Fudo Myoo

Fudo Myoo, known in Sanskrit as Acala or Acalanatha meaning "The Immovable," is a wrathful deity and protector of the Dharma prominent in Vajrayana and East Asian esoteric Buddhism. Originally regarded as a messenger of the buddha Vairocana, he rose to become a major figure in his own right as a remover of obstacles and destroyer of evil, and is venerated as the wrathful manifestation of Vairocana or related buddhas and bodhisattvas.

In East Asian esoteric Buddhism, Fudo Myoo holds the preeminent position among the Five Wisdom Kings of the Womb Realm and occupies a central place in the Mandala of the Two Realms. In Japan, he is among the most widely revered Buddhist deities, honored across the Shingon, Tendai, Zen, and Nichiren schools as well as in the mountain ascetic tradition of Shugendo.

Fudo Myoo is typically depicted in a fierce, wrathful form, often holding a sword to cut through delusion and a rope to bind evil forces. His iconography conveys an unyielding resolve to protect practitioners and guide all beings toward awakening, and he has been the subject of devoted worship throughout East Asia from medieval times to the present day.