship in 2015. Kaoru Miyamoto, director general of the Japan Foundation, said, “We were delighted with Behl’s excellent research which led to this exhibition and a film.” Indian Ministry of External Affairs also sponsored this film. The exhibition and the film have highlighted the deep cultural ties between India and Japan.